A new study reveals that the backlog of pending cases in the U.S. immigration court system is expected to exceed 500,000 while there are only 254 immigration judges on staff.

The Overburdened Immigration System

According to a new analysis released by Human Rights First on Tuesday, the number of cases pending before the court will soon exceed 500,000 due to a deficiency in immigration judges to hear them.

The study shows that the number of cases pending before the courts nationwide has more than doubled since 2009, with the greatest spikes in fiscal year 2014 and 2015. Meanwhile, it projects that the cases could double and peak over 1 million by the year 2022.

Immigrants in Legal Limbo

Because of the backlog, immigrants with a valid claim to stay in the U.S and those who should be quickly deported are forced to wait years to have their cases heard. This has left hundreds of thousands of immigrants in a state of limbo for over three years on average, while others are forced to wait even longer. Some courts average wait times of five to six years.

"Year after year, the backlog in the immigration courts continues to grow, leaving those seeking protection in legal limbo for years, and undercutting the integrity of our nation's immigration system," said Human Rights First's Eleanor Acer in a press release. "Unless Congress takes action now, the problem will only continue to get worse."

Most immigrants in removal proceedings in Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and Arizona will wait longer than three years for their cases to be resolved. As a result, the families of asylum seekers are typically stranded for years in dangerous or difficult situations.

Backlog in Texas

Texas immigration courts have the highest backlog in the country with about 89,000 pending cases. This means immigrants and asylum seekers must now wait for nearly five years to have their cases heard.

The number of cases pending in the Houston court grew by almost 460 percent between 2010 and 2016, ballooning from 6,423 to 36,136. To make matters worse, there are only six immigration judges on the bench in Houston and this court could see its caseload double by fiscal year 2019.

Other States

Many other states have growing backlogs, which mean that immigrants are waiting longer to have their cases resolved. California, for instance, has a whopping backlog, with 82,000 cases pending, according to an analysis of court records by Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse.

Immigrants in New York can expect to wait at least two and a half years for the court to consider their case. In Maryland, the wait is nearly two years, and in Georgia, Alabama, Arizona, and California, the wait ranges between three and three and a half years.

Causes and Effects

One of the driving forces behind the growing backlog is disproportionate funding of the immigration system by Congress, which has increased immigration enforcement budget without proportionately increasing the budget of the systems charged with handling these cases. The courts received about $304 million in funding back in 2013, compared to $18 billion given to agencies charged with detaining immigrants.

The influx of over 67,000 unaccompanied children and families fleeing violence in Central America in 2014 has also added to the already overwhelmed court system.

Congress Must Act

To help address this issue, the Human Rights First is urging Congress to support in Fiscal Year 2017 appropriations for 75 additional immigration judge teams.

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