AUSTIN - After hours of emotional debate, the Republican-led Texas House voted 100-47 on Monday night to give preliminary approval to legislation that would ban so-called sanctuary cities that critics contend are havens for illegal immigrants.
Latino lawmakers charged that the bill - one of Gov. Rick Perry's top priorities - would lead to racial profiling and force millions of Texas Hispanics to "live in fear."Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, who represents a heavily Hispanic district, called the bill "one of the most overtly racist pieces of legislation I've seen."Supporters tout the bill by Rep. Burt Solomons, R-Carrollton, as a powerful weapon against illegal immigration. Solomons described the measure as "a good bill."Republicans used their two-thirds majority to cut off debate by calling the "previous question," blocking consideration of pending amendments. Democrats objected that the action set a dangerous precedent and stifled dissent.The bill has drawn strong opposition from Hispanics as well as law enforcement groups. who say it will impose an added burden on already overworked police departments.Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief has also urged lawmakers to oppose the bill, saying it would slap Fort Worth and other Texas cities with an "unfunded mandate" to enforce federal immigration laws and open the door to costly litigation against cities.HB12 would prohibit local governments from adopting rules that would keep their police officers from inquiring about a person's immigration status. Perry has tagged the bill as an "emergency" measure to give it priority status.Hispanic leaders argued that approving the law will encourage racial profiling and could lead to American citizens being harassed because of their heritage. Martinez Fischer, chairman of the Mexican-American Legislative Caucus, denounced the bill as "anti-Hispanic."Rep. Rene Oliveira, D-Brownsville, called the measure "the most divisive bill I've seen" since he entered the Legislature in 1981."We know there are people out there who will do racial profiling ... and now they're going to have a blanket amnesty to do it," he said.But the chamber's six Republican Hispanics support the measure. Rep. Jose Aliseda, R-Beeville, a former prosecutor, said he has never been victimized by racial profiling and criticized "grandstanding politicians" who he said were mischaracterizing the bill.Solomons revised the measure to include a statement that he said was designed to soften concerns over racial profiling. Officers would be prohibited from considering "race, color, language or national origin."Hispanic Democrats held several behind-the-scenes meetings with Solomons and other representatives from the Republican leadership in an attempt to work out a compromise to allow a limited number of amendments.Solomons said the bill differs from a controversial Arizona law because it does not require officers to ask about a person's citizenship, but gives them the option to do so. Local officers would not be prohibited from "assisting or cooperating" with federal immigration officers.Local governments with policies that prohibit enforcement of state or federal immigration laws would be ineligible for state grant funds.The bill has also drawn opposition from law enforcement. Police chiefs have said they will have to spend money to train officers in immigration enforcement and hire designated officers, which could cost millions of dollars. With prisons at capacity and cities laying off officers because they can't pay them, officers are already staggering under the load of local crime and community issues, they said.Arlington Deputy Police Chief Jennifer White and several other law enforcement officials said last week that the bill would further strain police department budgets and could make some Hispanics fearful about calling police. Officials from Dallas, El Paso and Bexar Counties have also opposed the bill.Dave Montgomery is the Star-Telegram's Austin bureau chief, 512-476-4294
Where's the sanctuary for officers who are focused on local public safety?
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