San Francisco and the county of Santa Clara, California, on Tuesday filed a joint lawsuit against the Trump administration’s regulation that makes it harder for immigrants to obtain green cards if they’ve received or are likely to receive government benefits.
Since it was announced Monday, the “public charge” rule has been met with fierce backlash from Democrats, immigration advocates and others who argue it will discourage legal immigrants from receiving benefits they’re eligible for.
“By design, it will also coerce thousands of immigrants and their family members to forgo or disenroll from critical federally funded, county-administered programs – even benefits not technically covered by the Final Rule – to reduce the risk that they or their family members will be denied admission or permanent residency,” the complaint filed by Santa Clara County and San Francisco reads, adding that some people have already disenrolled from benefits “out of fear.”