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San Francisco approves ICE-free zones
San Francisco is the latest city to become an ICE-free zone.
SAN JOSE, Calif. - State and federal lawmakers representing Silicon Valley are advancing new legislation aimed at curbing immigration enforcement in their districts and statewide.
Several Bay Area lawmakers have introduced bills this year targeting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement by increasing taxes on immigrant detention centers, strengthening oversight and expanding avenues for people to sue federal agents for damages.
Assemblymember Alex Lee, whose district includes parts of San Jose, Milpitas, Fremont, Newark and Sunol, introduced Assembly Bill 1675 this month. The proposal would bar ICE contractors, including private prison operators, from receiving certain state tax breaks.
"I believe in a time like this, when ICE is killing American citizens in broad daylight, kidnapping young children and breaking into homes, I think it’s important that we get companies to make the right choice," Lee told San Jose Spotlight. "This is a financial leverage to get them to do so."
Last month, ICE agents killed two American citizens in Minneapolis while they were observing ICE activity. ICE has also conducted large-scale operations in cities including Los Angeles and San Francisco since President Donald Trump took office last year.
While similar mass enforcement actions have not occurred in Santa Clara County, the region is heavily affected by targeted ICE operations, according to Huy Tran, executive director of Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network, known as SIREN. The group is part of the Rapid Response Network, a volunteer coalition that documents ICE activity, issues community alerts and provides emergency legal support.
Tran previously said the network’s hotline receives more than 120 calls on some days. Concerns about ICE have led some San Jose students to skip school and reduced foot traffic at Latino-owned businesses, he said. Some undocumented residents have chosen to self-deport.
According to data from Lee’s office, corporations in California — including ICE contractors — receive about $40 billion in taxpayer-subsidized tax breaks. Companies with ICE contracts include private prisons, software firms, armed security services and transportation providers.
What are ICE-free zones? What they can and can't do
Cities and counties across the United States are creating "ICE-free zones." Here's a comprehensive breakdown of what they are and what they are intended to do.
"We’re hoping that corporations would end all complicity with ICE and stop supplying the paramilitary force that is ICE," Lee said. "So if it is all gone, they are going to be vastly inhibited from doing their campaign of terror."
At the federal level, Rep. Ro Khanna has introduced a 10-point proposal known as the "End ICE Abuse" bill, or H.R. 1030. Khanna’s district includes North San Jose, Cupertino, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, Milpitas and parts of Alameda County.
The bill would eliminate ICE funding, call for impeachment hearings against U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and require independent inspections and medical care standards at immigration detention centers. The measure has been introduced and is expected to be heard by the House Judiciary Committee.
"I will not authorize an additional dollar for ICE," Khanna said in a statement.
Pomaikai Neil, a nurse at Kaiser Permanente in Santa Clara and a member of the California Nurses Association, said federal funding allocated to ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection should instead support Medicaid, Medicare, food security and education.
At a recent news conference, Khanna pledged to refuse future campaign donations from Palantir Technologies, which has contracted with ICE to develop a platform to track and target immigrants. Campaign finance records show Khanna has accepted nearly $50,000 in contributions from Palantir since 2011, including nearly $7,000 last year. He said he will donate the funds to immigrant advocacy organizations.
"Ro is the first Bay Area member to take the pledge to refuse all future individual contributions from Palantir," spokesperson Sarah Drory said.
State Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco has introduced Senate Bill 747, known as the "No Kings Act," which would allow individuals to sue ICE for monetary damages, including for alleged First Amendment violations. The bill has passed the Senate and is under consideration in the Assembly.
Wiener also authored Senate Bill 627, the "No Secret Police Act," requiring federal agents to display identification, and co-authored Senate Bill 805, the "No Vigilantes Act," requiring law enforcement officers to wear badges. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed both measures into law in September, though they are currently being challenged in federal court.
Earlier this month, the San Jose City Council voted to support Assembly Bill 1633, introduced by Assemblymember Matt Haney of San Francisco. The bill would impose a 50% tax on profits earned by private companies operating immigration detention centers.
A 2,560-bed immigration detention facility operated by CoreCivic opened in Kern County last fall, becoming the largest ICE detention center in California.
"If a detention model relies on extracting profit from incarceration, it should not also benefit from taxpayer incentives," said Miriam Arif, a spokesperson for SIREN. "These legislative efforts signal that our region is serious about aligning fiscal policy with our values and about ensuring that immigrant communities are treated with fairness, transparency and respect."