Rep. J.D. Prescott, R-Union City, answers Democrat questions about his immigration enforcement bill on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. (Leslie Bonilla Muñiz/Indiana Capital Chronicle)
House lawmakers on Thursday tussled briefly over legislation mandating local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement and cracking down on employers using unauthorized labor.
The chamber’s party-line vote sends the measure to the Senate.
“President (Donald) Trump and ‘border czar’ Tom Homan have been … making great strides in securing our border … with a priority on removing those who have committed additional crimes first,” Rep. J.D. Prescott, R-Union City, told the chamber.
“We have a part to play here in Indiana as well,” he added. “We can do that with this legislation.”
His House Bill 1531 would require all levels of Hoosier government to comply with federal detainer requests. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) often asks local police and others to keep “potentially dangerous aliens” for 48 hours longer so it can take them into custody.
The legislation rewards cooperative locals with legal defense from Indiana’s attorney general plus legal immunity, but punishes noncompliance. The attorney general could sue to stop violations and to impose civil penalties of $10,000 per breach. And on that officeholder’s advice, the governor could withhold grants or state funding to violators for up to a year.
Prescott told Rep. Maureen Bauer, D-South Bend, that funding for offender rehabilitation, problem-solving courts and more could be withheld — but said school safety grants and school resource officer dollars wouldn’t be affected.
“I’m not prepared to defund these essential services, cripple our law enforcement agencies and compromise the public safety in our communities,” Bauer later said.
Another chunk of the measure would ban employers from “knowingly or intentionally” recruiting, hiring or employing people not authorized to work in the U.S., beginning in July. Many industries use illegal labor.
Edits made Wednesday exempted businesses with 10 or fewer employees. Bigger employers could conduct “reasonable diligence” as an out. Using the paid federal E-Verify application or industry-standard best practices from the attorney general would count.
A court could temporarily or permanently suspend an employer’s operating authorizations or put it on probation.
Rep. Ryan Dvorak, D-South Bend, criticized Republicans for not accepting amendments that would’ve imposed “real consequences” for employers.
Other provisions would require the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration to provide data on noncitizens receiving public benefits when state lawmakers or officers ask for it, and mandate that parole sponsors file certain information with Indiana’s Department of Revenue.
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