Attorney General James Takes Action to Defend Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans

AG James Co-Leads 17 Attorneys General in Amicus Brief Supporting Challenge to Trump Administration’s Unlawful Early Termination of TPS for Venezuelans

New York Attorney General Letitia James today co-led a coalition of 17 attorneys general to defend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans. The program is a critical humanitarian program established by Congress in 1990 that protects individuals from being returned to certain countries that have been deemed unsafe. TPS also provides eligible recipients with authorization to work in the United States. TPS countries may be deemed unsafe due to ongoing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions.

In an amicus brief filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Attorney General James and the coalition support the plaintiffs challenging the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) unprecedented efforts to terminate TPS for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan nationals, many of whom have built lives in the United States. In the brief, the attorneys general urge the court to postpone the administration’s unlawful early termination of the TPS designation for Venezuela.

“By eliminating TPS protections for Venezuelans, the administration is disregarding our fundamental American values and cruelly putting vulnerable families at risk,” said Attorney General James. “The TPS program offers refuge to those who came to this country in search of safety and stability, a tradition that dates back to our nation’s founding. This move is as dangerous as it is unlawful, and it must be stopped.” 

As of January 2025, more than 600,000 Venezuelans are living in the United States with TPS status. Additionally, more than 130,000 American citizens live in “mixed status” households with those who are living and working in the United States under TPS. The termination of TPS for Venezuelans will force hardworking families that have been living in the United States to make an impossible choice between:

• Returning to their country of origin alone, leaving their families behind;
• Taking their family members, some of whom are American citizens, with them to a dangerous country that they do not know; or
• Staying in the United States and retreating into the shadows, knowing that they cannot work legally and could be ripped from their families at any time.

New York is home to approximately 56,800 TPS holders. In 2023, New York TPS households earned $2.3 billion in income, paid $348.9 million in federal taxes, $305.5 million in state and local taxes, and contributed $1.6 billion in spending power. Annually, New York’s immigrant entrepreneur community generates approximately $8.6 billion in income.

In the brief, the coalition urges the court to prevent this order from going into effect, arguing that the termination of TPS for Venezuelans is unlawful and will:

• Result in irreparable harm to families, stripping members of work authorization and exposing them to the threat of deportation;
• Harm states’ economies and workforces as TPS holders, including Venezuelans, are dynamic contributors to the states’ economies;
• Raise healthcare costs and pose substantial risks to public health; and
• Create challenges in protecting public safety for jurisdictions across the country. 

Joining Attorney General James and California Attorney General Rob Bonta in filing the brief are the attorneys general of Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.