In message of defiance to Trump, lawmakers vote to make California a “sanctuary state”
Kristine Phillips for the Washington Post reports that the California Senate yesterday passed Senate Bill 54, the Values Act, legislation that would limit local law enforcement agencies, including school police and security departments, from cooperating with federal immigration officials. It also forbids law enforcement from inquiring about a person’s immigration status.
The California Values Act provides an expansive protection to the state’s undocumented population, estimated to be about 2.7 million, at a time when the Trump administration continues to aggressively enforce the immigration laws and challenge so-called “sanctuary cities” — communities that limit local law enforcement’s cooperation with federal immigration agents.
The California State Sheriff’s Association opposed the Values Act, claiming that limiting public safety agencies’ ability to cooperate with federal immigration agents places communities at risk.
he Sacramento Bee provides further information about the Values Act. Senate Bill 54 will place limitations on how state and local law enforcement officials can communicate and coordinate with federal immigration authorities. Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León said the measure “is needed now more than ever” in light of President Donald Trump’s decision to step up immigration enforcement and end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
“Californians will not squander precious public safety dollars to tear families apart, take ‘Dreamers’ or deport people who have helped California become the sixth largest economy in the world,” de León said. “This is a message, no doubt, to Washington, D.C., that we will protect the hardworking people of our communities.”
KJ