Asylum overhaul: Trump administration fast tracking cases

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Trump administration on Monday announced its plan to expedite the asylum system by diverting more cases to immigration courts. 

What we know:

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced Monday a new rule that will allow the agency to refer asylum applications to Department of Justice immigration judges without needing to interview the asylum seeker first. 

Both USCIS and immigration judges process asylum applications. USCIS handles cases for asylum seekers who have "affirmative" applications and for individuals who are not in the process of being deported. Immigration judges typically handle cases where an individual is in the process of being deported and may or may not be currently detained. 

The new rule eliminates the need for USCIS to interview an individual before handing them over to immigration judges. 

What they're saying:

"For far too long the asylum system has been exploited for the purposes of delay and work authorization, not legitimate claims of protection," said USCIS Director Joseph Edlow. 

By the numbers:

While DHS said the new rule will shorten the total time for processing asylum applications, immigration courts across the country continue to face backlogs as well. 

In Minnesota, the current backlog stands at more than 33,000 cases, according to Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. 

"I believe our asylum system is struggling because there aren’t enough asylum officers to make a decision and there aren’t enough immigration judges," said Trina Swanson, the former USCIS field office director in Minneapolis.

"We know that there's incredible backlogs in our immigration courts and so people are waiting for years for that decision as well. And so there needs to be more resources so that people are not waiting years."

Dig deeper:

The recent rule change is the latest effort from the Trump Administration to overhaul the asylum system.

A recent report from the ACLU accused the Trump Administration of undermining that system.

That report recommended funding and bolstering the asylum processing system to address backlogs, streamline the bureaucratic processes and enhance due process through legal representation.

"They should have their opportunity in front of that judge to talk through their case, to testify, to bring in witnesses – and so if you take that away from somebody, we are not giving them due process, we’re not allowing them to go through that system for that proper decision to be made at the end," Swanson said. 

What's next:

The new rule is effective immediately. USCIS will accept public comments and then issue a final rule at a later date. 

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