The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
The Tennessee Senate and House passed several immigration-related bills on Monday, including ones criminalizing illegals who fail to depart with final removal orders, requiring Sheriffs to honor ICE detainer requests, necessitating state and local governments use E-Verify to perform citizenship checks for potential employees, and more.
SB1779– Criminalizes illegal immigrants found in Tennessee who have a final deportation order
This bill creates a Class A misdemeanor for any alien with a final removal order who refuses to leave the state within 90 days of when their final order was issued.
“What we’re trying to do with this legislation is empower our local and state law enforcement in the event that that deportation order has been issued and [the alien] chooses to remain in the state of Tennessee, then they can be charged with a state crime, Class A misdemeanor, for being in the state of Tennessee when a lawful deportation order has been issued,” bill sponsor Sen. Jack Johnson elaborated.
Senate Democrats claimed the new law could open the state up to potential lawsuits, but Johnson was confident it would stand up to judicial scrutiny. After some back and forth, the vote was 26-6 along party lines in favor of the bill, though Republican Sen. Todd Gardenhire did not cast a vote.
The House has already passed their version, HB1704, to which the Senate conformed, so the bill will now head to Gov. Lee’s desk for signature into law.
SB2204– Elections administrators can access SAVE data to verify citizenship for voter registration
A bill passed last year requires the coordinator of elections in the state to create a portal by Jan. of 2028 that can be used by each county-level elections administrator to verify, before processing an individual’s application to register to vote, whether the applicant is a U.S. citizen based on credentials like a driver’s license or other certified identification card.
SB2204 authorizes that portal to access information and data from the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program if the Department of Homeland Security ever makes the data available via a secure web service to further ensure only eligible U.S. citizens can register to vote in Tennessee.
After a few questions from Democrats, the bill passed 27-6 along party lines. HB2185, the companion bill, has also already been passed by the House, so this bill will make its way to the Governor to officially become law.
SB2644– Upgrades certain criminal offenses committed by agents of foreign adversaries or terrorist organizations
Titled the “Crush Transnational Repression in Tennessee Act”, this bill creates a new criminal framework addressing acts conducted on behalf of foreign adversaries or foreign terrorist organizations like intimidation, harassment, coercion, surveillance, or enforcement actions carried out in the state under the direction or influence of a foreign adversary nation.
Under the legislation, criminal offenses must be punished one classification higher than is otherwise provided by law if that offense is committed by an agent of a foreign adversary or terrorist organization with the intent to coerce a person into acting on behalf of the foreign entity, coerce a person to leave the United States, or prevent or retaliate against a person engaging in “protected conduct” as defined in the bill.
Again passing 27-6 along party lines, this bill will now become law as the House passed HB2279 at the end of March.
HB2018– Requires Tennessee Sheriff’s departments participating in the 287(g) program to hold illegal aliens longer
While law enforcement officers are already required to be trained concerning their role in enforcing federal immigration laws, this bill will require that Tennessee Sheriff’s departments who already have a memorandum of understanding in the 287(g) federal immigration program “accept and honor” federal immigration detainers, meaning they comply with the requested conditions in the detainer.
Part of honoring that detainer would also include keeping a detained illegal alien for 48 hours beyond the time the subject would have otherwise been released from local custody to ensure there is enough time for federal immigration authorities to take custody of the subject before they are released by a local law enforcement agency and allowed back into the community.
While the bill’s amendment seems to weaken the measure, it could have added by bill sponsors knowing that another piece of legislation is progressing which would require all Tennessee Sheriff’s departments to enter the 287(g) program, thereby ultimately subjecting all Sheriffs to this bill’s provisions and upholding the original intent while circumventing the need to overcome a difficult fiscal note.
During the House floor session on Monday, there were no comments or questions, and the vote was 72-33 in favor along party lines, with Republican Bud Hulsey marking himself “Present Not Voting”. The Senate companion, SB1486, is awaiting a date for a floor vote.
HB1705– Requires state and local governments to verify citizenship of prospective employees
This legislation would reiterate and clarify already existing legal requirements for all state and local government employers, including counties, cities, and local school systems, to use the federal E-Verify program when confirming the work authorization of employees.
As an enforcement mechanism, local governments and school systems would also be prohibited from adopting policies or rules that conflict with the requirement, and the state Attorney General’s office would be granted enforcement authority through the withholding of state funding.
While both chambers of the General Assembly had already passed their separate versions of the bill, the House had to revisit the measure to conform to a non-consequential amendment added by the Senate in SB1922.
The House voted 76-14, with a few Democrats joining Republicans, to concur with the Senate amendment, officially repassing the legislation which will now become law.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
