FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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BALTIMORE, MD – Attorney General Anthony G. Brown joined a multistate coalition in opposing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) proposed revisions to the AR-11 Change of Address form, which would transform a straightforward, longstanding, limited administrative form into an onerous and expansive information collection exercise likely to require assistance from an immigration practitioner.
In May, DHS proposed to significantly revise the form, which previously only required an individual’s physical address and basic biographic information such as name, date of birth, and registration number, to now require the detailed disclosure of employment, education, and public benefit use information. The stated purposes for this information collection are vague, with DHS citing the enforcement of immigration laws, including the public charge ground for deportation rule, and the enforcement of the Personal Responsibility & Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), a law that restricts the eligibility for certain public benefits.
In the comment letter, Attorney General Brown and the coalition strenuously object to and request the withdrawal of the proposal to change the AR-11 form because the proposed revisions and the stated purposes of the information collection are unlawful and inappropriate, and these changes will negatively impact the states by deterring lawful participation in public benefit programs, including by children who are U.S. citizens, and increasing the states’ administrative burdens.
Reports show there are approximately 70,000 people in Maryland awaiting an asylum decision, 12,500 DACA recipients, almost 50,000 refugees, and 27,000 people with Temporary Protected Status living in Maryland. The proposal will have a significant effect on Maryland families and children. Additionally, nearly half a million U.S. citizen children in Maryland live with one foreign born parent, many of whom are asylum seekers, according to the American Immigration Council. The new form will place a burden on many Marylanders, who could risk severe consequences for even minor mistakes.
In the comment letter, Attorney General Brown argues that the proposed revisions and information collection are unlawful, improper, and ineffective for these reasons:
- DHS did not follow the required notice-and-comment procedure under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) to enact the proposed revisions.
- DHS does not have authority to compel individuals to provide the additional information it envisions collecting.
- DHS seeks information that is far broader than what is relevant for its stated purpose of making public charge determinations.
- The stated purposes for the information collection are improper as the proposal is unnecessary, overly burdensome, and inefficient at achieving those objectives and include purposes that are not properly delegated to DHS or violate federal privacy laws.
- Many eligible noncitizens will forego or unenroll from public benefits because of fear that DHS will try to use the disclosure of public benefit use information to deport them, severely harming public health in the states. These chilling effects will increase stress on state and locally funded alternatives, increase burden on safety net providers, increase uncompensated emergency room care, reduce access to medical care and nutritional support, and increase administrative costs.
In filing the comment letter, Attorney General Brown was joined by the attorneys general of California, the District of Columbia, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.
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