Austin Mayor Kirk Watson announced upcoming policy changes for police cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Watson asked Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis to draft the new policy to reflect the change in leadership from Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa, an Austin Democrat.
The policy adjustments, to take effect in January, “shows a second large Texas city reading the November election as an opening to loosen cooperation rules,” noted Immigration Analytics.
Senate Bill 4, the cooperation rule, is often referred to as Texas’ sanctuary city law.
Passed in 2017, SB 4 requires local government cooperation with federal authorities when dealing with illegal aliens, permits police to ask detainees for immigration status, and prohibits cities from creating policies to prevent the practice.
Immigration Analytics argued that “Austin is betting on who enforces the law, not on what the law says.”
In March, Austin adopted policies limiting police cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
“The commander will make the decision on whether we are gonna be waiting for ICE. And I can tell you, the priority is not waiting for ICE to respond,” Davis said in March.
However, Abbott’s office noted in a letter at the time that the policies “impede or restrict the notification” to ICE and might breach grant agreements.
After Abbott’s letter threatened to remove state grant funding, APD changed its policies to cooperate with federal immigration authorities per its state contract requirements.
However, with Hinojosa taking office in January, “Watson said he expects less oversight on Austin’s policies in light of an incoming Democratic administration,” noted KUT News.
While Austin is waiting until January, Houston Mayor John Whitmire has already signed an order limiting police contact with ICE on November 7.
White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis wrote in a statement to Newsweek, “This will make Texans less safe. Seven out of 10 of the safest cities in the United States cooperate with ICE. Once again, Democrat politicians are putting criminal illegal aliens above the safety of American citizens.”
