Los Angeles releases draft of 'Sanctuary city' ordinance

LOS ANGELES - After more than a year, the draft language for Los Angeles' "Sanctuary City" ordinance has been released, which would prohibit any city resources or personnel from being used to help federal enforcement of immigration laws, it was announced Wednesday.

Mayor Karen Bass and City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto worked on the release of the draft ordinance following meetings with immigrant-rights groups over the weekend. It was formally made public late Tuesday night by the City Clerk, and if approved, would set up a likely battle with the incoming Trump administration, after President-elect Donald Trump made border security a mainstay of his campaign and promised to deport people who are in the country illegally.

The City Council's civil rights and public safety committees are anticipated to take up the matter at a future date.

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The City Attorney's Office drafted the ordinance in response to legislation introduced by council members Eunisses Hernandez, Nithya Raman and Hugo Soto-Martinez, and approved by the council in June 2023.

Asked why it took 16 months for the draft language to be released, a representative for Feldstein Soto's office said, "We do not comment on attorney-client privileged communications."

Hernandez said Los Angeles "wouldn't be the city we know and love without the sacrifices and contributions of the more than 1.3 million immigrants who live here. These protections are long overdue."

With Trump set to take office in January, L.A.'s immigrant communities are bracing for his promised crackdown on undocumented migrants. While the city of Los Angeles has prohibited the use of its resources from assisting federal immigration authorities in past years, a sanctuary ordinance would formally codify such policies.

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"Now, more than ever, symbolic gestures are not enough," Hernandez continued. "Undocumented residents deserve safety and security, and it is long past time for Los Angeles to codify these protections. I call on all of my colleagues to join us in passing this legislation to make Los Angeles a true sanctuary city."

Soto-Martinez, chair of the civil rights committee, noted that more than one out of three Angelenos, including his parents, are immigrants.

"We refuse to stand by and let Donald Trump deport our neighbors, family, friends and coworkers," the councilman said in a statement.

Former Mayor Eric Garcetti issued an executive directive in 2019 that offered protections to the immigrant community. Additionally, the Los Angeles Police Department mandates that its officers not to inquire about immigration status or make arrests related to a migrant's legal status, which is outlined under Special Order 40.

In part, the proposed sanctuary ordinance would enshrine such protections in the city's books.

The ordinance would also prohibit "any city resources, property or personnel from being utilized for any federal immigration enforcement," as well as city cooperation with federal immigration authorities in "execution of their duties" as it pertains to immigration enforcement.

"Especially in the face of growing threats to the immigrant communities here in Los Angeles, I stand with the people of this city," Bass said in a statement issued Tuesday. "This moment demands urgency."

Councilman Curren Price, who seconded the motion by his colleagues, added: "Now is the time to strengthen our resolve, intensify our efforts, and establish a sanctuary city ordinance that will finally provide true protection and relief to Angelenos forced to live in constant fear."

But Roxanne Hoge, communications director for the L.A. County Republican Party, criticized the concept of sanctuary cities and states.

"A country without secure borders isn't a country at all," Hoge said in a statement. "... The protections they offer aren't for abuelas getting ice cream, they're for people who've entered the country illegally and committed additional crimes."

"Whether drunk driving, robbery, sexual violence, assault or murder, none of those should go unpunished," she added. "Perpetrators should definitely not be protected by the largesse taken from hard-working taxpayers."

On Monday, Tom Homan, tapped to be Trump's new "border czar" said during an appearance on "Fox & Friends" that "Nothing will stop us from deporting migrant criminals."

Homan also addressed sanctuary jurisdictions, noting that "If we can't get assistance from New York City, we may have to double the number of agents we send to New York City. Because we're going to the job with you or without you."

He suggested that the president withhold federal funding to sanctuary jurisdictions.

Homan was the former acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the first Trump administration.

Pedro Trujillo, director of organizing for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, told City News Service that L.A.'s proposed ordinance is something that his group has "always supported," and now is working to expedite with Trump returning to the White House.

Trujillo noted that when Trump first entered office in 2017 he made some administrative changes that impacted immigrants, and CHIRLA expects similar actions this time around.

"That's why it's important that the city adopt the sanctuary ordinance, and they truly codify it into law," Trujillo told CNS.

On Homan's remarks, Trujillo expressed concern about how the possible withholding of federal funding would affect U.S. citizens as well.

"These are not a small amount of funds, and taxpayers are all contributing ... which includes undocumented immigrants," Trujillo told CNS. "It's something that's obviously alarming, but it's also something everyone should be concerned about."

He said the city's passage of a sanctuary ordinance would serve as another layer of protection for immigrants.

"We need the county of LA and the Board of Supervisors to also review what they have and see what layers of protection they can provide," Trujillo added. "And same goes for the state."