Sponsors (2)
The bill expands state participation in federal immigration proceedings and broadens criminal grounds for removal to speed and strengthen enforcement and public-safety removals, but it raises the likelihood of deportation for more noncitizens (including some long-term residents and asylum seekers), creates new costs and liability questions for States, and increases workload pressure on the federal immigration system.
Communities and public safety: DHS and courts can more readily remove or exclude noncitizens convicted of specified violent crimes, firearms- and trafficking-related offenses, and expanded drug felonies because the bill clarifies and broadens aggravated-felony and controlled-substance definitions.
State governments and state-housed detainees: States may provide licensed attorneys to perform certain DHS OPLA functions under agreements (with required training, supervision, and written limits), which can increase local legal capacity, speed handling of immigration matters in State correctional facilities, and give participating state attorneys limited access to federal employee injury/claims待遇
Large groups of noncitizens — including some lawful permanent residents, long-term residents, and asylum seekers — face higher risk of losing immigration protection or being removed because the bill expands aggravated‑felony definitions and makes some convictions count as particularly serious crimes; removing a familial-assistance exception also bars some family members who previously could enter.
Federal immigration agencies and courts: Broader criminal grounds for inadmissibility and removal will increase enforcement and removal caseloads, adding workload and backlog pressure on DHS, DOJ, and immigration courts.
State and local budgets and legal exposure: States that choose to provide attorneys will incur direct costs for staffing, training, and supervision, and treating state officers as acting under federal authority for certain liability/ immunity purposes may shift civil‑liability dynamics and limit state remedies.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Allows DHS to contract with States to let qualified State attorneys handle specified federal removal functions and expands which crimes count as "aggravated felonies" for immigration law.
Introduced February 24, 2026 by Derek Schmidt · Last progress February 24, 2026
Authorizes the Department of Homeland Security, working with the Attorney General, to enter written agreements with States that let qualified State attorneys perform certain federal immigration removal functions in specified cases, with training, supervision, and limits on prosecutorial discretion and use of federal property; the State must pay associated costs. It also expands the federal immigration definition of “aggravated felony,” adding more types of drug and violent offenses (including straw purchasing/firearms trafficking and carjacking) and tightening how some burglary/theft and controlled-substance offenses count against noncitizens. A severability clause preserves the rest of the law if part is struck down.