PHOENIX — Arizona voters have approved Proposition 314, a sweeping and divisive law that will incite the discrimination and harassment of immigrants, Latine communities, and people of color. The ACLU of Arizona has strongly opposed the policy since its introduction at the Arizona State Legislature and joined immigrants’ rights organizations to challenge the proposal before it got on the ballot. The ACLU of Arizona will consider all options to prevent the implementation of this unconstitutional and harmful law.
Proposition 314 is an empty promise that will not repair the broken immigration system; the policy is unfunded, unconstitutional, and partially unenforceable — for now. Importantly, the part of the law that adds a state penalty on top of existing federal criminal penalties for illegal entry cannot go into effect until a similar law in another state is ruled enforceable for at least 60 days. These may include Texas’s S.B. 4, Iowa’s S.F. 2340, and Oklahoma’s H.B. 4156, all of which have been temporarily blocked by federal courts pending decisions on their constitutionality.
While one of the most dangerous components of the law cannot be immediately enforced, immigrants’ rights advocates rightfully maintain serious concerns that this law may lead to increased racial profiling of people whom Arizona law enforcement suspect to be undocumented.
“Proposition 314 will not fix the flaws in our immigration system, nor ‘secure the border’ in the way its proponents have represented,” said Noah Schramm, border policy strategist for the ACLU of Arizona. “What it will do — if the courts ever allow it to stand — is break families apart, exacerbate racial profiling, and increase criminalization of immigrants and communities of color.”
“Arizona’s original ‘show me your papers’ law, S.B. 1070, was held to be largely unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2012. Our state has been down this road before with costly litigation,” said John Mitchell, immigrants’ rights attorney for the ACLU of Arizona. “More recently, similar laws have been enjoined by courts in other states, and we would expect no different result with Prop 314.”
While much of Proposition 314 cannot immediately be enforced, several parts of the law will take effect after state certification on November 25. These include:
- Adding a specific state felony penalty for selling fentanyl manufactured outside the U.S. that results in another person’s death.
- Adding misdemeanor penalties (and felony penalties on repeat offenses) for individuals without lawful presence in the United States who submit false information or documents to apply for federal, state, or local public benefits, or for employment eligibility verification purposes under the E-Verify program.
- Requiring federal, state, and local agencies that administer public benefits to verify the immigration status of individuals with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Proposition 314 was put on the ballot by politicians seeking to exploit the public's frustration about the border and enact their extreme policy agenda. The consequences of its full implementation would be nothing short of disastrous. The ACLU of Arizona is committed to fighting for the basic rights and dignity of people in the state, and the organization’s response to Proposition 314 will be no exception.