Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security
What's at Stake
The lawsuit challenges a rule published in March 2025 by the Trump administration, which requires millions of people to register with the federal government and carry proof of their registration with them at all times, or risk federal criminal prosecution.
Summary
Just 30 days after publishing a rule with no public input, the government is activating a long-dormant, WWII-era federal law to require millions of non-citizens to register with the federal government. The rule is now creating a universal registration process and establishing an unprecedented requirement that millions of people carry specific identity papers with them at all times. The administration is also treating violations of this new process as a criminal enforcement priority, meaning that they will aggressively prosecute people for 鈥渨illful鈥� failure to register or for failing to carry their papers.
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem has stated explicitly that the rule is meant to incentivize people to 鈥渟elf-deport.鈥�
The Department of Homeland Security published the rule without allowing the public to submit comments, treating it as a 鈥減rocedural rule鈥� that doesn鈥檛 impact people鈥檚 lives or require public input. The Council鈥檚 lawsuit is arguing the following:
- Because the rule will affect millions of people, it should have been subjected to the notice and public comment requirements that agencies are required to follow.
- The rule is confusingly written and implementing it will cause chaos. There is little clarity about what categories of immigrants will already be counted as officially 鈥渞egistered.鈥� For example, those who鈥檝e received DACA and TPS protections wouldn鈥檛 count as registered if they don鈥檛 also have a work permit.