Sponsors (30)
Official title: To amend the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General to develop a database of sanctuary jurisdictions, prohibit Federal funds from being obligated or expended with respect to such jurisdictions, and for other purposes.
Introduced August 19, 2025 by Charles Roy · Last progress August 19, 2025
The bill increases federal leverage over local immigration cooperation and aims to conserve federal funds by identifying and defunding noncooperative jurisdictions, but it risks reducing local services, raising enforcement and public-safety concerns for immigrant communities, straining federal and local capacities, and inviting legal challenges.
Federal, state, and local officials and the public get a centralized, searchable list identifying jurisdictions whose policies limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities, making it easier to find and compare which places restrict cooperation.
Federal law-enforcement agencies (ICE, DOJ) and their staff can better target enforcement resources because flagged jurisdictions highlight where detainers or interviews are refused, potentially improving federal enforcement coordination.
Taxpayers and the federal budget are protected because jurisdictions placed on the list become ineligible for certain federal funds, preventing federal dollars from supporting local policies that limit federal immigration enforcement.
State and local governments (and the residents who rely on them) would lose federal funding if designated as 'sanctuary jurisdictions,' reducing money available for local services such as education, healthcare, and infrastructure.
Immigrants living in listed jurisdictions face increased risk of federal immigration enforcement and reduced access to local protections, which could harm their safety, willingness to seek services, and overall community health.
Community policing and public-safety could worsen because local law enforcement and residents may lose trust and cooperation if jurisdictions change or reverse policies to avoid listing, potentially reducing crime reporting and complicating local policing.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates a public federal database of "sanctuary jurisdictions" and bars federal funds for any entity listed; database required within 90 days and updated quarterly.
Creates a publicly searchable federal database of State and local government entities designated as "sanctuary jurisdictions" and prohibits federal funds from being obligated or spent for any jurisdiction listed. The database must be developed within 90 days of enactment, updated at least quarterly, and is maintained jointly by the Department of Homeland Security (through ICE) and the Department of Justice. Designated criteria include laws, policies, or practices that conflict with specified federal immigration statutes, restrict cooperation with DHS detainers or arrest/detention authorities, or bar federal authorities from interviewing incarcerated individuals to determine immigration status or suspected criminal involvement. Listing results in a federal funding prohibition for funds made available after enactment directed at those entities.