Reyes: Hochul’s immigration proposal appeals to the GOP

Some progressive lawmakers aren’t taking too kindly to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s latest proposal to restrict local police from assisting federal immigration officers. The governor wants to allow municipalities to assist U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement when there’s probable cause someone committed a crime, but Assembly Member Karines Reyes said that plan would actually be worse for immigrant New Yorkers than current law – and could stand to hurt her in this year’s gubernatorial race.

“You can’t let cops be judge, jury and executioner,” Reyes told City & State on Friday during state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s reception kicking off the annual Somos conference in Albany. “We want to make sure that law enforcement isn’t able to act on their own prejudices.”

The conference focused on New York’s Latino population provides a key opportunity for lawmakers and stakeholders to strategize, but the stakes are even higher as Hochul and legislative leaders make progress on months-long talks to counter ICE under the Trump administration. Reyes said if the governor’s proposal becomes law, immigrants will remember it at the ballot box this November.

“I think the governor and those who advise her need to refocus on who the electorate is and the message they’re sending,” Reyes said, later adding, “The governor can win overwhelmingly if she’s right on these issues, or she can win with a much narrower margin if she continues to appeal to Republican talking points.”Hochul won her 2022 election against now-Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin by a mere 6 points. Hochul’s office did not return a request for comment.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie also indicated concern this week about allowing police to cite probable cause as a reason to work with ICE. “Probable cause to commit a crime being committed, that’s such an open and general term,” he told reporters Thursday.

Reyes, who sponsors the New York For All Act, which would completely ban municipalities from any collaboration with ICE, said she knows Hochul’s heart is in the right place to do something, but she hopes the executive remains open to conversations. And she hopes Somos will be 

“We have to advocate for what is the least harmful measure for our community,” she added.

Hochul’s proposal would also permit police to assist ICE with criminal convictions, but details remain unclear, since she has not made specific legislative language public. 

At DiNapoli’s reception, state Attorney General Letitia James said the Democratic conference comes as the Latino community is hurting, and the party must act to oppose the mass deportation efforts backed by President Donald Trump’s administration.

“If you recognize the threats this administration poses to all of us, we not only have to come to Albany to party, but we’ve got to come to Albany to get to work,” she told the crowd.

Afterward, James told City & State she supports and endorses Hochul’s proposal, but refused to weigh in on the inclusion of probable cause – leaving negotiations to legislative leaders.

“Whatever they negotiate, I have to defend,” she said. Of ongoing talks, James added: “We are at the table, we are discussing all of the proposals and we are ensuring that it passes constitutional muster.”