Directive lets illegal youths stay in U.S.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- The Obama administration has made public a program that could allow up to 1 million young people in the United States illegally to remain.

The directive issued Friday by the president affects people between the ages of 15 and 30, The New York Times reported.

Applicants have to proof they have lived in the country for least five years and have graduated high school or been honorably discharged from the military. They will be disqualified if they have been convicted of certain criminal offenses. They will have to pay a $465 fee to apply for the program.

Approval of applications is expected to take several months.

Some 900,000 people could be eligible. The Department of Homeland Security says it may have to hire more than 1,400 full time workers to handle the expected 3,000 applications a day.

One critic of the plan, Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King, criticized the president for issuing the directive and charged that Obama "had contempt for the Constitution and the role of the legislature."