Amid increased ICE raids, state Legislature fails to act on sanctuary state bill

New York for All was meant to protect New York’s undocumented community, but the bill won’t make it past the finish line this year. A late budget is mostly to blame, but mixed political support and concerns that the legislation wouldn’t scratch the surface of the federal government’s threats doomed it. 

Sponsored by state Sen. Andrew Gounardes and Assembly Member Karines Reyes, the New York for All Act would prohibit state and local officials from collaborating with federal immigration authorities. Even with the political climate around immigration in New York, it appeared a long shot to pass, and it didn’t overcome the odds even with a last-minute push from advocates. 

Currently, New York City is a “sanctuary city” where police are prohibited from cooperating and sharing information with ICE regarding civil immigration violations. The state, however, is a patchwork system where localities can decide to what extent they work with federal immigration authorities, and New York For All would create a uniform standard of noncompliance with federal immigration authorities.  

Reyes figured that leaders just didn't feel any impetus to act, despite lawmakers pushing the bill, in part because voters perceive attacks on the undocumented community to be largely a New York City issue that doesn’t affect the rest of the state. 

“We hear more and more anecdotal stories of that being the case in other parts of the state, where people are getting picked up, but I think the general public isn't clear on that reality,” Reyes told City & State. “And I think that unfortunately drives leadership's willingness to do things because they are relying on public perception and public opinion, and most people don't understand what really is happening.”

Protesters shut down the intersection at the Washington Avenue entrance to the state Capitol last Tuesday and blocked the entrance to state Senate chambers on Thursday, the last day that the upper chamber met this year, in an attempt to raise awareness of the bill. But the state Senate left Albany last week without having even debated the bill.

Lawmakers were working with a shortened timeline after the final state budget was delayed by 40 days. While New York’s spending plan being late is nothing new, the weeks shaved off the calendar caused some state lawmakers to feel like they barely had time to advocate for their legislation. They’ll likely return later in the year to adjust the state budget in response to federal funding cuts, but there may not be an opening to talk about general bills.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie pointed out at an unrelated press conference that week how statehouses don’t really have any way of preventing federal immigration enforcement actions. Between the bait-and-switches and courtroom sweeps, he told reporters, New York is essentially helpless. 

“A lot of the actions that the federal government is doing, in particular, ICE, state legislation wouldn't even stop what is going on,” Heastie told reporters. “Now, we are all devastated by what has been happening. Spouses and children are being torn away from each other, and, you know, it's just, it's really heart-wrenching, but I don't know how much that we could possibly do on an immigration issue.”

Meanwhile, the Protect Our Courts Act, which prevents ICE from making arrests in state courthouses without judicial warrants, is being challenged in court by the U.S. Department of Justice. Lawmakers who had hoped to pass legislation strengthening the law ran into the same dynamic Heastie laid out – since there is little the state Legislature can do to prevent a federal agency like ICE from arresting New Yorkers.

Even if New York For All had passed the state Legislature, there’s no guarantee that Gov. Kathy Hochul would sign the bill. Rep. Mike Lawler tried to force her into a position on the legislation last Thursday during her congressional testimony on sanctuary cities, but she sidestepped the possibility. “I have no confidence it will pass,” Hochul said at the time.

It looks like she was right.