Pa. attorney general signs letter to Trump supporting DACA recipients

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro joined 19 other Democratic attorneys general last week in signing a letter to President Donald Trump encouraging him to maintain an immigration program that protects certain undocumented immigrants, including some Penn State students, from deportation.

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program was developed in 2012 during President Barack Obama’s second term. The program allows undocumented immigrants who came to the United States before they turned 16 to receive protection from deportation orders and eligibility for work permits for up to two years.

The future of DACA was not addressed in Trump’s immigration executive orders, but during the first three months of his presidency, the program has added about 17,000 DACA recipients, and just more than 100,000 DACA work permits were renewed, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

But in June, 10 Republican state officials sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions threatening to take legal action against the Trump administration if it does not end the program. The move by the Republicans prompted the letter Shapiro endorsed.

“The Federal Government put the DACA program in place to allow young adults who were brought to our country as children without making a choice and who often know no other home, to continue pursuing their education, careers and military service on behalf of the United States,” Shapiro said in an email. “These young men and women have undergone background checks and are contributing to our economy and our communities.”

Since the program was implemented, more than 800,000 undocumented immigrants have received protection, according to American Immigration Council. Annually about 65,000 undocumented immigrants graduate from high school and about 10,000 graduate from college, according to AIC.

Penn State has declined to release the number of DACA students at the university but has offered support for the program and its students since Election Day in November.

In December, Penn State President Eric Barron joined almost 600 university leaders in signing a letter that affirmed support for DACA students, and on Monday, Reidar Jensen, assistant director of news and media relations, said the university continues to support the program.

Pennsylvania is home to just more than 14,000 DACA recipients, which ranks it 21st in the nation, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The AIC estimates that almost 16,000 undocumented immigrants in Pennsylvania are eligible for DACA program.

“We believe President Trump should continue his support for DACA,” Shapiro said. “Our government shouldn’t go back on its promise to these young men and women now.”

This story was originally published July 26, 2017 at 7:09 PM with the headline "Pa. attorney general signs letter to Trump supporting DACA recipients."