Washington, D.C.—Heritage Action today issued a Key Vote against the motion to discharge H. Res. 965, led by House Democrats and supported by some Republicans, and voiced opposition to the advancement and the consideration of H.R. 1689, a bill to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti for an additional three years, beyond President Trump’s term.
TPS, originally intended as a temporary designation for nations undergoing natural or manmade disasters, has been repeatedly extended and expanded far beyond its intended purpose and has become a de facto amnesty program that Congress should not perpetuate—particularly as President Trump works to restore integrity to immigration enforcement.
Daniel West, House Government Relations Director at Heritage Action released the following statement:
“Heritage Action will not support amnesty—no exceptions. The Trump administration is right to let these overused TPS programs expire as originally intended. TPS authority properly rests with the executive branch, not Congress as a vehicle to override the President’s administrative decisions.”
“It’s unacceptable to see some Republicans breaking ranks to advance this Democrat-led bill, betraying the mandate voters gave them and delivering de facto amnesty.”
By issuing a Key Vote, lawmakers are notified that their position on this vote will affect their score on the Heritage Action Scorecard, which shows voters and activists how conservative lawmakers are by comparing their policy positions to those of Heritage Action.
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KEY VOTE: VOTE "NO" ON THE EXTENSION OF HAITI TPS DESIGNATION
Heritage Action opposes the motion to discharge H. Res. 965 sponsored by Representative Ayanna Pressley, and the consideration of the underlying bill, H.R. 1689, to extend the designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for another three years, into the next administration. We reserve the right to score any related votes for inclusion on our Legislative Scorecard.
Beginning in June 2025, the Trump administration has sought to end the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for Haiti. The termination of this TPS designation and others have been challenged and delayed by activist judges on multiple occasions. Most recently, a district court judge from Washington, D.C., Ana Reyes, issued a stay on February 2, 2026, pausing the termination of TPS on the basis that the Trump administration had not followed the proper rulemaking process. The D.C. Circuit declined, 2‑1, to stay Judge Reyes’s order, leaving the TPS termination postponed while the appeal goes forward. The Supreme Court has granted certiorari before judgment and set the case for expedited argument, to be heard alongside a parallel Syria TPS case on April 29, 2026.
The members supporting a discharge petition and related votes to advance the underlying bill, H.R. 1689, appear to seek to establish a legislative record on the matter of TPS ahead of Supreme Court arguments to undermine the Trump administration’s case for ending the designation.
The purpose of TPS is to allow for small populations of individuals–who were already inside the United States when a natural or manmade disaster occurs in their home country–to lawfully remain in the United States during short periods when it would be unsafe for them to return home. Designating a country for TPS is properly the function of the Departments of Homeland Security and State rather than Congress because it is an exercise of homeland security and foreign policy. As such, Congress should not be overriding an executive branch function.
In addition, Haiti has been designated for TPS since a 2010 earthquake. It, like so many other TPS designations, has become a de facto amnesty for not just those aliens in the U.S. when disaster occurred, but an ever-growing list of hundreds of thousands of aliens who later arrived here.
The Trump administration is right to seek the termination of the TPS designation for Haiti, as it has lasted long beyond its original intent. This discharge petition, led by Democrats but enabled by a small group of Republicans, wrongly seeks to overturn the Trump administration’s policy and continue this abuse of our immigration system.