PHOENIX — Contending the move is illegal, a Republican lawmaker wants Attorney General Kris Mayes to investigate — and presumably bring legal action — against cities that refuse to allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement to operate on their property.
Rep. Quang Nguyen acknowledges the U.S. Constitution prohibits the “commandeering” of state resources. And that, said the Prescott Valley Republican, bars the federal government from compelling states “to enact or administer a federal regulatory program.”
But Nguyen points out there also is a state law that bars cities from adopting policies that “limit or restrict the enforcement of federal immigration laws to less than the full extent permitted by federal law.” That, he said in a letter to Mayes, preempts the ability of cities to ban ICE from using municipal property, even as a staging area.