Immigration Tag

Happy New Year to all of our readers. Last week was a slow one for the courts. The only significant action for local governments came from the Ninth Circuit: The court granted rehearing en banc in Valenzuela v. Maricopa County, No. 11-16847 (Jan. 2, 2014). The case involves the constitutionality of Arizona's Proposition 100, which provides that Arizona state courts may not set bail "[f]or serious felony offenses as prescribed by the legislature if the person charged has entered or remained in the United States illegally and...

[caption id="attachment_79" align="alignright" width="300"]Local government regulation of immigration through housing ordinances has divided the courts. Local government regulation of immigration through housing ordinances has divided the courts.[/caption] Can a local government prohibit the leasing of housing to persons who entered the United States illegally? Since June, three federal courts of appeals have tackled that difficult question—and reached different results. The decisions present a range of perspectives on whether local housing ordinances “conflict” with federal law or intrude upon a “field” reserved to the federal government. They highlight the uncertain contours of the preemption doctrine—and demonstrate the risk facing any local government that regulates in this space.