California Governor Vetoes 2 Bills to Help Immigrants
Share
SACRAMENTO — California Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed two bills Thursday seeking to expand the rights of immigrants living in the country illegally and protect them from deportation.
“I believe existing law — which requires citizenship for these forms of public service — is the better path.” — Gov. Jerry Brown in his veto message
One bill would have allowed anyone to serve on state boards and commissions regardless of their immigration status, while the other sought to block immigration authorities from making arrests inside courthouses.The move by Brown. a Democrat, avoids opening another front in California’s war with President Donald Trump.
The governor said he saw no reason to change a state law requiring citizenship to serve on state and local boards, which oversee zoning laws, regulate professional licenses and perform a wide variety of other functions.
“I believe existing law — which requires citizenship for these forms of public service — is the better path,” Brown wrote in his veto message.
Sen. Ricardo Lara, a Democrat from Bell Gardens outside Los Angeles who wrote the bill, predicted the citizenship requirement will eventually disappear.
Worries Bill May Have Unintended Consequences
“California benefits when all community members can serve the state that has given them so much,” Lara said in a statement. “If people have earned the opportunity to serve through their experience and talents, we should invite them to the table.”
“If people have earned the opportunity to serve through their experience and talents, we should invite them to the table.” — Sen. Ricardo Lara, a Democrat who wrote the bill
In March, the state Senate Rules Committee appointed a woman living in California without authorization to a state advisory board. In 2016, Brown appointed someone in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program to the California State University Board of Trustees.Brown vetoed another bill, also written by Lara, that sought to prohibit immigration authorities from making arrests inside courthouses — a key point of contention between California officials and the Trump administration.
Brown wrote in his veto message that he supports the intent of the bill but worries it may have unintended consequences.
He did not elaborate but said he wants to wait until the state attorney general publishes model policies limiting assistance with immigration enforcement in courthouses, which is required under legislation Brown signed last year.
Brown did sign another Lara bill prohibiting hotels and bus companies from releasing the names of their customers to immigration authorities without a court order.
That measure was prompted by a report in the Phoenix New Times newspaper that Motel 6 employees in Arizona were handing over guest lists to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
Ex-US Rep. George Santos Sentenced to Over 7 Years in Prison for Fraud and Identity Theft
Crime /
9 hours ago
Selma Mayor Charged With Electioneering Violation on Election Day
Crime /
9 hours ago
Stocks Rise With Tech-Related Shares, Notch Weekly Gains; Dollar Up
Economy /
10 hours ago
Conflicting US-China Talks Statements Add to Global Trade Confusion
World /
10 hours ago
Fresno Police Arrest 17 in Domestic Violence Crackdown
Crime /
11 hours ago
Virginia Giuffre, Voice in Epstein Sex Trafficking Scandal, Dies at 41
Virginia Giuffre, a former victim of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking ring who said she was “passed around like a platter of fruit” as a te...
News /
5 hours ago
Categories
Latest
Videos

News /
5 hours ago
Virginia Giuffre, Voice in Epstein Sex Trafficking Scandal, Dies at 41

Politics /
9 hours ago
Higher Taxes on Millionaires? Trump Says He’s Open, but Many in His Party Are Not

Crime /
9 hours ago
Ex-US Rep. George Santos Sentenced to Over 7 Years in Prison for Fraud and Identity Theft

Crime /
9 hours ago
Selma Mayor Charged With Electioneering Violation on Election Day

Economy /
10 hours ago
Stocks Rise With Tech-Related Shares, Notch Weekly Gains; Dollar Up

Video /
3 days ago
Wired Wednesday: What’s the Future of Fresno Unified and the Superintendent Position?

Opinion /
5 days ago
Zakaria Draws Parallels Between Trump’s Tariffs, Failed 1930s Economic Policies

Local /
1 week ago