A federal judge in Washington blocked a Trump administration directive Thursday that prevented immigrants lacking permanent legal status from accessing certain health and education-related programs, like Head Start.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) rule, announced July 10, aimed to redefine “federal public benefits,” which previously included 31 programs that only “qualified aliens,” like asylum-seekers and refugees, could access. Thirteen programs were added to the list, meaning “non-qualified aliens,” such as DACA recipients and those with Temporary Protected Status, could no longer access them.
Examples included Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics and Head Start, which provides comprehensive early childhood education, health, nutrition and family support services to low-income children and families.
Most recent data shows that 5,160 Oklahomans are DACA recipients, and 4,415 have temporary protected status.
Parents and Head Start providers from multiple states sought to stop the directive. They argued that by expanding the definition of “federal public benefit” to include Head Start, the federal government violated the Administrative Procedure Act and acted in excess of its statutory authority.
The ruling from U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez prevents the directive from going into effect and the government from enforcing it against any Head Start agencies, program providers, student or family participants, or others, while legal proceedings play out.
Court documents noted the harms from the policy “are not merely speculative.” A Pennsylvania Head Start member, for example, cited a 50% decline in enrollment of Spanish-speaking families.
“While actual loss of funding from under enrollment might be down the road, families losing access to Head Start due to the Directive’s unclear guidance and chilling effects appears anything but speculative and exists even prior to enforcement,” Martinez wrote. “As Plaintiffs enumerate, this chilling effect results in the immediate harm of childhood education loss, disability support, dual-language instruction, and stable learning environments, leading to long-term harms in development.”
The Trump administration rule rescinded a nearly 30-year interpretation of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, which exempted several community-based grant programs from requirements to collect information, such as proof of legal status.
Katie Hamm, who worked as the deputy assistant secretary for early childhood development under the Biden Administration, said in July it is usually up to local communities to determine which families most need Head Start services.
“This is a pretty seismic shift in the philosophical and statutory grounding in Head Start, which is really around meeting community needs, tailoring services to each child and not asking where a child came from but really just embracing them and supporting them on their educational journey,” Hamm said.
Candice Williams is the executive director of Family Forward Oregon, a plaintiff in the case. She said in a press release Thursday’s decision was a “powerful step” toward protecting early education access.
“This ruling ensures some stability for families and caregivers during a tumultuous time in our country. With so many attacks against our immigrant community, ensuring they do not lose access to Head Start is a tremendous win for children and families,” Williams said. “This is only one win of many to come! We will not stop fighting.”
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