CONCORD, N.H. – Gov. Kelly Ayotte on Thursday signed into law NH House Bill 511 and NH Senate Bill 62 which ban sanctuary cities and support cooperation between state and local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities.
Ayotte released the following statement after signing both bills into law:
“I said from the beginning that we won’t let our state go the way of Massachusetts and their billion-dollar illegal immigrant crisis. Today, we’re delivering on our promise by banning sanctuary cities and supporting law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities. New Hampshire will never be a sanctuary for criminals, and we will keep working every day to remain the safest state in the nation.”
As written into the law:
This bill requires law enforcement agencies to comply with immigration detainers of inmates and prohibits state and local government entities from adopting sanctuary policies to prohibit or impede the enforcement of federal immigration law.
The bill prohibits New Hampshire law enforcement agencies from investigating an inmate’s citizenship status unless subsequent to an alleged violation of New Hampshire law or pursuant to an authorization by law. The bill also prohibits blanket policies against compliance with immigration detainers for inmates and prohibits any government entity or law enforcement agency from restricting the use and transmission of inmate immigration information used in compliance with the chapter. In addition, the bill provides exceptions for certain witnesses to or victims of crime.
The Department of Justice states any fiscal impact would be proportional to the number of enforcement actions brought and the corresponding personnel and litigation costs associated with each action. The number of potential enforcement actions that would result from the enactment of this bill is unknown, therefore, the impact on the Department’s budget is indeterminable. The Department states a small number of enforcement actions may be absorbed by the present staffing levels and litigation budget, however, if this bill results in a significant number of enforcement actions, the Department will require an additional attorney in the Bureau of Civil Law and an increase in the Department’s litigation budget (up to $100,000). The Department states the cost of an unclassified assistant attorney general position is approximately $132,000 per year.
The Department of Safety, Division of State Police indicates some indeterminable number of persons arrested and in the custody of State Troopers will be found to be subject to federal detainers. The three means by which Troopers then break contact with arrested persons include release on summons, release on bail, or lodging in a correctional facility pending bail or trial. The existence of a federal detainer would require either lodging such person in a correctional facility or transfer directly into the custody of some federal partner, likely (but not always) expanding the time spent in such cases by Troopers, as compared with release on bail or release on summons. Some persons taken into custody will be lodged in a correctional facility strictly on the basis of the offense committed, unrelated to the existence or lack of a federal detainer. If the bill is read less strictly and the term inmate could include person detained on a car stop or in the midst of an investigation for a call for service is “in the custody of” our Troopers.
The Judicial Branch states it is not possible to estimate how this change in law would impact the number of filings in the courts. Because the bill creates a new enforcement action, it is expected that litigation could increase.
The New Hampshire Municipal Association states there may be an indeterminable increase local expenditures if additional local law enforcement resources are needed to comply with the statute.
This bill provides that neither the state nor any county, municipality, or other political subdivision of this state shall prohibit or impede any state, county, or local law enforcement agency from applying for entry or entering into an agreement with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement to participate in a federal 287(g) program pursuant to 8 U.S.C. section 1357(g).