The GOP-controlled Arizona Legislature on Tuesday approved a proposal to ask voters to consider a ballot measure this fall to make it a state crime for non-citizens to enter the country through Mexico at any location outside a port of entry.
Hours earlier, President Biden opened plan to limit the number of migrants seek asylum in the US-Mexico border.
“This action will help control our borders, restore order to the process,” Mr. Biden said.
The Arizona measure, approved by the state House of Representatives by a 31-29 vote, would allow state and local police to arrest people who cross the border without authorization. State judges also have the power to order people convicted of illegal border crossings back to their country of origin.
The state House voted along party lines, with all Republicans voting in favor of the proposal and all Democrats voting against it. The measure bypassed Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, who vetoed a similar measure in early March and has criticized efforts to bring the issue to voters.
House Republicans closed access to the chamber’s upper gallery before the session began Tuesday, citing concerns about security and possible disruptions. The move immediately drew criticism from Democrats, who demanded that the gallery be reopened.
“The public gallery should be open to the public. This is the people’s home,” said state Rep. Analise Ortiz.
Supporters of the bill said it is necessary to ensure security along the southern border of the country, and Arizona voters should be given the opportunity to decide the issue themselves.
“We need this bill and we need to act on it,” said state Rep. John Gillette, a Republican.
Opponents called the law unconstitutional and would lead to racial profiling, separating children from their parents and costing them millions of dollars in additional police costs that the state can’t afford.
“This is not a solution. It’s election year politics,” said Rep. Mariana Sandoval, Democrat.
The proposal is the same as a Texas law that has been withheld by a federal appeals court while they are challenged. The Arizona Senate approved the proposal by a party-line vote of 16-13.
While federal law already prohibits the entry of illegal migrants into the U.S., supporters of the measure say it is needed because the federal government’s efforts to prevent people from crossing illegally along Arizona’s large and porous border with Mexico have fallen short.
Supporters also say the measure focuses only on the state’s border areas and — unlike Arizona’s 2010 immigration law — doesn’t target people across the state. But opponents argued that the proposal contained no geographic limits on where it could be implemented in the country.
The Arizona measure contains other provisions that are not included in the Texas size and has nothing to do directly with immigration. These include making it a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison for selling fentanyl that causes someone’s death, and requiring some government agencies to use a federal database to verify citizens’ eligibility for benefits.
Under the current proposal, a first conviction under the border crossing provision would be a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in prison. State judges can order people to return to their country of origin after completing prison terms, although courts have the power to dismiss cases if the imprisoned agree to return home.
The measure requires the state department of corrections to arrest people charged or convicted under the measure if a local or county law enforcement agency does not have enough space to house them. It includes exceptions for people who have been granted lawful presence status or asylum by the federal government.
Arizona’s provision allowing the detention of border crossers between ports will not take effect until Texas law or a similar law from another state has been in effect for 60 days.
