James R. Macy Was sworn in on August 17, 2026, as a member of the National Labor Relations Board, beginning a term set to conclude on August 27, 2030.
Macy, a Republican, and David M. Prouty, a Democrat, were both confirmed by the U.S. Senate on August 7, 2026, completing a significant shift in the Board’s composition.
With approximately eighteen months of the Trump administration now elapsed, the Board is finally positioned to revisit Biden-era cases that largely favoured labour unions.
How quickly policy changes emerge depends on several factors, particularly whether cases currently on the Board’s docket involve issues ripe for reversal.
In a separate development, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs published a final rule rescinding regulations that implemented Executive Order 11246, which had required federal contractors to maintain written affirmative action plans.
The move follows President Trump’s January 21, 2025, Executive Order 14173, titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” which rescinded the original executive order underpinning those requirements.
The final rule, which takes effect on October 26, 2026, does not affect federal contractors’ obligations under Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act or the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act.
Labour unions and educational organisations filed a legal challenge this week against a Department of Homeland Security and ICE final rule that eliminated the “duration of status” framework for nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, alleges the rule is arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act, citing inadequate cost-benefit analysis.
Specifically, the complaint alleges that ICE “entirely refused to quantify costs to stakeholders or the economy writ large caused by a decline in enrollment of international students.”
The complaint also alleges that ICE “made no effort to estimate the purported benefits of the Final Rule” while failing to explain how eliminating duration of status would address national security concerns.
Meanwhile, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published new policy guidance on August 18, 2026, explaining how the agency will assess whether green card applicants are likely to become a public charge.
Under the new guidance, effective September 18, 2026, hearing officers may consider factors including receipt of cash assistance, housing assistance, food stamps, financial aid for college, or any other similar benefit.
The guidance implements a July 20, 2026, final rule that removed public charge determinations from governance via regulation, broadening the discretion available to hearing officers assessing applicants’ circumstances.