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Expert: New Texas Border Law "Unprecedented"

December 18, 2023 (1 min read)

Camilo Montoya-Galvez, CBS News, Dec. 18, 2023

"Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas on Monday signed one of the harshest state immigration laws in modern U.S. history, authorizing state officials to arrest and seek the deportation of migrants suspected of crossing the border with Mexico illegally. The law, known as SB4, gives Texas law enforcement authorities the power to stop, arrest and jail migrants on new, state-level illegal entry charges. It also allows state judges to issue de facto deportation orders against suspected violators of the law, though it's unclear how this provision could be enforced. Passed by Texas' legislature earlier this year, SB4 is an extraordinary attempt by the state to inject itself into immigration and border enforcement, both longstanding federal prerogatives. It will almost certainly trigger a high-stakes legal and political clash with civil rights groups and potentially the Biden administration. ... The law is set to take effect in March 2024, though that could change depending on the outcome of lawsuits that are expected to be filed against it. ... Stephen Yale-Loehr, a Cornell University professor and immigration expert, called SB4 "unprecedented." He said the Texas law is more sweeping in nature than SB 1070, a controversial Arizona law in 2010 that penalized unauthorized immigrants in different ways, including by empowering state police to stop those believed to be in the country unlawfully. The Supreme Court partially struck down that Arizona law in 2012, concluding that states could not undermine federal immigration law."