Pritzker Signs Bill Limiting ICE Operations, Making It Easier To Sue Feds

CHICAGO — Effective immediately, Gov. JB Pritzker signed HB 1312, creating a law that enshrines protections for immigrant families in the wake of what he called the Trump Administration’s “lawless and aggressive immigration enforcement actions.”

Pritzker was joined Tuesday morning by bill sponsors, officials and community advocates in Chicago’s Little Village. The governor slammed President Donald Trump, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino in his remarks.

“With my signature today, we are protecting people and institutions that belong here in Illinois. Dropping your kid off at day care, going to the doctor, or attending your classes should not be a life-altering task,” Pritzker said. “Illinois — in the face of cruelty and intimidation — has chosen solidarity and support. Donald Trump, Kristi Noem and Gregory Bovino have tried to appeal to our lesser instincts. But the best of us are standing up to the worst of them.”

HB 1312 restricts federal law enforcement outside of courthouses, protects immigrants health information and access to childcare without fear of aggressive actions by law enforcement agents who knowingly violate Constitutional rights during civil enforcement operations. The bill also defends immigrants at universities and makes it easier for those who feel their rights were violated to sue federal agents.

“At a moment when the Trump Administration attacks immigrants on a daily basis, everyday people in Illinois stepped up to look out for their neighbors and demand real protections that re-establish our state as a national leader in protecting all communities,” Lawrence Benito, executive director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, said during the news conference. “We thank Governor Pritzker and members of the General Assembly for showing the leadership needed to meet the moment, listening to immigrant communities, and making HB 1312 law in Illinois.”

The bill comes on the heels of Operation Midway Blitz actions of the fall, which saw street vendors, parents picking up their children from school, people showing up for court hearings and others dragged off the street, frequently without due process. Of the hundreds of undocumented immigrants detained by ICE, only 3 percent reportedly had convictions for violent crimes.

“Every one of us has read about the consequential moments of our history and wondered what we would do. Would we stand up to Jim Crow? Would we speak out against the internment camps? Would we stand between our neighbors and the SS? We’re facing another one of those consequential moments right now, and this law shows what we will do,” said House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch (D-Westchester). “In Illinois, we will stand up for the rights of every person. We will stand up for our neighbors and our communities. We will stand up to racial profiling, to reckless hate, and to tyranny. We will stand together at this moment and the moments still to come, and we will make sure Illinois is always on the right side of history.”

The legislation was largely backed by Democrats in the Illinois General Assembly.