Four things to know about SB 4, Texas’ migrant arrest law
Gov. Greg Abbott’s feud with the Biden administration over the southern border is reaching new heights as Texas attempts to expand its role in immigration enforcement like never before.
Though the area is a federal responsibility, Republican lawmakers have approved some $11 billion for Abbott’s border crackdown known as Operation Lone Star, in which thousands of state police and National Guard members have been deployed to the border to arrest migrants for trespassing on private land and other state charges.
Last year, the Texas Legislature went a step further, passing a new law that empowers state officials to essentially deport people who are suspected of crossing the border illegally. With the measure set to take effect in the coming weeks, here’s what you need to know about it.
What is SB 4?
The law, known as Senate Bill 4, creates a new class of “illegal entry” state crimes that authorize police to arrest people they suspect of unlawfully entering Texas from Mexico between ports of entry.
The offense is punishable by up to six months in jail, though a judge could order a defendant to return to Mexico in lieu of continuing with the case, as long as the defendant consents.
For convicted offenders, though, it’s not much of a choice. The law requires judges to issue return orders for those convicted of illegal entry, for which refusal to comply would trigger a penalty of up to 20 years in prison. The provision effectively puts deportation powers long held solely by the federal government in the state’s hands.
When does it take effect?
Abbott signed SB 4 into law in December, and it’s set to take effect March 5.
The Biden administration has sued in an attempt to block it, arguing that immigration enforcement falls solely under the purview of the federal government.
Texas officials had until Wednesday to respond to the Justice Department’s initial court filing. A federal judge overseeing the case has scheduled a Feb. 15 hearing in Austin to consider the Biden administration’s request to block the law from taking effect.
Why is DOJ fighting SB 4?
In their suit, Department of Justice officials allege that the state’s efforts “intrude on the federal government’s exclusive authority to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens, frustrate the United States’ immigration operations and proceedings, and interfere with U.S. foreign relations.”
Critics have long said the law appears to run afoul of a key 2012 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that restricts states from enforcing immigration laws. The lawsuit could trigger the Supreme Court to revisit that opinion, known as Arizona v. United States. The Biden administration cited the case near the top of its filing, noting the high court found that the U.S. government “has broad, undoubted power over the subject of immigration and the status of ” noncitizens.
Republican lawmakers have rejected charges that SB 4 clashes with federal immigration law, arguing it deliberately “tracks the language of existing statutes” while exempting people who’ve been granted asylum and other forms of legal status.
But the Department of Justice says it would still allow Texas to bring criminal charges against immigrants that could stymie federal policies.
Impact on immigration
Abbott has said the measure would “stop the tidal wave of illegal entry into Texas.” He has blamed the Biden administration for the spike in migrant crossings and argued that Texas is being forced to step up on its own.
State Rep. David Spiller, the Jacksboro Republican who carried the measure through the Texas House, has called it “a humane, logical and efficient approach” to the border crisis.
“There’s nothing unfair about ordering someone back from where they came if they arrived here illegally,” Spiller said.
Democrats and immigrant advocates contend that it will lead to racial profiling and sow distrust between law enforcement and people of color. They also say that, paired with a new anti-smuggling law that took effect Tuesday, it would punish people for driving undocumented family members on routine trips.
State Sen. Brian Birdwell, a Granbury Republican who chairs the Senate Border Security Committee, was one of the lone GOP members to speak out last year against the measure.
In an extraordinary rebuke, Birdwell argued that SB 4 would usurp the federal government’s power to enforce immigration laws.
“We are setting a terrible precedent for the future by invalidating our obedience and faithfulness to our Constitution,” Birdwell said. “President Biden’s failure to obey his oath does not compel us to violate ours. Instead, it compels our federal representatives to constrain him and for the electorate to remove him in the coming year.”