Bill that would ban Arkansas public universities from adopting sanctuary policies falls in committee

House Republican Whip Brandt Smith of Jonesboro is shown in this file photo.
House Republican Whip Brandt Smith of Jonesboro is shown in this file photo.

A group of Arkansas lawmakers voted down a bill Tuesday morning that would ban any public university in the state from adopting sanctuary policies on their campuses.

Rep. Brandt Smith, R-Jonesboro, told the committee he thought of House Bill 1042 when he read a story in his local paper about immigrant rights advocates petitioning to make Arkansas State University a sanctuary campus—a college or university that adopts policies to protect students who are undocumented immigrants.

Smith said he got calls from constituents asking him what he was going to do in response. So he wrote a bill preventing the enactment or adoption of any sanctuary policies at state-supported universities.

Under the proposal, those campuses could not prevent employees from cooperating with federal agencies to verify or report immigration statuses of people on campus. The bill also sought to bar universities from stopping campus law enforcement from asking about a person's citizenship or immigration status.

Smith said he wrote the proposal out of respect for federal law, for the Arkansas taxpayer and so the focus of higher education is on academics, not on “chaos, anarchy and lawbreaking.”

In advocating for the bill, Smith said he understands there are probably a good number of undocumented students at state universities.

“My comments to these folks repeatedly has been, ‘We’re not opposed to you being here. But you just need to stay out of the cross hairs. Don’t let some national or statewide organization use you for their selfish gain, for a media moment,’” Smith said.

Smith twice told the committee that the bill "does not advocate deportation raids.”

He fielded several questions from Representatives DeAnn Vaught, R-Horatio, and Frances Cavenaugh, R-Walnut Ridge, who both asked why the law was necessary. Vaught said public universities were already banned from adopting sanctuary policies under federal law and could lose “all monies” if they violated that rule.

Smith responded by saying his bill would ensure campuses follow those rules. He added that in the future, a president or administrator could potentially change their mind on the issue, and enacting the bill would make it clear that isn’t possible.

Mireya Reith, co-founder and executive director of the Arkansas United Community Coalition, spoke against the bill, saying, “There's no denying that this targets our immigrant community here in Arkansas.”

"I think that's where you see a lot of concerns from our community,” she added.

Given federal uncertainty over immigrant programs, additional state legislation would add to the confusion, she said.

While legislators debated the bill, immigration rights advocates lined the committee room and congregated in the hallway inside the Capitol. They raised signs saying, “Don’t Destroy Our Dreams!” and “Do I Look Like an Alien?”

After hearing public comment, the panel voted to not advance the bill to the House.

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reporter Brian Fanney contributed to this story.

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