State and Local
Due Process, Enforcement Reform and Family Unification Top Sanders’ Platform
Senator Bernie Sanders, a contender for the Democratic nomination for President, recently released his updated and vastly expanded immigration platform. His initial plan was short on detail; however, this newly-released document takes a deeper dive and presents a set of solutions to some of the worst problems plaguing our outdated immigration system. Read More
Sanctuary Cities vs. Community Policing: A Resurging Debate
From Washington, D.C. to San Francisco to Raleigh, the debate over whether local law enforcement officers should be involved in enforcing federal immigration law is back at the fore. Read More
How North Carolina’s Anti-Immigrant Bill Would Impact All State Residents
At a time when many states are adopting policies that harness immigrant’s social and economic contributions, elected officials in North Carolina are advancing anti-immigrant legislation that could have sweeping implications for all state residents. The state legislature recently passed H.B. 318, misleadingly titled as the “Protect North Carolina Workers… Read More
Many States Recognize Benefit of Tuition Equity for Undocumented Students
This week, the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) released new information about how the top 15 states of residence for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)-eligible youth are either supporting or impeding access to college-level education. Given that federal immigration policies affecting undocumented immigrants remain stagnant, it is not surprising… Read More
After Five Years, Are Challenges to SB 1070 Coming to an End?
A federal judge in Arizona issued a decision on September 4, which some say signals the end of years of legal challenges against Arizona’s SB 1070 law. For the most part, the law has been gutted, drastically reducing much of the negative impact of this wrong-headed, draconian state immigration law,… Read More
Welcoming Week Honors Immigrant Contributions and Builds Bridges in Local Communities
The heated political rhetoric so far in the 2016 presidential campaign has often been at the expense of immigrants. And the policy solutions put forth by some candidates have centered around punitive, impractical measures that are out of touch with the humane approach most Americans want to see… Read More
States Continue to Expand Access to Driver’s Licenses for Undocumented Residents
Currently, ten states and the District of Columbia offer driver’s licenses to undocumented residents of their states who can meet certain requirements. Two additional states, Hawaii and Delaware, passed similar laws this year, with others also beginning their pursuit of this practical public safety and economic policy. For example,… Read More
Annual Review of State-Level Immigration Policy Still Trending Pro-Immigrant
After long legal battles over punitive, state anti-immigration laws like Arizona’s SB1070 and Alabama’s HB56, state governments learned the limits on what types of immigration policies they can set at the local level. Since then, states have begun moving in a new direction by more generally enacting state immigration laws… Read More
Nebraska and Alabama Changing Their Stride on Immigration
In 2010 and 2011, Nebraska and Alabama made national headlines for their anti-immigrant measures. Fremont, Nebraska passed a local ordinance to check immigration status of renters, and Alabama passed HB 56, the most restrictive anti-immigrant state legislation in history. However in 2015, we’re seeing a changing tide in… Read More
California Leads the Transition in Pro-Immigrant State Lawmaking
In the last two decades, the state of California has transformed itself from a leader in anti-immigrant policymaking—most famously attempting to bar the undocumented from attending public schools and localizing immigration enforcement through Prop 187—to a leader in providing creative, forward-thinking policies on immigration. A new analysis by the… Read More
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