As Congress negotiates any funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), it must establish meaningful oversight to ensure community safety and accountability for the harmful and abusive immigration enforcement actions taking place across the country. Legislation must have consequences for immigration enforcement officers who violate the law and protections for individuals who are victims of those violations. Without meaningful guardrails that end the violence, Congress must not vote to continue the status quo.

One meaningful way to protect communities is to codify guidance on immigration enforcement near so-called “sensitive locations.” This commonsense, historically bipartisan, and widely supported policy would limit immigration enforcement in sensitive locations like schools, child care facilities, health care and public health facilities, and places of worship, among other critical locations for individual and community well-being. Congress can incorporate the protections included in the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act (H.R.1061/ S.455) into DHS spending legislation.

Today, more than 430 national, state, and local organizations signed onto a letter urging Congress to protect these sensitive locations as it negotiates DHS funding.

Download the sign-on letter here.