FYI- information concerning federal immigration laws
This email is being sent to advocates concerned with state and
local enforcement of federal immigration laws. To get updates on other
reforms being considered in the Senate, send yo ur contact information
to Maurice Belanger and Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia of the National
Immigration Forum (mbelanger@immigrationforum.org
and
ssivaprasad@immigrationforum.org
).
An immigration bill drafted by Senate Judiciary
Committee Chairman Arlen Specte r (R-PA) has been under consideration in
that Committee for the past couple of weeks. While the original bill
did not contain most provisions of the CLEAR Act, it does criminalize
"unlawful presence" and expand the definition of criminal alien
smuggling to reach innocent or humanitarian behavior. We are concerned
that police who feel they can enforce federal criminal laws, but not
civil immigration laws, would see any distinction wiped away should this
bill become law. The effect on the community would be immediate, as
undocumented immigrants would find themselves turned into criminals
overnight. They would think twice about approaching law enforcement
when they are victims or witnesses to real crimes, making all of us less
safe.
Most state and local law enforcement officials do not
want to get in the business of hunting for immigration violators for
this very reason. However, amendments added to the Specter bill go far
down the road of "encouraging" police to enforce immigration laws. The
bill was amended in Committee to include provisions from the CLEAR Act
(Homeland Security Enhancement Act in the Senate) that require the entry
of new categories of immigration law "violators"-including people not
actually wanted by federal immigration agents-in the National Crime
Information Center (NCIC) database for local police arrest. Currently,
some categories of civil immigration law violators are being entered
into the NCIC without adequate explanation of who they are. Police are
making arrests with no assurance that they are actually enforcing
criminal laws (the purpose of the database). Amendments to th e Specter
bill, drafted by Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) with help from Specter
himself, expand the types and numbers of people who would be entered
into the NCIC exponentially.
More information about related amendments that were
added to the Committee bill follows, and I am attaching the legislative
language for those of you who want to get in the weeds. As far as
process goes, there is one more mark-up session left in the Senate
Judiciary Committee when Congress returns to DC on March 27th. On that
day the Committee may consider the outstanding local enforcement
amendment, as well as an amendment from Sena tor Dick Durbin (D-IL) to
strip the language criminalizing unlawful status and "assistance." The
Committee is also scheduled to take up the issues of legalization and
the future worker program. There will most likely be a vote on final
passage in the Judiciary Committee that day.
Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) has announced he will
move forward with an immigration bill when Congress returns to DC next
week. That means that if the Committee does not finish its work on the
27th, Frist could instead take up his own immigration bill (S. 2454),
which includes all of the Specter bill' s enforcement provisions, a
bunch from the House-passed H.R. 4437, and no provisions for
legalization or a new worker program for lower-skilled laborers. The
Frist bill does include provisions to have state and local police
enforce immigration laws, like those added to the Specter bill.
Whether the Senate takes up the Specter bill or the
Frist bill, we will have a fight on the floor to strike the CLEAR Act
provisions. Please organize your networks, develop your sign-on
letters, draft your op-eds, and make your voices heard among your
senators! We have a very short time frame of two weeks or less to make
a difference. If you produce advocacy materials like letters and
statements, please share them with me (Lynn at the National Immigration
Forum, ltramonte@immigrationforum.org
) so that I can make sure they
are included in any packets of information I send to Capitol Hill.
Even if you have already contacted your senators on
these issues, it is important to contact them again and again.
Moreover, staff will need education about the NCIC provisions in
particular, as this is a complicated issue and they may not be
completely up to speed. We have a very short window of time to act, so
please make your voice heard, and let me know if you have any questions!
THANKS!!!
LAT
Lynn Tramonte de la Barrera
Senior Policy/Communications Associate
National Immigration Forum
50 F Street, NW
Suite 300
Washington, DC 20001
direct phone 202.383.5993
main phone 202.347.0040
fax 202.347.0058
www.immigrationforum.org
Below are a list of related amendments that have been
considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee, and the status of these
amendments. The language is attached to this email. N.B. this is NOT
an exhaustive list of amendments that have been considered. Various
networks are tracking and responding to the legislative work related to
their priorities. If you do not know where to plug in, let me know!
LOCAL ENFORCEMENT AMENDMENTS
Sessions 6180 (with Specter second degree) - passed
The Sessions version gives state and local police the
authority to enforce federal civil immigration laws. The Specter
modification limits that to crimina l laws but combines additional
language from Sessions' amendment 6182 regarding local and federal
custody of "illegal aliens" that could be interpreted to go beyond the
criminal context. Also, the underlying bill makes "unlawful presence" a
criminal offense, which means that millions more people could become
criminals and subject to arrest by state and local police.
