California Legislature Advances ‘Sanctuary State’ Bill

“We will not stand by and let the federal government use our state and local agencies to separate mothers from their children.”

The California State Legislature passed a “sanctuary state” bill on Saturday that would limit state and local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration officials.

The legislation, authored by state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León, is a direct response to President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration policies, specifically his executive order targeting federal funding for localities with pro-immigrant policies. That order was blocked from going into effect by a federal judge, but the administration has since attempted to target sanctuary cities in other ways, such as Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ block on funding for cities fighting violent crime.

Senate Bill 54, if signed into law, would block local law enforcement (including school police) from “using resources to investigate, interrogate, detain, detect, or arrest persons for immigration enforcement purposes.” Those purposes include inquiring into someone’s immigration status, detaining people at federal immigration officials’ request or making arrests on immigration warrants.

Pablo Alvarado, executive director of National Day Laborer Organizing Network, called Saturday’s vote “a victory for millions of immigrant families who are fighting for equality.”

“The unprecedented scapegoating of immigrants in recent years has imperiled public safety, threatened civil rights, and divided our communities,” Alvarado said in a statement. “However, today California again proved that local governments are not powerless when it comes to confronting the danger posed by the Trump Administration.”

The legislation was amended earlier this week after de León reached an agreement with Gov. Jerry Brown (D-Calif.) on several key provisions. The amended version of the bill somewhat loosens the initial version’s restrictions on interactions between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials, easing some concerns Brown had about the legislation.

Most notably, the bill now allows sheriffs to pass on information to federal officials about individuals in their custody who have been convicted of one of roughly 800 crimes specified in the legislation. It also allows immigration officials to interview individuals in custody, but bars those officials from having permanent office space in jails or state prisons.

The bill was part of a wave of immigration legislation authored by California lawmakers in the wake of Trump’s election in a preemptive attempt to “resist” the president’s crackdown on immigration.

More From The Huffington Post: