The Biden administration launched a new effort on Monday to reunite families separated under the previous administration's immigration policies. Department of Homeland Security officials will lead a task force that is charged with identifying and reuniting parents and their children who were separated at the United States-Mexico border during the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced legislation that would expedite the asylum process by cutting applicant wait times and easing the mounting backlog in immigration courts. The bill would create a two-tiered system in which low-risk applicants, such as families and people from countries with acute crises, would have their cases reviewed within 90 days.

A federal court has blocked a state law used to detain immigrants at the request of federal authorities on the grounds it was unconstitutional in assuming a role meant to be left strictly to the federal government. It noted such laws create inconsistency across states in the application of immigration policies, thus undermining the requirement for uniformity necessary to support effective enforcement on a national level.

The Labor Department announced that it is creating a dedicated task force to target the exploitation of migrant workers in industries that are more prone to labor violations, including agriculture, construction, and food processing. The task force will enforce existing labor laws, investigate claims of wage theft and unsafe working conditions, and prosecute employers who exploit migrant labor.

Looking at labor shortages within agricultural communities, a bipartisan group of legislators proposed the answer be reformed into an H-2A visa, utilized for seasonal guest farm workers. Their law would streamline application procedures and let into this labor pool other major year-round-using sectors-such as dairies-and those undocumented farm hands who have kept over the preceding numerous years in illegal status.

Lawmakers have proposed legislation that would increase the protection for migrant children, arriving into the country as well as unaccompanied minors. The bill improves the conditions of shelters and allocates more money for legal representation; it will accelerate processing for children's releases to sponsors or family members.

The Biden administration has unveiled a massive funding boost to address the enormous backlog in U.S. immigration courts, which currently stands at over 2 million cases awaiting adjudication. The steps include hiring more judges, clerks, and support staff besides investing in new technologies to better manage the cases and make the adjudication process less cumbersome.

A bipartisan bill introduced a new category of visa for those displaced by climate-related disasters: the "Climate Migration Visa." It would provide temporary or permanent residency to people who are forced to flee rising sea levels, severe drought, and other environmental catastrophes in their home countries.

A bipartisan group of senators has introduced legislation to combat human trafficking networks operating along the U.S.-Mexico border. The bill includes funding for increased law enforcement cooperation, expanded victim services, and enhanced penalties for traffickers.

A federal court has upheld protections for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, ruling that the policy remains valid while ongoing legal challenges are resolved. The decision ensures that current DACA recipients, also known as Dreamers, can continue to renew their status and work legally in the U.S. The ruling, however, does not allow new applications for the program.