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Palmer Votes to Restrict Funding for Sanctuary Cities

July 23, 2015

For Immediate Release

Washington, DC – Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL), supported H.R. 3009, the Enforce the Law for Sanctuary Cities Act, which passed the House today. This bill cuts off specific federal law enforcement grants for "sanctuary" cities, that is, cities which refuse to cooperate with the Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) or other government agencies charged with immigration, or have laws that bar law enforcement from inquiring about a suspect's immigration status.

"If a city chooses not to cooperate with the federal government in enforcing immigration law, then they should not receive the benefit of federal law enforcement funding," said Palmer, "The rule of law must always remain a high priority for every elected official if we are to maintain our constitutional order."

According to the Center for Immigration Studies, 200 cities nationwide could be classified as sanctuary cities. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) estimate that January 1 to August 31, 2014, more than 8,100 deportable aliens were released after being arrested by sanctuary jurisdictions. Of the 8,100 aliens released by sanctuary jurisdictions, approximately 1,900 were later arrested yet again. In many instances, these illegal immigrants were subsequently arrested more than once.

This issue has been brought to the forefront by a number of recent events, most notably the murder of Kate Steinle in San Francisco on July 1st. Steinle's accused killer, Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, is an illegal immigrant with multiple felony convictions who had been deported multiple times. He was in police custody in San Francisco this past March on drug charges, but was not turned over to ICE due to sanctuary city laws.

For any additional questions, contact:

Cliff Smith, (202) 225-4921, clifford.smith@mail.house.gov

U.S. Representative Gary Palmer (R-AL) serves on three Congressional committees: Oversight and Government Reform, Budget, and Science, Space and Technology. Visit Palmer online at his website or via Facebook,Twitter, or Instagram.