New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Friday introduced a bill designed to prevent state and local law enforcement from being deputized by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a move that would curtail a current arrangement under which ICE can assign certain functions to state and local officers under federal supervision.
The proposal was revealed as the nation was witnessing protests following two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens by federal agents in Minnesota. Under the measure, state and local police would be barred from acting as federal agents and prohibited from using state taxpayer-funded resources or personnel to carry out federal civil immigration enforcement.
Key provisions in the draft statute would:
- end the agreements that allow ICE to task state and local officers with performing particular ICE duties while remaining under ICE oversight;
The bill was introduced in a state where Democrats control the legislature, potentially smoothing its path through Albany. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security responded critically, arguing the change would reduce public safety in New York.
"When politicians bar local law enforcement from working with us, that is when we have to have a more visible presence so that we can find and apprehend the criminals let out of jails and back into communities," said DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.
According to the proposal's supporters, the measure would limit the role of state government resources in federal civil immigration actions and add legal protections for residents by imposing warrant requirements. The announcement comes after similar steps taken by other states in reaction to what the article describes as President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown in major cities.
The bill outlines a set of legal and operational changes affecting the relationship between federal immigration authorities and state and local law enforcement, and it establishes new limits on where federal immigration officers may enter without judicial authorization.
As the legislation moves forward, its prospects will hinge on legislative action in a Democrat-controlled statehouse and on responses from federal agencies that say such restrictions could affect law enforcement coordination and public safety.