ImmigrationMinnesota GOP lawmakers introduce bill to override local immigration laws

Published 18 February 2011

Republican lawmakers in Minnesota have recently introduced a bill that would require city, county, and other local governments to enforce immigration laws and prohibits them from passing local ordinances to the contrary; currently St. Paul and Worthington have ordinances that direct city resources away from immigration enforcement, leaving it in the hands of the federal government; if passed the new GOP bill, HF358, would effectively invalidate these local ordinances as it contains a provision that would make it illegal for local governments to pass laws overriding federal immigration enforcement laws; last year GOP lawmakers introduced a tough Arizona-style immigration law that would require law enforcement to stop individuals who they have reasonable suspicion for entering the country illegally

Republican lawmakers in Minnesota have recently introduced a bill that would require city, county, and other local governments to enforce immigration laws and prohibits them from passing local ordinances to the contrary.

Currently St. Paul and Worthington have ordinances that direct city resources away from immigration enforcement, leaving it in the hands of the federal government. The ordinances instruct city employees to only check the immigration status of their residents in certain instances and avoid “pro-active enforcement of civil immigration laws.”

The St. Paul ordinance goes on to explain that “it is the policy of the city that all residents are equally entitled to protection and that all residents should be able to access city services to which they are entitled, without regard to their immigration status under federal law.”

If passed the new GOP bill, HF358, would effectively invalidate these local ordinances as it contains a provision that would make it illegal for local governments to pass laws overriding federal immigration enforcement laws.

The law would also make it illegal for cities to not cooperate and share data with DHS.

Republican Representative Bob Barrett introduced the bill and it has been referred to the Minnesota House Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance Committee.

Representative Barrett has also drafted a bill that would make English Minnesota’s official language and mandate that all government communication be conducted in English, with limited exceptions.

These bills come on the heels of a tough Arizona-style immigration law that was introduced in last year’s legislative session. Republican Representative Steve Drazkowski drafted legislation that would establish an Illegal Immigration Enforcement Team and require immigrants to carry an “alien registration” card.

The bill contains similar provisions to the Arizona law which would require law enforcement to stop and question a person if the officer has reasonable suspicion that the individual entered the country illegally. This controversial provision in the Arizona law was struck down by a federal judge.