Sessions 6181 (with Specter second degree) - passed
The Sessions amendment puts the names of millions of
foreign-born people into the National Crime Information Center for local
police arrest, some of whom are not actually "wanted" by the federal
government (for example, asylum-seekers or battered immigrant women who
are undocumented but have applied for status they are entitled to). The
Specter modifications alter the universe of people entered into NCIC and
add in a process for removing a name, but have the same problem with the
Sessions' language regarding entry of civil violators and/or people who
should not be in the database.
Sessions 6238 (with Coburn second degree) - deferred
until 3/27 for lack of quorum
The Sessions amendment requires at least one law
enforcement agency in each state to enter into an MOU to enforce
immigration laws against alien smugglers. The Coburn modification makes
it clear that the MOUs do not have to be limited to combating alien
smuggling. It also attempts to state that the MOUs are "purely
voluntary," but does not strike the language compelling DHS to execute
agreements in each state. So while any given law enforcement agency can
opt-out of an MOU if DHS tries to negotiate one with them, DHS is still
required to execute at least one agreemen t in each state. There was
confusion in Committee about this. Senator Leahy (D-VT) made good
arguments that this was a mandate, and that argument had traction, but
the prevailing sentiment in the room may have been that the Coburn
language fixes the problem.
Cornyn 6214 -- passed
This amendment allows states and localities that enter
into MOUs to receive reimbursement for co sts related to training and
equipment.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Specter bill section by section summary (thanks to AILA,
USCCB, NYU Law School, NI LC, and others for the summary)
http://www.aila.org/content/default.aspx?bc=6712|8846|18648
More resources on Specter bill
http://www.immigrationforum.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=732#Info
More resources on local enforcement of immigration laws
http://www.immigrationforum.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=737
http://www.nclr.org/content/policy/detail/1063/
toolkit - if it's not posted on the web, contact mwaslin@nclr.org)
http://www.nilc.org/immlawpolicy/LocalLaw/index.htm
http://appleseeds.net/servlet/PublicationInfo?articleId=70
(new
advocacy report by Appleseed)
Frist bill summary (done by Frist's office)
http://www.nilc.org/immlawpolicy/CIR/saba_frist_secbysec_2006-3-16.pdf
local enforcement of federal immigration laws. To get updates on other
reforms being considered in the Senate, send yo ur contact information
to Maurice Belanger and Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia of the National
Immigration Forum (mbelanger@immigrationforum.org
ssivaprasad@immigrationforum.org
An immigration bill drafted by Senate Judiciary
Committee Chairman Arlen Specte r (R-PA) has been under consideration in
that Committee for the past couple of weeks. While the original bill
did not contain most provisions of the CLEAR Act, it does criminalize
"unlawful presence" and expand the definition of criminal alien
smuggling to reach innocent or humanitarian behavior. We are concerned
that police who feel they can enforce federal criminal laws, but not
civil immigration laws, would see any distinction wiped away should this
bill become law. The effect on the community would be immediate, as
undocumented immigrants would find themselves turned into criminals
overnight. They would think twice about approaching law enforcement
when they are victims or witnesses to real crimes, making all of us less
safe.
Most state and local law enforcement officials do not
want to get in the business of hunting for immigration violators for
this very reason. However, amendments added to the Specter bill go far
down the road of "encouraging" police to enforce immigration laws. The
bill was amended in Committee to include provisions from the CLEAR Act
(Homeland Security Enhancement Act in the Senate) that require the entry
of new categories of immigration law "violators"-including people not
actually wanted by federal immigration agents-in the National Crime
Information Center (NCIC) database for local police arrest. Currently,
some categories of civil immigration law violators are being entered
into the NCIC without adequate explanation of who they are. Police are
making arrests with no assurance that they are actually enforcing
criminal laws (the purpose of the database). Amendments to th e Specter
bill, drafted by Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) with help from Specter
himself, expand the types and numbers of people who would be entered
into the NCIC exponentially.
More information about related amendments that were
added to the Committee bill follows, and I am attaching the legislative
language for those of you who want to get in the weeds. As far as
process goes, there is one more mark-up session left in the Senate
Judiciary Committee when Congress returns to DC on March 27th. On that
day the Committee may consider the outstanding local enforcement
amendment, as well as an amendment from Sena tor Dick Durbin (D-IL) to
strip the language criminalizing unlawful status and "assistance." The
Committee is also scheduled to take up the issues of legalization and
the future worker program. There will most likely be a vote on final
passage in the Judiciary Committee that day.
Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) has announced he will
move forward with an immigration bill when Congress returns to DC next
week. That means that if the Committee does not finish its work on the
27th, Frist could instead take up his own immigration bill (S. 2454),
which includes all of the Specter bill' s enforcement provisions, a
bunch from the House-passed H.R. 4437, and no provisions for
legalization or a new worker program for lower-skilled laborers. The
Frist bill does include provisions to have state and local police
enforce immigration laws, like those added to the Specter bill.
Whether the Senate takes up the Specter bill or the
Frist bill, we will have a fight on the floor to strike the CLEAR Act
provisions. Please organize your networks, develop your sign-on
letters, draft your op-eds, and make your voices heard among your
senators! We have a very short time frame of two weeks or less to make
a difference. If you produce advocacy materials like letters and
statements, please share them with me (Lynn at the National Immigration
Forum, ltramonte@immigrationforum.org
are included in any packets of information I send to Capitol Hill.
Even if you have already contacted your senators on
these issues, it is important to contact them again and again.
Moreover, staff will need education about the NCIC provisions in
particular, as this is a complicated issue and they may not be
completely up to speed. We have a very short window of time to act, so
please make your voice heard, and let me know if you have any questions!
THANKS!!!
LAT
Lynn Tramonte de la Barrera
Senior Policy/Communications Associate
National Immigration Forum
50 F Street, NW
Suite 300
Washington, DC 20001
direct phone 202.383.5993
main phone 202.347.0040
fax 202.347.0058
www.immigrationforum.org
Below are a list of related amendments that have been
considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee, and the status of these
amendments. The language is attached to this email. N.B. this is NOT
an exhaustive list of amendments that have been considered. Various
networks are tracking and responding to the legislative work related to
their priorities. If you do not know where to plug in, let me know!
LOCAL ENFORCEMENT AMENDMENTS
Sessions 6180 (with Specter second degree) - passed
The Sessions version gives state and local police the
authority to enforce federal civil immigration laws. The Specter
modification limits that to crimina l laws but combines additional
language from Sessions' amendment 6182 regarding local and federal
custody of "illegal aliens" that could be interpreted to go beyond the
criminal context. Also, the underlying bill makes "unlawful presence" a
criminal offense, which means that millions more people could become
criminals and subject to arrest by state and local police.
Sessions 6181 (with Specter second degree) - passed
The Sessions amendment puts the names of millions of
foreign-born people into the National Crime Information Center for local
police arrest, some of whom are not actually "wanted" by the federal
government (for example, asylum-seekers or battered immigrant women who
are undocumented but have applied for status they are entitled to). The
Specter modifications alter the universe of people entered into NCIC and
add in a process for removing a name, but have the same problem with the
Sessions' language regarding entry of civil violators and/or people who
should not be in the database.
Sessions 6238 (with Coburn second degree) - deferred
until 3/27 for lack of quorum
The Sessions amendment requires at least one law
enforcement agency in each state to enter into an MOU to enforce
immigration laws against alien smugglers. The Coburn modification makes
it clear that the MOUs do not have to be limited to combating alien
smuggling. It also attempts to state that the MOUs are "purely
voluntary," but does not strike the language compelling DHS to execute
agreements in each state. So while any given law enforcement agency can
opt-out of an MOU if DHS tries to negotiate one with them, DHS is still
required to execute at least one agreemen t in each state. There was
confusion in Committee about this. Senator Leahy (D-VT) made good
arguments that this was a mandate, and that argument had traction, but
the prevailing sentiment in the room may have been that the Coburn
language fixes the problem.
Cornyn 6214 -- passed
This amendment allows states and localities that enter
into MOUs to receive reimbursement for co sts related to training and
equipment.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Specter bill section by section summary (thanks to AILA,
USCCB, NYU Law School, NI LC, and others for the summary)
http://www.aila.org/content/default.aspx?bc=6712|8846|18648
More resources on Specter bill
http://www.immigrationforum.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=732#Info
More resources on local enforcement of immigration laws
http://www.immigrationforum.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=737
http://www.nclr.org/content/policy/detail/1063/
toolkit - if it's not posted on the web, contact mwaslin@nclr.org)
http://www.nilc.org/immlawpolicy/LocalLaw/index.htm
http://appleseeds.net/servlet/PublicationInfo?articleId=70
advocacy report by Appleseed)
Frist bill summary (done by Frist's office)
http://www.nilc.org/immlawpolicy/CIR/saba_frist_secbysec_2006-3-16.pdf
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