With the increasing hostilities from the federal government around immigration and noncitizens within our communities, Oregon lawmakers decided to take a step in the other direction. The legislature’s Democratic majority has an ambitious plan for passing 13 pro-immigrant bills by the end of the short session on March 8.
The immigration justice package addresses the issue holistically; the bills would require schools to send alerts when ICE is nearby, require all law enforcement to show their faces and strengthen data protections for immigrants.
The idea for the legislative package arose from various conversations and constituent concerns. For example, Representative Lesly Muñoz, D-Woodburn, mentioned a conversation she had with her colleague, Representative Sarah Finger McDonald, D-Corvallis. McDonald noticed a rise in absenteeism within the school, and it was due to the fact that ICE raids were happening and people were too fearful of leaving their homes.
“Kids were fearful that they would return home, and that their parents weren’t going to be there,” Muñoz said in an interview. “So (McDonald) put forward a bill that essentially makes it so school districts are required to have a plan in place for ICE.”
McDonald suggested using the existing emergency systems to alert families when there is ICE activity at school so that everyone would have access to all the information. The proposed legislation would direct school districts and governing bodies of higher education institutions to adopt clear policies when responding to federal immigration authorities. House Bill 4079 was introduced by chief sponsor Rep. McDonald, passed the House and is awaiting consideration in the Senate.
Ira Cuello-Martinez, policy advocacy director at Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste, expanded on some other notable bills from the immigration justice package. The Protect Your Door Act would hold officers, including federal agents, accountable for violating the 4th Amendment by engaging in unwarranted searches or seizures, and allow community members to sue for damages.
House Bill 4138, or the Law Enforcement Accountability and Visibility Act, is another important bill in the package. LEAVA is following what other states, like California, have done to ensure that no law enforcement officers are masked in Oregon – including local, state, county and federal officers. Cuello-Martinez notes that there are some notable exemptions, such as officers doing undercover operations.
“Our responsibility, being a democratically run state with super majorities in both chambers and having a democratic governor, is that we are starting to take risks and we started to act courageously when advancing policies,” Cuello-Martinez said. “Our communities have been under attack for several months, and we’re really looking to build more resources and tools to support our community through these challenging and unprecedented times.”
Oregon has also created a universal representation fund, administered by the Equity Corps of Oregon, that provides legal representation to low-income immigrants facing deportation. This program was first passed in 2022, and within the two year, this fund helped provide representation to 6500 people in Oregon.
The proposed legislation, House Bill 4117, would expand the universal representation fund and establish a family stability fund.
“The family stability fund is to support family members who have lost a loved one and lost income as a result of deportation,” Cuello-Martinez said. “We’re seeing a lot of children and spouses who are losing their household income, and it becomes very challenging to be able to pay for rent, utilities, food or to repair damages from immigration enforcement.”
The total amount requested for the Universal Representation Fund and Family Stability Fund is 10 million dollars, with 5 million specifically for the Family Stability Fund.
“I know a family in Woodburn, whose mother was a farmworker and was taken (by ICE), and the dad was left with a 5-month-old baby, and two kids,” Rep. Muñoz said. “These funds are meant to bridge and support those families, and make sure they don’t become homeless and go hungry over these federal attacks.”
Democratic lawmakers throughout Oregon are taking various measures to push back against the rhetoric from the federal government, and these policies are important to pass to keep communities safe in the upcoming year.
