A bill that would ban illegal-alien sanctuary cities, local entities that do not enforce immigration laws, passed through a Texas Senate subcommittee on Monday. SB 185, introduced by state Sen. Charles Perry (R-Lubbock), would cut off state funding for local governments or governmental entities that adopt policies that forbid police officers from asking about the immigration status of a person detained or arrested.
On Thursday, the House of Representatives approved two immigration enforcement amendments offered by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) to the Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations Act. The bill includes funding for the Justice Department, and Rep. King's amendments addressed the recent report of more than 36,000 criminal illegal aliens being released from custody and sanctuary cities.
The Montana House passed a bill (HB 50) that would prevent local jurisdictions from declaring themselves illegal-alien sanctuaries. The measure now goes to the Senate for consideration.
California Attorney General Kamala Harris issued guidance saying police can choose whether to cooperate with ICE in deporting illegal aliens under the federal Secure Communities program even if ICE considers participation to be mandatory. Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca subsequently announced he will no longer hand over to ICE illegal aliens arrested for low-level crimes.
Rep. Duncan Hunter is drafting legislation that would deny funding to states that issue driver's licenses to illegal aliens who benefit from the Obama Administration's amnesty for young illegal aliens. In Rep. Hunter's home state, California, the state legislature has approved a measure that would allow illegal aliens who receive deferred action from the federal government to receive a driver's license.
Minnesota State Rep. Bob Barrett has offered legislation that would prohibit local municipalities in the state from forbidding its employees from sharing information with federal immigration authorities. The state's two largest cities -- Minneapolis and St. Paul -- are currently sanctuary cities.
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart is pushing county commissioners to change a recently passed law that prohibits county police from responding to federal requests to hold illegal aliens if they're being held by the county police for another crime. Since the law went into effect in September, federal authorities have requested holds on 300 felons arrested by Cook County police.
Senator Chuck Grassley, who serves as the Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is leading an effort with three other Senators to make sure that the Obama Administration doesn't turn a blind eye on cities that impeded federal immigration enforcement. Earlier this week, the Justice Department announced that it was suing South Carolina, after launching lawsuits against Arizona and Alabama, for passing immigration enforcement laws that the Department believes will impede federal enforcement efforts.
The District of Columbia became a sanctuary city on Wednesday after Mayor Vincent Gray signed a new order forbidding D.C. police to ask about an individuals immigration status. Furthermore, Mayor Gray said District police will not help Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents execute federal warrants unless the individual has committed another crime.
Sanctuary policies directly violate Federal law. Section 642 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA) provides that
Federal, State, or local government entity or official may not prohibit, or in any way restrict, any government entity or official from sending to, or receiving from, the Immigration and Naturalization Service information regarding the citizenship or immigration status, lawful or unlawful, of any individual.
The Texas State House approved a bill on Tuesday that would bar government entities, including cities, counties, and school districts, from adopting policies that protect illegal aliens from federal prosecution. Currently, both Austin and Houston have passed sanctuary city laws.
A new poll conducted by Rasmussen finds that 59% of Americans want to cut federal funding to sanctuary cities. The poll of likely voters also found that 58% of Americans think the Justice Department should take action against sanctuary cities, and 65% oppose the creation of sanctuary cities in the first place.
Freshman Rep. Lou Barletta has officially announced the creation of a freshmen caucus that will examine current immigration policy and look for ways to crack down on illegal immigration. Rep. Barletta was identified as a "True Reformer" during the mid-term elections, and before being elected to Congress, was the mayor of Hazelton, Penn. where he signed one of the nation's first local ordinances cracking down on illegal immigration.
The Justice Department unleashed their assault on Arizona's immigration enforcement law last week, but yesterday, Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department announced that cities that protect illegal aliens from law enforcement officials, otherwise known as sanctuary cities, would be safe from federal prosecutors.
A new poll conducted by Rasmussen reveals that 68% of Americans oppose sanctuary cities and 50% believe that the policies lead to an increase in crime. The poll was conducted late last week.
The Senate voted, 61-38, to table an amendment offered by Sen. David Vitter that would prevent the FY2010 Commerce, Justice and Science spending bill from funding sanctuary cities. The vote went along party lines except for three Republicans who voted with the Democrats to table the amendment - Snowe (ME), Murkowski (AK) and Voinovich (OH). One Democrat voted against the motion - Landrieu (LA).
