Supreme Court punts on case tied to Trump's 'public charge' rule for immigrants

The Supreme Court declined Wednesday to issue a ruling on whether Republican-led states have the authority to defend a rule former President Donald Trump's administration issued seeking to restrict immigration benefits for individuals deemed likely to seek government aid.

The justices heard arguments in February on whether Republican-led states had the right to defend the legality of Trump's "public charge" rule after President Joe Biden's administration abandoned the policy and declined to argue in favor of it.

However, in a one-page opinion released following a slew of decisions handed down by the justices Wednesday morning, the high court said it was passing up the chance to resolve the legal issue. The court did not explain its action, simply announcing in an unsigned opinion that the court should not have granted review in the case.

The Supreme Court did step in on the legality of the Trump-era rules in January 2020, when it issued a 5-4 ruling allowing the Trump policy to take effect after several federal judges blocked it.

The Trump-era policy, championed by White House adviser Stephen Miller, broadened the definition of public assistance in federal immigration regulations. Under the rules, immigrants could have been denied permanent resident status — also known as a green card — if they had received food stamps, welfare, Medicaid, prescription drug subsidies or Section 8 housing vouchers or were found to be likely to do so in the future.

The Biden administration stopped enforcing the policy in March 2021.