On June 10, 2019, Kenneth T. Cuccinelli became the new acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), replacing L. Francis Cissna, who stepped down at the beginning of June 2019. Cuccinelli previously served as Virginia’s attorney general from 2010 through 2014.
Despite support from the Trump administration, he is not expected to be formally confirmed as director of USCIS due to lack of support in the United States Senate. Cuccinelli was appointed to serve in the capacity of “acting” director under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998. Under this act, Cuccinelli may serve as acting director for up to 210 days from June 1, or if the president nominates someone to take his place, Cuccinelli can continue in the role while that nomination is pending before the Senate.
Ogletree Deakins’ Immigration Practice Group will continue to monitor developments with respect to the policy changes and will post updates on our immigration blog as additional information becomes available.
