Testimony regarding the Impact of New Immigration Enforcement Tactics on Access to Justice and Services

SUMMARY

Rebecca Sosa, member of the Immigration and Nationality Law Committee (Farrin Anello, Chair), provided testimony on behalf of the Committee before the New York City Council’s Committee on Immigration regarding the impact of new Federal immigration enforcement tactics on access to justice and services.  The Committee argued that for the City to effectively deliver services, all New Yorkers must have equal access to go court, to call upon law enforcement for protection, and to access education and social services. Maintaining public trust in City government and law enforcement is critical to public safety and prosperity. To that end, the Committee offered a series of recommendations to ensure that trust in government is maintained, including: prohibiting local law enforcement from acting as federal immigration officers; limiting access by immigration enforcement to certain areas of City property when they do not have a judicial warrant; empowering local law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges with an expanded range of alternative tools to address low-level and non-violent offenses that put immigrants at risk of deportation; keeping personal information such as immigration status confidential by establishing data privacy standards and protocols; requiring the Department of Education to refuse ICE access to school property without a warrant, and similar measures to block access to students and their records; and funding immigrant representation while ensuring quality access to justice.

HEARING INFORMATION

T2017-5716 – Oversight: The Impact of New Immigration Enforcement Tactics on Access to Justice and Services
Committee on Immigration
March 15, 2017