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The Indiana Senate passed a comprehensive immigration enforcement bill Wednesday, nearly ending an 18-month effort by state conservatives to beef up Indiana’s immigration policies.
Following a 37-11 vote, Senate Bill 76 — known as the Indiana FAIRNESS Act — now heads to Gov. Mike Braun’s desk.
The bill and its contents have been a point of contention this session, as its author, Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, killed a similar bill authored by Rep. J.D. Prescott, R-Union City, last year in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Her bill was heavily amended in committee this year and restructured to mirror much of Prescott’s legislation.
The bill allows the Attorney General’s Office to defend law enforcement officers, government bodies and universities if they’re sued regarding immigration matters and practices. Additionally, it would enable the office to bring an action against those entities if they are found to be in non-compliance with immigration statutes and interfering with immigration enforcement.
The bill had been awaiting a concurrence vote by the Senate since last week, when Brown signed off on its House changes and sent it back to the chamber.
Braun is likely to sign the bill into law, as he has been an outspoken supporter of Prescott’s version of the bill.
Debate on the Senate floor
The chamber’s sign-off came after an hourslong discussion on the Senate floor.
Sen. Greg Taylor, D-Indianapolis, said he was especially concerned with the bill’s removal of the mens rea standard from the state’s anti-sanctuary city statute, which prohibits governmental bodies or post-secondary educational institutions from restricting federal immigration laws. Under the bill, those entities can still face civil action from the state attorney general even if they did not knowingly or intentionally violate the law.
“This has nothing to do with sanctuary cities,” Taylor said.
“Where in our statute will we ever take out the words ‘knowingly or intentionally’ on purpose? Especially to an entity that can’t ask about a student’s documentation,” he added, referencing the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Plyler v. Doe. That ruling held that states cannot constitutionally deny students a free public education based on their immigration status, according to the American Immigration Council.
Brown pushed back against Taylor and his use of the Doe ruling.
“What this bill does, it says that no unit of government, post-secondary schools, can oppose law enforcement in executing, following the laws of the state or the federal government, period,” Brown said.
Senate Minority Leader Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, also spoke against the House’s removal of the mens rea standard, saying that it does not provide “targeted enforcement,” but “strict liability.”
“Strict liability does not punish wrongdoing,” Yoder said. “It punishes uncertainty, it punishes professional judgment, it punishes people navigating complex systems without clear guidance.”
Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, spoke in support of the bill, saying he chooses protecting Hoosiers over undocumented immigrants — a reference to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday night, during which the president asked lawmakers to affirm the “fundamental principle” that the government should prioritize protecting Americans.
“We either believe in our laws, or we don’t believe in these laws,” Young said. “We’re either here to protect and help our citizens, or we’re here to protect and help illegals.”
A continued back-and-forth
Provisions included in SB 76 have been in the works for over a year through many twists and turns.
Prescott introduced a very similar bill last session, which the House passed. Brown, who at the time was chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, did not give the bill a hearing. (She was removed as chair of that committee late last year.)
Brown’s decision resulted in backlash from some state conservatives, notably Attorney General Todd Rokita, who publicly fired off an accusation that Brown didn’t hear the bill because “she’s got a family member who’s an illegal alien.” Brown denied those allegations and filed a disciplinary complaint against Rokita, which the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission eventually dismissed.
In October, Rokita’s office hosted “Fairness for Hoosiers: The Need for State Action on Immigration,” an event aimed at promoting a revival of Prescott’s legislation. Following the event, Brown continued to share reservations about Prescott’s legislation, particularly how it strengthened the attorney general’s enforcement powers.
But at a Feb. 19 press conference, Brown said she no longer has concerns with the legislation and was “happy” with Prescott’s committee amendment, saying “This was about making sure we get this right.”
If the bill becomes law, it goes into effect on July 1.
Also heading to the governor
Alongside SB 76, the Senate also approved Indianapolis Republican Sen. Aaron Freeman’s Senate Bill 2, the supplemental bill providing the statutory framework for the recently passed resolution to amend the Indiana Constitution’s provision on bail, which would widen the category of individuals the court is able to deny pretrial release to.
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