LANSING, MI -- Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel joined 12 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security over a recent decision to deny green cards to immigrants who use social safety net programs.

President Donald Trump announced Monday his administration will prevent poorer migrants from entering the U.S. if they are deemed likely to receive state, local or federal benefits like Medicaid, food stamps and housing subsidies. Nessel said Michigan is home to tens of thousands of legal immigrants who have “every legal right” to receive benefits that help provide food, health care and shelter for their families.

“We cannot and must not allow this morally bankrupt administration to undermine the very fiber of a country that was built on providing a helping hand to those who came to our shores from other nations – and which sacred values are enshrined on our Statue of Liberty," Nessel said in a statement. "We are better than this.”

A coalition of 13 states, led by Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson and Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, assert that the Department of Homeland Security violated federal immigration statutes, the Welfare Reform Act and the Administrative Procedure Act by unlawfully expanding the definition of “public charge."

In the lawsuit, the attorneys general write that the Trump administration’s rule “effects a radical redirection of federal immigration law from a system that promotes economic mobility among immigrants to one that advantages immigrants with wealth.”

Trump said his administration is taking action to prevent migrants from being a “strain on public resources" and move to a merit-based immigration system. The rule will take effect on Oct. 15 and does not apply to U.S. citizens, members of the Armed Forces, people seeking asylum or refugees.

Ken Cuccinelli, acting director of Citizenship and Immigration Services, said the rule change will ensure those who come to the country can support themselves.

“Throughout our history, self-reliance has been a core principle in America,” Cuccinelli said at a press conference Monday. “The virtues of perseverance, hard work, and self-sufficiency laid the foundation of our nation and have defined generations of immigrants seeking opportunity in the United States.”

Under the new rules, DHS redefined a public charge as someone who is “more likely than not” to receive public benefits for more than 12 months within a three-year period. If someone uses two benefits, it’s counted as two months.

The federal government was already able to deny an individual entry into the U.S. or a green card if they are determined likely to become a public charge, but Congress never defined the term. The new rule broadens what the government considers in public charge determinations to include widely used programs.

The definition was broadened to include Medicaid, housing assistance and food assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Previously, temporary assistance for food, housing or health care was not considered in determining whether someone is a public charge.

The new rule does not consider many forms of government assistance that protect children and pregnant women’s health as public benefits.

Nessel said the new rule creates a “bait-and-switch" situation because immigrants who use public assistance to which they are legally entitled, would jeopardize their chances of later renewing their visa or becoming permanent residents.

Nessel said her grandparents, who fled Europe to escape the Holocaust, represent the classic story of American immigrants. Changing the public charge rule will make family histories like hers impossible in the future, Nessel said, destroying the “very foundation of what it means to be an American.”

“They were penniless, spoke no English and were without a formal education or marketable skills," Nessel said. “Nevertheless, they were allowed safe passage into this nation and made a life here in Michigan. Two generations later, each of their dozen grandchildren became college graduates, including doctors, teachers, business owners, and several Ph.Ds. And yes, one of them even went on to become the top lawyer in a state of nearly 10 million people.”

The Department of Homeland Security acknowledged the rule change could result in “negative consequences” for people who depend on the government to meet their needs and prevent people from applying for needed benefits. However, DHS stated that is not its intent.

Attorneys general in the lawsuit also argued many visa holders and applicants for permanent residency will reconsider seeking assistance because it could make them ineligible to renew their legal immigration status or become a permanent resident, exposing them to deportation. Nessel expressed concern that families and children won’t receive services they need.

A fact sheet released by the White House states large numbers of non-citizens and their families have “taken advantage of our generous public benefits, limited resources that could otherwise go to vulnerable Americans.”

According to the White House, 58% of all households headed by a non-citizen use at least one welfare program and half of those households include at least one person who uses Medicaid.

The lawsuit includes Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Virginia and Washington.

The new policy is also facing numerous legal challenges from immigration advocates and two counties in California.