A leading advocacy group for immigrants in Miami wants President Biden to extend special immigration benefits to more than 200,000 Haitians nationwide before he leaves office on Monday.
The Family Action Network Movement, or FANM, is holding a press conference on Wednesday morning at their office in Miami to urge the administration to extend Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, to Haitian immigrants.
Last June, the Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas announced the extension and redesignation of Haiti for TPS for 18 months, from Aug. 4, 2024, through Feb. 3, 2026.
FANM leaders want the administration to extend TPS until at least Dec. 31, 2028. Florida is home to the country’s highest number of TPS holders — about 300,000. South Florida is home to the nation's largest number of Haitian immigrants.
It’s unclear if the administration would announce another extension before Biden leaves office on Monday.
Last Friday, the administration announced that about 600,000 Venezuelans and more than 230,000 Salvadorans with TPS can legally remain another 18 months. It also announced extending TPS for more than 103,000 Ukrainians and 1,900 Sudanese already in the country.
READ MORE: Biden extends time in US for 800,000 Venezuelans, Salvadorans as Trump readies immigration crackdown
The administration announcement came only a week before President-elect Donald Trump takes office with promises of hardline immigration policies. He has pledged to deport millions of people living in the U.S. illegally.
Congress created TPS in 1990 to prevent deportations to countries suffering from natural disasters or civil strife, giving people authorization to work in increments of up to 18 months at a time.
About 1 million immigrants from 17 countries are protected by TPS, including people from Venezuela, Honduras, Nicaragua, Afghanistan, Sudan, Ukraine and Lebanon. Haitians are among the largest number of beneficiaries.
TPS, however, faces an uncertain future under Trump, who tried to sharply curtail its use during his first term as president. Federal regulations would allow the extensions to be terminated early, although that's never been done before.
FANM leaders are also expressing concerns over Monday’s decision by Gov. Ron DeSantis to hold a special legislative session in Tallahassee to implement Trump’s deportation plans.
“DeSantis’ support for these [deportation] measures pose a grave threat to Haitians and other immigrant communities, particularly as Haiti faces severe crises,” said the FANM in a statement. “Implementing these deportations would also have devastating economic consequences for the United States.”
DeSantis issued a proclamation Monday calling lawmakers into session starting Jan. 27. He said the session is needed, in part, to take steps for the state to help carry out Trump’s planned crackdown on illegal immigration.
“Thank you Ron, hopefully other Governors will follow!” Trump said in a post Tuesday on Truth Social.
DeSantis also wants lawmakers to use the special session to address issues that have driven up costs for condominium owners, change a ballot-initiative process, help the agricultural industry and residents recovering from hurricanes and replenish funding for a popular home-hardening program.
But Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, and House Speaker Daniel Perez, R-Miami, indicated Monday they want to wait until the regular session, which will start March 4, to address all the issues.
“As you know, this Legislature will address illegal immigration, condominiums, petition initiatives and hurricane recovery this (regular) session, which starts in 50 days,” Albritton and Perez said in a joint memo to lawmakers. “Calling a special session at this time is premature.”
The News Service of Florida and The Associated Press contributed to this story.
