California Attorney General Rob Bonta, alongside 14 other attorneys general, has called on the Biden Administration to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for immigrants from countries with dangerous conditions. The request specifically focuses on maintaining TPS for all 17 currently designated countries or at least extending it for seven nations where the designation is set to expire within six months.
In their letter, the attorneys general also recommended designating Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, and Mali for TPS due to perilous conditions in these regions. TPS allows undocumented individuals in the United States to remain temporarily when returning home poses a threat due to armed conflict or natural disasters.
Following this appeal, the Biden Administration announced an extension of protections for four of the seven countries nearing expiration: El Salvador, Venezuela, Ukraine, and Sudan.
Attorney General Bonta stated, “California is proud to be home to more immigrants than any other state in the nation, including over 67,000 TPS holders. It’s what makes our state so great – and it’s why we have the fifth largest economy in the world.” He expressed strong support for programs like TPS as essential components of fair immigration policy and commended the administration's recent extensions while urging further action.
Currently designated TPS countries include Afghanistan and Yemen among others. The U.S. government recognizes that these nations are unsafe for returnees and maintains a moral obligation to allow affected individuals to stay until conditions improve.
The coalition of attorneys general advocating for these changes includes representatives from New York, Arizona, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
For additional information on immigrant rights and resources visit oag.ca.gov/immigrant/resources.