Department of Homeland Security acting secretary Elaine Duke on Monday lifted Haitians' temporary protection from deportation granted after the 2010 earthquake in the Caribbean nation, the Miami Herald reported.
The approximately 50,000 Haitians living and working across the country with "Temporary Protected Status" will have 18 months — until July 22, 2019 — to go back to Haiti or legalize their status in the United States, the newspaper reported.
The decision comes 14 days after DHS announced it was ending TPS for 2,500 Nicaraguans and delaying a decision for 57,000 Hondurans, which automatically gave them a six-month extension after their current status expires in January.
Members of Congress from South Florida were disappointed.
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., called the decision "unconscionable," while Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., and Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Fla., both vowed to look for legislative solutions, the Herald reported.
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