WASHINGTON, DC- Two Republican senators have introduced legislation to crack down on so-called “sanctuary city” policies nationwide, WCIV-4 reports.
Sens. Tim Scott (R-SC) and John Cornyn (R-TX) have introduced the “Sanctuary City Elimination Act,” which would prohibit sanctuary jurisdictions from accessing federal grants and other federal funding. The proposed bill would also create a path for victims of criminal illegal aliens who are released from sanctuary jurisdictions and reoffend in other states to seek legal remedies from those sanctuary jurisdictions.
“Every family in South Carolina deserves to feel safe in their own community, and that starts with a system that puts public safety first,” Scott said.
“The Sanctuary City Elimination Act takes a commonsense step forward by empowering state and local law enforcement to work hand-in-hand with DHS, while protecting the officers who are doing their jobs, and ensuring jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate are not awarded with federal tax dollars.”
The impetus for Scott’s bill took place in Spartanburg, where an illegal alien who was allegedly so intoxicated he could not stand, drove off a roadway and struck two children riding bikes on a sidewalk, killing them.
In that case, Eri Otoniel Roblero-Perez was denied bond and is facing two counts of felony DUI resulting in death, driving without a license, and possession of an open container. He is currently being held at the Spartanburg County Detention Facility.
“The tragic loss of two young kids near Spartanburg this week is a devastating reminder of the real consequences of President Biden’s open border policies, which are continuing to fail local communities,’ Scott said.
Scott and Cornyn’s bill is in addition to a bill proposed by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) in February, the "End Sanctuary Cities Act of 2026," which actually goes further than Scott and Cornyn’s bill.
Under Graham’s bill, it would impose criminal penalties on state and local officials who do not comply with detainer requests from the Department of Homeland Security for accused criminals and instead release them from custody into the community to commit other crimes.
That Act would also allow states that are harmed by illegal aliens released from sanctuary jurisdictions to sue them, and would potentially strip federal funding as well.
Sen. Cornyn calls their bill a way to keep local municipalities from sidestepping “federal immigration law,” he said.
In addition to Scott and Cornyn, Republican Sens. John Barasso of Wyoming, Ted Budd of North Carolina, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, and Eric Schmitt of Missouri are cosponsors.
The bills mark the latest effort among Republican senators to put guardrails on how blue jurisdictions approach immigration.
While there is no clearly defined description of sanctuary jurisdictions, it is generally understood to apply to state and local governments that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities, such as cities like Minneapolis, Boston, New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and states such as California, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Illinois, among others.
The Trump administration has filed at least 16 lawsuits against various municipalities that are defying federal immigration law and imposing sanctuary policies.
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