Confirmation of Alejandro Mayorkas as DHS Secretary and Issuance of Three Executive Orders
On February 2, 2021, the Senate confirmed Alejandro Mayorkas as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. The White House also issued three executive orders:
- White House Issues Executive Order on the Establishment of Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families
- White House Issues Executive Order to Restore Faith in Our Immigration System and Promote Integration of New Americans
- White House Issues Executive Order on the Southern Border and the Asylum System
The Executive Order on the Southern Border and the Asylum System issued on February 2, 2021 is effective immediately. In this executive order, the White House orders the implementation of a comprehensive three-part plan for safe, lawful, and orderly migration across the southern border, as well as to review the Migrant Protection Protocols program. The order also directs a series of actions to restore the U.S. asylum system.
The Executive Order on the Establishment of Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families issued on February 2, 2021 is also effective immediately. This executive order establishes a task force to reunite families that remain separated and also revokes the Trump administration’s executive order dated June 20, 2018 that sought to justify separating children from their parents.
The Executive Order to Restore Faith in Our Immigration System and Promote Integration of New Americans issued on February 2, 2021 directs agencies to conduct a top-to-bottom review of recent regulations, policies, and guidance that have set up barriers to the legal immigration system. It also orders immediate review of agency actions on public charge inadmissibility.