Attorney General: Municipalities May Lose Hundreds of Millions in Federal Grant Over Local Immigration Policies. DOJ Sets December 8 Compliance Deadline.

On Wednesday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent letters to 29 local governments considered “sanctuary cities,” warning of a December 8, 2017, deadline to end policies that prevent information-sharing between local governments and Department of Homeland Security agencies, like Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE).  The letters demand that local governments adhere to federal law or risk losing hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants.

At the center of the information-sharing policy is the civil “immigration detainer,” which ICE lodges with local jails, asking officials to provide 48-hours advance notice of an inmate’s release from local custody, when it is suspected that the inmate is undocumented or in violation of other immigration laws.

In a statement directly from Attorney General Sessions sent with the letters, he urged “all jurisdictions found to be potentially out of compliance in this preliminary review to reconsider their policies that undermine the safety of their residents. . . . We urge jurisdictions to not only comply with [federal law], but also to establish sensible and effective partnerships to properly process criminal aliens.”

Cities, counties, and states throughout the United States have already adopted or are considering sanctuary city legislation and policies. While policies like sanctuary city designation are initially met with public acceptance, the current Administration has promised severe and long-term ramifications.  Any municipality considering sanctuary city legislation or policies must seek immigration counsel, to ensure that any policy is compliant with federal statutes and regulations.

To learn more about the this post or any other immigration matter, feel free to contact me, Raymond G. Lahoud, at rglahoud@nmmlaw.com.