El Paso officials against ID for undocumented immigrants, fear 'sanctuary city' status

A petition for the IDs garnered 10,000 signatures

El Paso residents walk through a local market Hector Mata / Getty Images

El Paso officials determined that the issuance of a municipal ID card could result in the city being considered a so-called “sanctuary city” by opponents of immigration reform.

Sanctuary cities do not enforce to federal immigration rules, and leaders of the Texas border city fear backlash from federal lawmakers who wish to penalise such actions, the Texas Tribune reports.

“In the past year, there has been legislation filed at both the state and federal level regarding ‘sanctuary cities’,” city officials wrote in an analysis released this week. “These bills seek to prohibit local government entities from having policies, ordinances, and rules that prohibit or interfere with the enforcement of immigration laws.”

According to the Tribune, the city did acknowledge that municipal IDs neither “prohibit” nor “interfere with” federal immigration policies, but speculate that the definition could change as early as next year.

The city’s analysis upset members of the El Paso-based immigrant advocacy group, Border Network for Human Rights (BNHR), who launched a 2014 petition for the IDs — which reportedly garnered 10,000 signatures.

Advocates say municipal IDs would make resources available to El Paso’s large undocumented immigrant population — like bank accounts, city services, and emergency medical care — and the city would be denying them of those services if they decide against the cards.

“The language and reasoning in their report not only contains ambiguous, hypothetical, and artificial arguments to undermine the community demand,” BNHR director and spokesperson Gabriela Castañeda said in a statement, “but in doing so is guided by reaction to anti-immigrant elements as the City of El Paso panders to fears of ‘sanctuary cities’.

“The report prepared by city staff needlessly takes a political stand against immigrants and marginalises the positive impacts on civic integration, safety, and community.”

El Paso has not reached a final decision on municipal IDs, but will address the issue in a City Council meeting in May.

Municipal IDs are already available in cities like New York and San Francisco.