Immigrant Rights

Farmworker Legal Services Issue Brief: Marriage Licenses and Social Security Numbers
     FLS has prepared an Issue Brief regarding the current issue of whether applicants for a marriage license can be required to present a social security number to the county clerk.  The Michigan Attorney General issued a formal opinion clarifying this issue in March 2008.  Click here to see the FLS Issue Brief.

Federal Agents Investigate Immigrants' Claims of Missing Valuables
     In February 2004, the Detroit Free Press reported that federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security are investigating immigrants’ claims that their money and valuables went missing while the immigrants were in the custody of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in Detroit. Two officials from the ICE office in Detroit are on paid leave while the federal investigators look into the case. Detained immigrants in Michigan are usually held in the Monroe County and Calhoun County jails. ICE’s detention responsibilities were previously handled by the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS).
     FLS recommends that persons who believe that their possessions, or those of family members, have been misplaced while being detained for immigration violations contact either their local U.S. Representative or one of Michigan’s United States Senators.

Migrant Worker Driving Rights
     FLS staff prepared an analysis of the Secretary of State's proposal to deny a Michigan driver's license to persons who fail to present specific documentation of their legal presence in the U.S., but who can prove their identity (such as through a "Matricula Consular" issued by the Mexican Consulate).  The proposal has not passed.
     Also, FLS staff sought and received a favorable response to an issue raised by migrant services staff regarding troopers issuing tickets to migrant farmworkers who do not have a Michigan driver's license.  The issue arose due to confusion over a Michigan law that implies that anyone "employed in Michigan" must have a Michigan driver's license.  In response to FLS' inquiry, the Michigan State Police issued a clarification stating that, as migrant farmworkers are not Michigan residents, they should not receive tickets from state troopers for not having a Michigan driver's license.
 
National Origin Discrimination of FIA Applicants
     In response to a complaint filed by FLS, the federal Office of Civil Rights in the Department of Health and Human Services warned the Michigan Family Independence Agency that the way it previously treated legal immigrants and children of immigrants violated federal civil rights law.
     FIA responded to these complaints in a Program Policy Bulletin and changes to the Program Eligibility Manual.  Specifically, FIA updated its policy manual to follow federal guidance regarding the reporting of undocumented immigrants to the INS.  The policy has been clarified to state that FIA can report an undocumented immigrant only if the immigrant is applying for benefits for herself under FIP or the Food Assistance Program, and, in addition, one of the following two conditions must be met: (1) The immigrant has presented FIA with a Final Order of Deportation, or (2) The FIA made a determination of ineligibility based on immigration status and FIA's decision was upheld in an administrative hearing and the hearing determination of unlawful presence is supported by a determination by the INS or the Executive Office for Immigration Review.  FIA's reporting requirement is not triggered by the absence of proof of legal residence, or by an oral or written statement by a family member that someone is undocumented.
     FIA policy was also clarified to state that social security numbers are not required of persons who are not requesting assistance for themselves.  Therefore, for example, an ineligible alien parent should be able to apply for Medicaid and Food Stamp benefits for a U.S. citizen child without FIA asking for, or requiring, the social security number of the parent.