The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutItem 18 - Resolution in Support of the HOME Act (Carrillo-AB 1306) City Manager Office www.santa-ana.org/city-managers-office Item # 18 City of Santa Ana 20 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana, CA 92701 Staff Report August 29, 2023 TOPIC: Resolution in Support of the HOME Act (Carrillo-AB 1306) AGENDA TITLE Resolution Declaring Support of the HOME Act AB1306 RECOMMENDED ACTION Adopt a resolution declaring support of Assembly Bill 1306 (Carrillo) - State Government: Immigration Enforcement. DISCUSSION At the August 1, 2023, Councilmember Vazquez added the following councilmember- requested item: Discuss and Consider Directing the City Manager to Return for City Council’s Consideration a Resolution in Support of AB1306 to Harmonize State Policy with Broadly-Supported, Existing Criminal-Justice Reforms. About Assembly Bill 1306 Assembly Bill 1306 (“AB 1306”), also known as "The HOME Act," is a proposed state bill aimed at halting transfers between the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) for individuals who have completed their sentences and been granted parole. The bill emphasizes previous restorative justice legislation and guarantees that individuals under these policies can return to their homes and reintegrate into society, regardless of their citizenship status. The primary goal of the proposed bill is to enable these individuals to rebuild their lives after serving their sentences. As noted below, there exists state law that limits or restricts state and local law enforcement agencies in federal immigration enforcement activities. However, existing law does not impose these limitations or restrictions on CDCR. AB 1306 would restrict CDCR from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in specific circumstances. More information is provided in the section below. Resolution in Support of the HOME Act (Carrillo-AB 1306) August 29, 2023 Page 2 About the California Values Act and TRUST Act The California Values Act, effective since January 1, 2018, restricts the participation of state and local law enforcement agencies in federal immigration enforcement activities. It forbids these agencies, including school police and security departments, from using their resources to engage in immigration-related investigations, interrogations, detentions, detections, or arrests. The California Values Act also imposes limitations on how law enforcement can collaborate with federal task forces that involve immigration enforcement components. The aim of the California Values Act is to create a clear separation between state and local law enforcement and federal immigration enforcement efforts. The Values Act builds upon the TRUST Act and expands its scope. The TRUST Act originally prohibited law enforcement from honoring federal immigration holds unless the individual had a serious or violent felony conviction. However, the California Values Act includes certain exceptions that allow law enforcement agencies to cooperate with immigration authorities in the following circumstances: •Provide a person’s release date or personal information, as specified, if such information is available to the public; •Respond to notification and transfer requests when the individual had been convicted of specified crimes which reflected a higher public safety danger and are on the serious end of the criminal spectrum such as serious and violent felonies and offenses requiring an individual to register as a sex offender; •Make inquiries into information necessary to certify an individual for a visa for a victim of domestic violence and human trafficking; •Respond to a request from immigration authorities for information about a person’s criminal history; •Participate with a joint law enforcement task force, as long as the primary purpose of the task force is not immigration enforcement; or, •Give immigration authorities access to interview an individual in agency custody as long as the interview access complied with the requirements of the TRUTH Act. How the California Values Act and TRUST Act do not Affect CDCR Under both the Values Act and the TRUST Act, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) is not classified as a California law enforcement agency. As a result, the restrictions and requirements imposed on law enforcement agencies regarding immigration enforcement do not apply to CDCR. Contrarily, current law explicitly mandates CDCR to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) through provisions in the Penal Code (Sections 5025 and 5026). Therefore, CDCR's obligations differ from those of California law enforcement agencies in matters related to immigration enforcement. Resolution in Support of the HOME Act (Carrillo-AB 1306) August 29, 2023 Page 3 How AB 1306 Proposes to Changes State Law Relating to CDCR and Federal Immigration Enforcement AB 1306 restricts the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in specific circumstances. It prohibits CDCR from providing information or assistance to ICE when releasing individuals on various grounds, such as elderly parole, medical parole, compassionate release, youth offender parole hearings, vacatur of felony murder convictions, vacatur due to human trafficking or intimate partner violence victimization, resentencing based on childhood trauma, youthful offender or human trafficking/intimate partner violence victim, resentencing under the California Racial Justice Act, or grant of clemency. Additionally, the bill repeals provisions that previously mandated CDCR's cooperation with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in matters related to immigration enforcement. In summary, the bill aims to limit CDCR's collaboration with ICE, but only in specific cases of release, while also removing the requirement for CDCR to cooperate with DHS. Resolution Attached for consideration by the City Council is a resolution (Exhibit 1) supporting AB 1306. FISCAL IMPACT There is no fiscal impact associated with this action. EXHIBIT(S) 1. Resolution Submitted By: Kristine Ridge, City Manager Approved By: Kristine Ridge, City Manager Resolution No. 2023-XXX Page 1 of 4 2 0 2 5 4 RESOLUTION NO. 2023-XXX A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA