An update to the notice we posted last week about the ongoing STEM OPT litigation:

The court, in Washington Alliance of Technology Workers v. U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, granted the government (Department of Homeland Security or "DHS") more time to comply with the order to re-publish the final rule per the Administrative Procedures Act.  DHS asked for more time because it received extensive comments (more than 50,000) and could not provide a meaningful review in time to meet the court's original deadline.

The extension to May 10, 2016, means that the final rule will need to be published by Friday, March 11, 2016.

The court noted that the government has been taking an "all hands on deck" approach to compliance and that the proposed rule drew more than its next four most-commented-on proposed rules combined.  Given that groups such as Numbers USA, a group that advocates for severe restrictions on immigration, urged their supporters to file public comments, it will be enlightening to see the nature of the comments received when the final rule is published.