State and Local

The enforcement of immigration laws is a complex and hotly-debated topic. Learn more about the costs of immigration enforcement and the ways in which the U.S. can enforce our immigration laws humanely and in a manner that ensures due process.

Recent Features

  • Blog

Does Pushing Undocumented Immigrants out of a State Help or Hurt the Local Economy?

This highlights a key policy choice states must make: is it better to have a growing economy with lower unemployment overall or marginally higher wages among a small group of workers?

Bad for Business: How Anti-Immigration Legislation Drains Budgets and Damages States’ Economies

Experience from states that have passed anti-immigration measures shows that the these laws can hinder prospects for economic growth, and the costs of implementing, defending, and enforcing these laws can cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

READ MORE

All State and Local Content

  • Research and Analysis

Arizona is Not the First State to Take Immigration Matters into their Own Hands

Publication Date: 
May 26, 2010
UPDATED 05/26/10 - Arizona’s controversial new immigration law (SB 1070) is the latest in a long line of efforts to regulate...
  • Research and Analysis

Re-Living Our Immigrant Past: From Hazleton to Arizona and Back Again

Publication Date: 
May 21, 2010
The intent of Arizona’s SB 1070, the “Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act,” is to chase illegal immigrants out of the state. Or, as the new law puts it more formally: “to make...
  • Research and Analysis

Local Enforcement of Immigration Laws Through the 287(g) Program

Publication Date: 
April 2, 2010
Updated 04/02/10 Since 2004, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) has greatly expanded its partnerships with local police through the 287(g) program. As of March 2010, more than 1,...
  • Research and Analysis

The High Price of Being "America’s Toughest Sheriff": Crime and Spending Soar in Maricopa County

Publication Date: 
December 17, 2008
Over the past year and a half, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona has transformed his police department into an immigration-enforcement agency, gaining international publicity in the...
  • Research and Analysis

What Happens When Local Cops Become Immigration Agents?

Publication Date: 
August 6, 2008
Over the past year and a half, County Sheriff Joe Arpaio of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) has transformed his police department into an immigration-enforcement agency, gaining...
  • Research and Analysis

Balancing Federal, State, and Local Priorities in Police-Immigrant Relations

Publication Date: 
June 1, 2008
Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, changes in federal, state, and local law-enforcement priorities and practices have had a profound impact on America’s Muslims, Arabs, and South...
  • Research and Analysis

Division and Dislocation: Regulating Immigration through Local Housing Ordinances

Publication Date: 
September 1, 2007
By Jill Esbenshade, Ph.D. In this Special Report, author Jill Esbenshade finds that ordinance initiatives are correlated with a...
  • Research and Analysis

The Sins of the Fathers: The Children of Undocumented Immigrants Pay the Price

For the undocumented in America there is little doubt that the iniquities of the father are visited upon the child. On November 7th, for instance, an astounding 71 percent of voters in Arizona passed...
  • Blog

3 Reasons Why Cities Should Not Sign 287(g) Agreements With ICE

September 21, 2020

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is expanding its power in Florida, where more than one out of every five residents in the state is an immigrant. The Florida Department of...

  • Blog

ICE and CBP Agents Were Deployed at Black Lives Matter Protests

June 25, 2020

People have taken to the streets across the country to protest the murder of George Floyd, who died at the hands of the Minneapolis Police Department. This exercise of First Amendment rights has...

  • Blog

Cities with ‘Sanctuary’ Policies Save Lives from Domestic Violence

June 5, 2020

Many communities across the U.S. have adopted so-called “sanctuary policies” that are intended to ensure that we all live in safe neighborhoods. When these policies are in place, local police don’...

  • Blog

How Immigration Enforcement Is Eroding Your Privacy

March 13, 2020

The United States has pursued aggressive increases in immigration enforcement over the past two decades across several presidencies. Congress has allocated increasing resources during this period...

  • Blog

Judge Stops DHS From Arresting US Citizens’ Foreign Spouses During Marriage Interviews in Maryland

February 21, 2020

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been targeting U.S. citizens’ foreign spouses when they apply for legal immigration status. Earlier this month, a federal judge in Maryland put a...

  • Blog

Republican and Democratic Officials Continue to Accept Refugees, Rejecting Trump’s Executive Order

January 7, 2020

Update: On January 15, federal Judge Peter Messitte issued a preliminary injunction temporarily blocking the Trump administration from enforcing its executive order giving state and local...

  • Blog

New Jersey Caps Off A Tremendous Year for Expanding Access to Driver’s Licenses

January 3, 2020

Many New Yorkers had a reason to celebrate on December 16, as they were permitted to apply for a driver’s license for the first time, even if they lacked permanent immigration status. Now, thanks...

  • Blog

California Bans Private Prisons, Eliminating Immigration Detention Centers That Incarcerate 4,000 People

October 16, 2019

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law on Friday that will phase out private prisons—including federal immigration detention centers—throughout the state. The new law, AB 32,...

  • Blog

Federal Court Blocks Error-Prone ICE Deportation Program

October 10, 2019

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested millions of people based on unreliable electronic databases. In a recent court decision with nationwide impact, a federal judge in...