SUPPORTING ASSEMBLY BILL 1306 (The HOME Act) Whereas, refugees and immigrants are a vital part of California’s heart and identity, and the City of Santa Ana recognizes the humanity of all people who call our community home, Whereas, California’s criminal justice system unjustly and disproportionately harms Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and Asian and Pacific Islander American communities. Whereas, in recent years, the Legislature and California voters have demonstrated a strong commitment to reforming our criminal system and ending mass incarceration by enacting various landmark reforms. Through these reforms, certain incarcerated individuals have the opportunity to be considered for resentencing or release. Whereas, despite these reforms, when California’s prisons voluntarily and unnecessarily transfer immigrant and refugee community members eligible for release from state custody to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for immigration detention and deportation purposes, they subject these community members to double punishment and further trauma. This double-punishment devastates families and deprives our communities of beloved leaders who are eager to positively contribute to society. If not because of where they were born, these community members would be allowed to return home to their families and communities. Whereas, immigrant community members can be incarcerated by ICE, often for prolonged periods and with no right to bail, and deported, permanently banishing them from the country, from their families, their homes, their livelihoods and “all that makes life worth living.” Ng Fung Ho v. White, 259 U.S. 276, 284 (1922). The Supreme Court has repeatedly acknowledged that for many people, deportation is a more severe penalty than any jail sentence. See, e.g., Lee v. United States, 137 S.Ct. 1958, 1968 (2017); Padilla v. Kentucky, 559 U.S. 356, 364 (2010). Whereas, data shows that Black and Brown immigrants are disproportionately targeted by arrest, detention, and deportation. Whereas, when the California legislature passed criminal justice reforms previously, these reforms were expected to save the state millions by reducing the length of draconian sentences. However, when Californians who are immigrants earn release through these reforms, the Resolution No. 2023-XXX Page 2 of 4 2 0 2 5 4 California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation expends additional funding unnecessarily to coordinate with and hand these community members over to ICE for a second, double punishment. The full intent, benefits, and cost savings from these reforms cannot be fully realized if CDCR continues to waste resources on assisting ICE with deportations. Whereas, our immigration policies should be driven by our values: equality, fairness, compassion, and common humanity. Immigrants are part of our families, communities and workplaces. Every person who calls the U.S. home, including our neighbors who are immigrants, should be safe from profiling and harm by the government. Whereas, California has an important opportunity to reunite families and strengthen communities by passing the HOME Act (Harmonizing Our Measures for Equality, AB 1306 by Assembly Member Wendy Carrillo) this year. Whereas, the HOME Act is a simple fix that will harmonize state policy with broadly-supported, existing criminal-justice reforms that have already been enacted into law. These laws are reducing mass incarceration and addressing racism in our legal systems. Whereas, community members who have earned release under existing laws included in the HOME Act should be able to return home, reunite with their families, and rebuild their lives instead of being cruelly transferred to ICE. This is an issue of equality and fairness. Whereas, Oregon, Illinois, and Washington DC have already enacted laws that stop all ICE transfers from jails and prisons, and itis time for California to catch up. Additionally, many counties within California have already stopped all ICE transfers, including Los Angeles, San Joaquin, Santa Cruz, Humboldt, San Francisco, Santa Clara, and Contra Costa. Whereas, the City of Santa Ana values all members of our community, embraces compassion, equality, and inclusion, and proudly defends the rights of all residents, including refugees and immigrants. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Santa Ana as follows: Section 1.The City of Santa Ana strongly supports California Assembly Bill No. 1306 and urges the California State Legislature to pass this bill in order to harmonize state policy Resolution No. 2023-XXX Page 3 of 4 2 0 2 5 4 with broadly-supported, existing criminal-justice reforms that have already been enacted into law. Section 2.The City Council hereby directs the City Clerk to transmit a copy of this Resolution to the California Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas , California Assembly Appropriations Committee Chair Chris Holden, California Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins, California Senate Public Safety Committee Chair Aisha Wahab, California Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Thomas Umberg, California Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Anthony Portantino, and the Bill’s author, Assembly Member Wendy Carrillo. Section 3. This Resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption by the City Council, and the Clerk of the Council shall attest to and certify the vote adopting this Resolution. ADOPTED this 29th day of August 2023. ___________________________ Valerie Amezcua Mayor APPROVED AS TO FORM: Sonia R. Carvalho, City Attorney By: _______________________________ Laura A. Rossini Chief Assistant City Attorney AYES:___________________ Councilmembers NOES:___________________ Councilmembers ABSTAIN:________________ Councilmembers NOT PRESENT:____________ Councilmembers Resolution No. 2023-XXX Page 4 of 4 2 0 2 5 4 CERTIFICATE OF ATTESTATION AND ORIGINALITY I, JENNIFER L. HALL, City Clerk, do hereby attest to and certify the attached Resolution No. 2023-XXX to be the original resolution adopted by the City Council of the City of Santa Ana on August __, 2023. Date: ___________________ ____________________________ Jennifer L. Hall City Clerk City of Santa Ana