The price tag for Gov. Bill Lee’s new immigration enforcement program dropped from $20.5 million to $5 million in a matter of hours. (Photo: Getty Images)
The cost estimate of Gov. Bill Lee’s sweeping state immigration enforcement plan fell dramatically in the space of a few hours this week.
On Monday, a fiscal note for the plan placed the cost at more than $20 million. By Tuesday, the price tag had dropped to a little over $5 million.
The reduction came from lowering the amount in grants that are proposed for local sheriffs and police departments to implement so-called 287(g) programs, which allow local law enforcement officers to enforce U.S. immigration violations in coordination with the federal government.
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A spokesperson for Lee said Tuesday the reduction was made to align with the goals of the governor and Republican leadership.
“The fiscal note was adjusted to reflect the intent of Gov. Lee and legislative leadership’s proposal to appropriate $5 million in non-recurring grant funds,” said Elizabeth Johnson, Lee’s press secretary.
“We will continue to monitor future needs as local jurisdictions partner with the State of Tennessee to implement President Trump’s federal immigration policies.”
The governor’s plan calls for unprecedented state involvement in immigration enforcement — long a federal responsibility — and coordination between the state and federal authorities to detain and deport undocumented immigrants.
The governor’s plan includes establishing a four-person “centralized immigration enforcement division” to administer grants to law enforcement agencies and liaise with the Trump Administration. The price tag for the office — about $500,000— remained unchanged in the downward revision of the estimated cost of the bill.
The governor’s bill, largely embraced by Tennessee’s GOP leadership, sailed quickly through legislative committees on Tuesday and will be heard again Wednesday. An effort to remove a provision of the bill that would make it a crime for local elected officials to vote in favor of sanctuary policies for immigrants – proposed by Senate Judiciary Chair Sen. Todd Gardenhire, a Republican – was swiftly defeated.
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