  • Blog

ICE Targets Mississippi Food Plants in Largest Set of Immigration Raids

August 8, 2019

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted coordinated raids in several small Mississippi towns on Wednesday. With reports of 680 arrests, the raids may be the largest ICE worksite...

  • Press Release

Alabama’s Dangerous New Anti-Immigrant Law

September 29, 2011

Washington D.C.

  • Press Release

American Immigration Council Applauds DOJ for Responding to Alabama’s Punitive Anti-Immigrant Law

August 2, 2011

Washington, D.C. – On Monday, the Department of Justice

  • Press Release

Are States Training Law Enforcement to Implement Restrictive Immigration Laws?

June 24, 2011

Washington, D.C. - While many states legislatures rejected Arizona-style immigration laws this year in anticipation of high costs, legal challenges and charges of racial profiling,

  • Press Release

American Immigration Council Hails Decision Enjoining Enforcement of Arizona’s SB 1070

April 12, 2011

Washington, D.C - The American Immigration Council applauds yesterday’s decision of the U.S.

  • Press Release

A Rising Tide or a Shrinking Pie

March 24, 2011

Washington, D.C. - As Arizona approaches the one-year anniversary of the passage of SB 1070, the Immigration Policy Center and Center for American Progress

  • Press Release

Georgia State Legislature Pursuing Budget Busting Solutions to Immigration

March 1, 2011

Washington D.C. – In the face of a $1.7 billion budget shortfall in fiscal year 2011, Georgia state legis

  • Press Release

Arizona Judge Delineates Between State and Federal Authority

July 28, 2010

Washington, D.C. - Today, Phoenix district court judge Susan Bolton enjoined key provisions of Arizona's controversial immigration law, SB1070.

  • Press Release

The United States v. Arizona: Drawing a Clear Line Between Federal and State Immigration Authority

July 6, 2010

Washington, D.C. - Today, the United States Department of Justice filed a

  • Press Release

Defining Roles: Federal vs. State Immigration Authority

June 22, 2010

Washington D.C.

  • Press Release

Anti-Immigrant Group Recommends Economic Self-Destruction for Arizona

May 18, 2010

Washington D.C. - In data released "exclusively to FoxNews.com," the

  • Blog

Lawsuit Challenging Texas’ Floating Barrier Raises Questions About Its Other Border Policies

August 1, 2023

The post Lawsuit Challenging Texas’ Floating Barrier Raises Questions About Its...

  • Blog

Lawsuit Challenges Florida Law Making It a Felony to Drive Certain Immigrants Into the State 

July 19, 2023

At the direction of Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida has made it a felony to transport a person into the state who hasn’t been inspected by immigration authorities. Effective July 1, driving a broad...

  • Litigation

Challenging Florida’s Unconstitutional Anti-Immigrant Law

This lawsuit, filed on behalf of several individuals and the Farmworker Association of Florida, challenges Section 10 of Florida’s new anti-immigrant law, Senate Bill 1718.
  • Blog

State Legislatures in Florida and Texas Propose and Enact Harmful Immigration Bills

June 2, 2023

Usurping the role of the federal government, state legislatures in Florida and Texas have proposed multiple harmful immigration bills during this year’s legislative session. Several Florida...

  • Blog

Florida Doubles Down with New Law Designed to Spend Millions to Relocate Migrants

March 3, 2023

Florida made headlines last year as it passed a law allowing Governor Ron DeSantis to spend up to 12 million dollars to transport migrants out of Florida. DeSantis used over $1 million of that...

  • Press Release

New Research Shows Immigrants Account for Nearly 13 Percent of Utah Physicians as Demand for Bilingual Workers Jumps 38.8 Percent

February 7, 2023
The American Immigration Council released new research, The Growing Demand for Healthcare Workers in Utah, which underscores the crucial role immigrants play in some of the state’s fastest growing and most in demand healthcare fields.
  • FOIA

FOIA Request Seeks Records Regarding Parole Guidance and Incorrect Addresses on CBP Documents After Migrants Flown to Martha's Vineyard

The requested records will shed light on CBP's practices with respect to granting and extending humanitarian parole and the agency's determinations regarding which addresses to include on immigration paperwork.
  • Press Release

New Research Reveals Changing Demographics in Foreign-Born Voters and Younger Voters in Swing States

October 4, 2022
The data interactive, “The Changing Demographics of the Electorate at a State Level,” highlights the changes in the demographics of eligible voters in every state now compared to 2016, broken down by gender, age, and ethnicity.
  • Blog

Asylum Seekers Become Political Pawns in Governors’ Transportation Stunts

September 23, 2022

The Republican governors of Texas, Arizona, and now Florida are playing a cynical political game with the lives of migrants—including many asylum seekers fleeing persecution. Officials in these...

  • Press Release

New Research Shows Texas Immigrants Accounted for Over 20 Percent of Workforce Across Several Leading Industries

July 13, 2022
New research on released today by the American Immigration Council–in partnership with the Texas Association of Business and the Texas Business Leadership Council–underscores the crucial role immigrants in Texas play in some of the state’s fastest growing and most in demand fields.

Most Read

  • Publications
  • Blog Posts
  • Past:
  • Trending