The Los Angeles City Council voted to pass an ordinance Tuesday that bans the city’s resources from being used for federal immigration enforcement or by federal immigration agents. Council members unanimously voted to pass the ordinance.
LA Mayor Karen Bass and City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto drafted the “sanctuary city” ordinance in early November after they met with immigrant rights groups. One provision of the ordinance includes prohibiting city personnel or property from being used to “investigate, cite, arrest, or detain any person for purposes of enforcement of federal immigration law.” Another provision prevents city resources from being used in any immigration enforcement operation involving federal immigration agents.
At the city council meeting, some organizations spoke about the significance of the ordinance’s passage including Yvonne Wheeler, president of the LA County Federation of Labor, and Gina Amato Lough, directing attorney for the Immigrants’ Rights Project. Wheeler urged council members to pass the ordinance stating that “it is our duty to protect our immigrant community.” Similarly, attorney Lough asked council members to “protect the residents of this city” as “immigrant families are under attack and face imminent harm.”
The ordinance’s passage comes amidst president-elect Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations of undocumented immigrants. Trump has expressed intentions to declare a national emergency, so the US military can be utilized in carrying out the deportations. In his victory speech after winning the 2024 federal election, Trump also declared his goal of tightening border restrictions on legal immigration.
The Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, similarly recently released a statement discussing the new restrictions on immigration in the country as well as addressing the previous policies during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Government of Canada’s action plan on immigration aims to reduce the number of immigrants entering Canada for temporary and permanent residents.
Since the ordinance has passed through the LA City Council with the necessary votes, Mayor Bass may sign the ordinance into law.
