Sponsors (13)
The bill limits immigration enforcement immediately before federal elections to protect immigrants and reduce perceived government interference, while preserving narrow exceptions for urgent threats — but it raises public‑safety, operational, fiscal, and liability trade‑offs for enforcement agencies and local jurisdictions.
Immigrants (and communities they live in) are less likely to face broad immigration enforcement or removal during the 4 weeks before a federal election, reducing fear of targeted pre‑election operations and lowering perceptions of government interference in the political process.
Law enforcement and the public retain the ability to respond in urgent public‑safety situations because operations based on particularized criminal probable cause or necessary to prevent imminent death or serious injury remain permitted.
Clarifying that immigration officers are covered by 18 U.S.C. §593 extends legal protections and clarity about accountability for those officers and people they interact with.
Local governments, law enforcement, and the public may face delayed removal of dangerous individuals because non‑exigent immigration enforcement is constrained in the 4 weeks before an election, increasing short‑term public‑safety risk.
Immigration officers and agencies may face operational uncertainty about what qualifies as 'particularized criminal probable cause' or 'necessary to prevent imminent death,' complicating enforcement planning and execution.
Individuals with removable convictions who do not meet the narrow exception could avoid timely removal, which may increase costs for jurisdictions that handle related criminal or civil matters.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Introduced February 20, 2026 by John B. Larson · Last progress February 20, 2026
Prohibits federal immigration enforcement or removal operations nationwide during the four weeks before a federal election, with two narrow exceptions: (1) actions based on particularized criminal probable cause tied to a particular individual, and (2) operations necessary to prevent imminent death or serious bodily injury. It also amends a federal criminal statute to explicitly include immigration officers in the statute's coverage.