Sponsors
The bill increases Fourth Amendment protections for immigrants and residents by generally requiring warrants for immigration-related property searches, at the cost of slower enforcement, higher agency expenses, and potential litigation over exceptions.
Immigrants, residents, and homeowners: Federal immigration officers will generally need a judicial warrant to search private property, strengthening Fourth Amendment protections and reducing intrusive warrantless home entries.
Courts, litigants, and people previously subjected to searches: The bill clarifies it does not erase prior Fourth Amendment coverage, reducing retroactive liability confusion and preserving legal clarity about past enforcement.
Law enforcement officers: Requiring warrants could delay or complicate time-sensitive immigration enforcement and hinder operations in borderline exigent situations.
Taxpayers and federal agencies: Agencies may face increased administrative and legal costs to obtain warrants and document exceptions, potentially diverting resources from other duties.
Law enforcement, immigrants, and courts: Narrowing statutory authority could prompt litigation over what constitutes 'exigent circumstances' or 'lawfully obtained consent,' creating legal uncertainty and additional court costs.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires federal immigration officers to obtain a judicial warrant before searching private property, except for consent or exigent circumstances.
Requires federal immigration enforcement officers to obtain a judicial warrant before searching private property, with only two exceptions: lawfully obtained consent and exigent circumstances. The change adds a new rule to the federal immigration enforcement statute and clarifies it does not retroactively alter Fourth Amendment coverage before enactment.
Introduced March 16, 2026 by Vicente Gonzalez · Last progress March 16, 2026