AURORA, Ill. (AP/WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Governor JB Pritzker signed four bills into law Monday, expanding protections for immigrant and refugee communities and further establishing Illinois as the most welcoming state in the nation.
According to the Governor's Office, the new laws strengthen the TRUST Act and make Illinois the second state in the nation to require local officials to end partnerships with ICE, address hate crimes against immigrant communities, expand workplace protections for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients, and create the Illinois Immigration Impact Task Force to ensure state programs and policies best serve immigrant residents.
Governor Pritzker also signed an executive order creating the Welcoming Illinois Office, to report to the Office of the Governor and the Secretary of the Department of Human Services while being housed and supported by the Department of Human Services. The Office will work to coordinate, develop and implement policies and practices to make Illinois a more welcoming and equitable state for immigrants and refugees. The Office will be led by the Senior Immigration Fellow.
“Throughout my governorship I’ve directed my administration to adopt policies that make Illinois a welcoming state for immigrants, and I’m proud to sign these accountability measures into law to advance our cause,” said Governor JB Pritzker, in a statement. “Every family, every child, every human being deserves to feel safe and secure in the place they call home. I am committed to making sure that value defines what it means to live in Illinois.”
HB 121 expands protections for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients by adding a new definition for ‘work authorization status’ to the Illinois Human Rights Act. The change clarifies that it is a civil rights violation for employers to refuse to hire, segregate, or engage in harassment on the basis of work authorization status.
SB 667 strengthens the Illinois TRUST Act and the Voices of Immigrant Communities Empowering Survivors (VOICES) Act to protect immigrant families in Illinois.
The legislation:
• Provides clarity around action that law enforcement officials can and cannot take around warrants.
• Prohibits state or local governments from signing contracts with the federal government to unjustly detain immigrants.
• Places limitations on local enforcement of discriminatory practices by prohibiting officials from inquiring about the citizenship or immigration status of an individual in custody unless they’re presented with a federal criminal warrant, or otherwise required by federal law.
• Increases transparency by requiring state and local law enforcement agencies to submit annual reports regarding requests from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
• Authorizes the Attorney General to conduct investigations into violation of the Illinois TRUST Act.
The new law targets local government agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement allowing jails to house immigrant detainees awaiting court hearings. Current contracts must end by January 2022 and new agreements are prohibited.
Currently, three Illinois counties — Kankakee, Pulaski and McHenry — have such agreements at local jails and house roughly 260 immigrant detainees overall, according to ICE.
Most detainees in ICE custody nationwide are held in privately run facilities. The agency owns and operates only a handful of its own detention centers, and none exist in Illinois. The state barred private detention in 2019 following several failed attempts to build a new facility near Chicago.
In recent years, other states and cities have pulled back from local agreements to house immigrant detainees, including in California and Washington. States’ efforts to outlaw private detention have also grown amid a lack of federal immigration reform.
Unless there's a legal challenge or other exception, ICE's options are to either transfer current detainees in Illinois to other states or release them. Agency officials have repeatedly declined comment on the Illinois plan. An ICE spokeswoman didn’t return a message left Monday.
Immigrant rights activists plan to push for the detainees' release, saying incarcerating people awaiting immigration proceedings is inhumane and costly. However, some local leaders say they'll lose much-needed revenue and necessary cooperation with federal authorities.
In McHenry County, the agreement with ICE brings in roughly $10 million each year, according to board Chairman Michael Buehler. It's a significant chunk of money for the northern Illinois county with a roughly $200 million annual budget.
“It would affect dozens of jobs and negatively impact services,” he said. When asked if the county would fight the new law, he said county officials were “exploring options.”
The new law also goes a step further than a 2017 statewide sanctuary protection measure signed by Republican former Gov. Bruce Rauner. Among other things, it strictly limits local police interactions with immigration agents unless there's a criminal warrant and restricts ICE access to police facilities and equipment. It also gives the state attorney general's office the authority to investigate purported violations of the law.
SB 1596 expands protections against immigrant communities by amending the Criminal Code of 2012 to include hate crimes based on citizenship and immigration status. The changes will also assist law enforcement officials in identifying and reporting anti-immigrant hate crimes separate from other hate crimes, including to the FBI hate crimes database.
SB 2665 creates the Illinois Immigration Impact Task Force to study how state policies and programs affect immigrant residents. The Task Force will consist of 27 members and require the Department of Human Services to staff and examine a number of issues. The Task Force will submit a report with its finding and recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly on or before May 31, 2o22.
HB 121, SB 667 and SB 2665 are effective immediately. SB 1596 is effective January 1, 2022.
Related
(© Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)