State senators listen to legislative proceedings from the Idaho Senate floor on Jan. 7, 2025. (Pat Sutphin for the Idaho Capital Sun)
The Republican-controlled Idaho Senate voted along party lines Tuesday to pass a Texas-style immigration bill that for the first time would allow local law enforcement officials to check and enforce the documentation status of people who are being detained or investigated for a crime.
Less than two hours after the Idaho Senate voted to pass the bill, the American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho issued a written statement promising to sue the state if the bill becomes law.
If passed into law, House Bill 83aa would do several things.
First, it would create a new state law called “illegal entry into this state.”
The bill states, in part: “A person who is an alien commits an offense if the person enters or attempts to enter this state directly from a foreign nation at any location other than a lawful port of entry or through another manner of lawful entry.”
The bill also states, “A violation of this section shall be a misdemeanor upon a first conviction. A second or subsequent conviction shall be a felony.”
Under the bill local law enforcement officers would only be able to enforce the crime of illegal entry into Idaho if the person was being detained or investigated for another crime.
The bill also creates another state crime called “illegal reentry by certain aliens.” If House Bill 83aa becomes law, it would be illegal to attempt to enter Idaho or be found in Idaho if a person “Has been denied admission to or excluded, deported, or removed from the United States; or… Has departed from the United States while an order of exclusion, deportation, or removal is outstanding.”
Finally, the bill would allow a magistrate judge in Idaho to issue a written order for a person to return to the foreign country they attempted to enter Idaho from, even if a person wasn’t convicted. Beginning on line 25 of page three, the bill states: “The judge in a person’s case at any time after the person’s appearance before a magistrate pursuant to section 19-514 or 19-615, Idaho Code, may, in lieu of continuing the prosecution of or entering an adjudication regarding an offense pursuant to section 18-9002 or 18-9003, Idaho Code, dismiss the charge pending against the person and issue a written order.”
In order for the judge to issue an order for a defendant to return to their foreign country before a conviction, the defendant must agree to the order, must not have been convicted of a previous crime and must not be facing another offense that is punishable by a felony.
In cases where there is a conviction, an Idaho judge shall issue an order requiring the defendant to return to the foreign country from which they attempted to enter Idaho after they complete their prison sentence, according to the bill.
Idaho Republicans say failed federal immigration policies require a response at the state level
Republican Sen. Todd Lakey, R-Nampa, co-sponsored and presented House Bill 83aa. Lakey and Republicans who supported the bill said it was a way to take a tough stand on undocumented immigration.
“Now we as states, we are faced with the consequences and the fallout of failed federal policy in our towns and in our communities,” Lakey said. “Those consequences and impacts necessitate a response at the state level. We have the responsibility to protect our people and our communities and our state. I think that is a sovereign obligation that we have as a state.”
Lakey admitted passing the bill was not without risk, saying that portions of the bill were modeled after Texas Senate Bill 4, which has been blocked from taking effect as part of a challenge in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Idaho House voted 61-9 to pass the original version of the Idaho bill on Feb. 10. Since then, the Idaho Senate voted to amend the bill to combine House Bill 83 and Senate Bill 1039, which is also related to immigration.
House Bill 83aa next heads back to the Idaho House for consideration of the Senate amendments.
All 29 Senate Republicans voted in favor of House Bill 83 while all six Democrats voted against.
Sen. James Ruchti, D-Pocatello, said the bill wrongly inserts the state into immigration enforcement, which is the responsibility of the federal government.
“We are asking our magistrate judges to act in these areas, to issue orders to send individuals back over the border; that’s not something our magistrates have been trained to do, or have any experience in doing,” Ruchti said.
ACLU of Idaho threatens to sue if Texas-style immigration bill becomes law [/subjed]
Officials with the ACLU of Idaho said House Bill 83aa is similar to immigration bills passed in Texas, Iowa and Oklahoma.
“We don’t want to sue on this bill,” ACLU of Idaho Executive Director Leo Morales said in a written statement. “But if the bill passes, we must sue to protect immigrant families in Idaho and to stop legislation like H.B. 83, that so flagrantly disregards the U.S. Constitution.”
Officials with the ACLU warned the bill would lead to racial profiling.
“This bill does not make anyone safer,” Ruby Mendez-Mota, campaign strategist with ACLU of Idaho, said in a written statement. “In fact, it will do the opposite. Rather than target criminals, it would impact anyone who may be stopped by the police. This bill will fuel racial profiling,
weaponize accusations against Latinos in Idaho, and make anyone who doesn’t appear to be white feel less safe.”
An attorney with the ACLU of Idaho flagged language in the bill that allows a magistrate judge to issue an order even without a conviction.
“The bill language is clear that no conviction of a crime needs to be present before the state involves itself in immigration, so claims that this only targets criminals is incorrect,” ACLU staff attorney Emily Croston said in a written statement. “This bill would be devastating to Idahoans.”
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