Sponsors (8)
The bill shifts detainer-related legal responsibility and many enforcement incentives to the federal level—reducing local liability and protecting cooperative jurisdictions—while increasing federal control over local policing and threatening grant funding, legal remedies, and services in jurisdictions labeled as 'sanctuary'.
State and local officers who comply with DHS detainers are treated as federal agents, shifting legal responsibility to the United States and reducing direct local liability for detainer-related seizures and detentions.
The bill channels detainer-related claims into a federal remedy (exclusive FTCA path), centralizing litigation venue and legal standards for lawsuits arising from detainer actions.
Jurisdictions that fully cooperate with DHS face fewer penalties or restrictions tied to 'sanctuary' designations, reducing risk of federal sanctions for cooperative state and local governments.
Immigrants face greater risk of detention or transfer because state and local officers gain authority to act on DHS detainers, increasing federal-style enforcement at the local level.
Private civil remedies against state and local governments and officers are limited by channeling claims into the Federal Tort Claims Act and FTCA-like procedures, which can reduce plaintiffs' ability to obtain relief and complicate constitutional claims.
Shielding states and localities from direct liability could weaken local accountability and reduce incentives to safeguard civil rights, making oversight of detainer compliance harder.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Conditions certain federal grants on cooperating with DHS detainers, treats local officers who comply as federal agents with limited liability, and bans grants to defined "sanctuary jurisdictions."
Introduced April 16, 2026 by John Cornyn · Last progress April 16, 2026
Creates legal and grant-related consequences for States and localities that adopt policies limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities. It defines “sanctuary jurisdiction,” bars certain federal grants to those jurisdictions, gives State attorneys general standing to seek injunctions to withhold grants when a released noncitizen commits a crime in another State, and treats state/local officers who comply with DHS detainers as federal agents for purposes of authority and certain liability protections while preserving liability for knowing civil or constitutional rights violations.