Despite the mayor’s disapproval, another Texas city will be joining a lawsuit with several other municipalities against SB 4 – the state’s newly enacted ‘sanctuary cities’ bill.
On Thursday, San Antonio City Council decided during a secret executive session to join the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund in their lawsuit against the state for the newly enacted ‘sanctuary cities’ law.
The Alamo City is joining the City of Austin in the lawsuit filed by MALDEF, which is ostensibly covering the legal expenses associated with the suit. Mayor Ivy Taylor led the opposition against the suit.
“In this case, the prudent course would have been, at the very least, to wait until the end of the legislative session and through any special session the governor may call this summer to see whether a legislative solution to the plaintiffs’ concerns could be found,” said Mayor Taylor in a statement.
“This is especially the case given that there is good probability this lawsuit will end up at the U.S. Supreme Court. Before putting San Antonio taxpayers on the hook up for a lengthy and costly legal battle such as this, we should be certain that litigation is the measure of last resort and that the city is bearing its fair share of any legal burden. Neither of these conditions has been satisfied, which is why I continue to oppose City Council’s decision to join this lawsuit.”
MALDEF, along with several other non-profits, is claiming they are covering all of the legal expenses; however, the size and scope of this lawsuit certainly suggests it will be dragged out for quite a while, as Taylor noted.
What many people forget – especially arrogant local officials – is that cities are a subordinate creation of the state. This is not unlike unruly children arguing with their parents – which is offensive enough in concept. However, time will tell whether MALDEF upholds their financial obligation or the City of San Antonio puts taxpayers on the hook for their temper tantrum.
