‘Anti-immigrant’ laws surging at state level, led by Texas: Report

GOP state lawmakers have significantly ramped up restrictions on migrants and immigration recently, according to a Thursday report from the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), which pointed to 233 bills and resolutions from this year alone that it considers “anti-immigrant.”

That’s up from 132 such measures last year and 51 in 2020, the nation’s oldest Latino civil rights group said.

LULAC said that some of the more common moves state legislators are making include pushing for stricter identification laws, harsher punishments for unauthorized entries and the elimination of “sanctuary cities,” which limit cooperation with federal immigration officers. 

“Restrictionist states pass legislation to create a hostile environment, deterring undocumented immigrants from settling within their borders,” read the report. “Examples of restrictionist legislation include requiring full cooperation with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) detainer requests, banning undocumented students from attending public colleges and universities, and criminalizing the presence of an undocumented person in a state.”

Republicans have sponsored the overwhelming majority of the bills, LULAC said, with Texas leading the way with 91 measures proposed since 2020.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has been locked in a court battle with the Biden administration over immigration enforcement at the southern border, which the White House says is the exclusive purview of the federal government.

Texas has faced ongoing scrutiny over SB4, which gives state officials the ability to arrest and seek the deportation of individuals suspected of crossing into the U.S. from Mexico illegally.

“Thousands of brave Texas National Guard soldiers are deployed to support Operation Lone Star. These soldiers are on the frontlines,” Abbott posted Thursday on the social platform X. “They hold the line against illegal immigrants, dangerous cartels, and violent criminals trying to cross our border.”

According to LULAC, there are approximately 11.2 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S., with 66 percent identifying as Latinos who “are at an increased risk of bearing the brunt of these policies.”

“The divisive rhetoric of former President Trump has intensified a more aggressive campaign against immigrants and Latinos, regardless of their legal status,” read the report. “Consequently, millions of undocumented immigrants are facing increasing villainization and adverse effects as the number of anti-immigrant proposals continues to rise at an alarming rate.”