Philadelphia City Council debates bills targeting ICE enforcement

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Philadelphia City Council members debated a slate of immigration-related bills during a lively meeting inside City Hall chambers, taking up proposals aimed at limiting the role of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the city.

The discussion took place before the committee of the whole, which includes all council members, and focused on seven bills originally introduced Jan. 29. Councilmember At-Large Jim Harrity (D) framed the issue in moral terms.

"This is not even an issue. It's the right thing to do," Harrity said.

The proposed legislation would significantly restrict immigration enforcement in Philadelphia. Among other provisions, it would ban ICE agents from concealing their identities with masks or unmarked vehicles, bar city agencies from collaborating with ICE, and prohibit the use of city-owned property as staging areas for immigration enforcement.

Councilmember At-Large Rue Landau (D) said the bills are about protecting city residents.

"Philadelphia will not be complicit in policy that undermine the safety and dignity of our neighbors. Philadelphia will not use our resources to destabilize communities. Philadelphia will not turn its back on the very people who make this city," Landau said.

Mayor Cherelle Parker's administration supports one of the proposals - a bill creating a new protected class based on immigration status - but raised concerns about the remaining legislation.

Charlie Ellison, director of the city's Office of Immigrant Affairs, cited legal issues with most of the package.

"The remaining six bills contain legally problematic language that has been outlined in a confidential and privileged analysis by the law department," Ellison said.

Supporters of the bills packed the hearing, holding signs and chanting at times from inside the council chambers. Backers say the measures are a response to what they describe as an immigration crackdown under the Trump administration.

Some council members addressed concerns that stronger protections could draw unwanted attention to the city.

Councilmember Kendra Brooks (W) rejected that argument.

"I reject the notion that if we somehow stay silent, we will remain in the good graces of the Trump administration," Brooks said.

Immigration rights advocates testified that fear is already widespread in local communities.

Erika Guadalupe Nunez of the group Juntos described the calls her organization receives from residents.

"Often, we get a lot of calls from plain-clothed ICE agents, people calling and reporting what they perceive as kidnappings. And that's really what they are, state-sanctioned kidnappings and state-sanctioned disappearances," Nunez said.

City Council voted the bills out of committee Monday, but that doesn't mark final approval. The measures would still require two public readings before a full council vote, and it remains unclear whether the mayor would sign all of the legislation. The earliest possible next step could come late next week.