Gov. McMaster is pushing for all S.C. cities + counties to prove they’re complying with federal immigration laws, eliminating the possibility for “sanctuary cities” (a.k.a. areas that “protect” illegal immigrants).
Right now, there are no designated sanctuary cities in S.C. and Gov. McMaster wants to keep it that way. Yesterday, he held a conference announcing a proposed bill that would prevent S.C. cities from becoming sanctuary cities by denying state funds to any that classify themselves as such.
McMaster and the 7 legislators working on the bill want to require that cities prove they are checking the immigration status of those charged with crimes or else lose a portion of their state funding for 3 years. President Trump has taken a similar stance through executive action, when he tried to ban federal spending in sanctuary cities (which was blocked in federal court).
The proposed law change would also make sure S.C. businesses are complying with immigration laws – those who aren’t certified with SLED would not receive government funding for the next three years. Read the announcement here.
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