A Long Beach commission has asked the City Council to consider making several amendments to the Values Act, a policy aimed at protecting local immigrant communities, in an effort to ensure the city is utilizing all available avenues to stifle the impacts of ongoing federal immigration enforcement raids in the region.
The Commission for Women and Girls transmitted a letter to the City Council asking for updated protections under the Long Beach Values Act earlier this year, after hearing a presentation from the Long Beach Justice Fund Coalition.
The Justice Fund, established by the city in 2018, is a program and funding pot that provides legal defense and other resources for low-income immigrants at risk of deportation who live or work in Long Beach.
The Values Act was also created in 2018. It essentially says that Long Beach does not and will not use city resources to enforce federal immigration law, according to the city’s website, “but remains fully compliant with all applicable federal laws and does not interfere with lawful federal enforcement activities.”
The Trump administration escalated its mass deportation agenda in 2025, resulting in federal immigration raids across the country, including in Los Angeles County and Long Beach. In response, the city has taken efforts to protect its immigrant communities, including by strengthening the existing Values Act and allocating $5 million in funding under the “Defending Our Long Beach Values” package approved as part of the 2026 fiscal year city budget.
But, according to the Commission for Women and Girls, there may still be more the city can do to offer protection to Long Beach’s varied immigrant communities, who are still dealing with the ramifications of increased federal enforcement in the region.
“The Long Beach Justice Fund Coalition presented information on the status of women affected by immigration enforcement, which continues to deteriorate. They reported that the number of women and girls detained and brutalized has increased dramatically, and the number of pregnant women held in detention centers is also rising,” the commission wrote. “This is of grave concern to our Commission, and we are hopeful that the City Council shares our concern and will closely monitor this situation to protect the safety and well-being of these women and girls.”
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement, has faced frequent criticism in Long Beach and nationally about immigration operations and the Trump administration’s policies, with immigration advocates, Democratic lawmakers and others accusing ICE agents of reckless and sometimes violent tactics.
On Wednesday, for example, the House Homeland Security Committee held a closed-door briefing with ICE officials about body cameras, vehicle stops and training. That briefing came in the wake of two shootings in which ICE officers shot and killed two immigrants they were trying to arrest, one in Maine and the other in Texas.
But Homeland Security, and the Trump administration more broadly, has repeatedly defended its policies and the actions of ICE agents.
“When faced with dangerous circumstances,” the agency said in a Wednesday statement, “DHS law enforcement professionals have used their training to protect themselves, their fellow officers, and the public.”
And on Thursday, when Homeland Security announced more than $84 billion in civil fines for undocumented immigrants, Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis touted current enforcement policies.
“Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, DHS is working faster than ever before to remove criminal illegal aliens from our country,” Bis said in a statement. “Our message to illegal aliens is clear: LEAVE NOW. If you don’t you will face the consequences, including fines, arrest, and deportation.”
But the administration’s defense of ICE hasn’t quelled the criticism.
“ICE is out of control and should be abolished,” Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia, the former mayor of Long Beach, said on MS Now on Thursday. “It’s essentially (President) Donald Trump’s personal police forces that he’s using to enact his wishes across the country.”
In Long Beach, meanwhile, the Commission for Women and Girls has requested the city ensure that local law enforcement agencies don’t share criminal data — including release dates — for people incarcerated for minor offenses who are pending release with any immigration authorities, the letter said.
As it stands, the California Values Act (otherwise known as Senate Bill 54) effectively prohibits local law enforcement agencies from using state and local resources to assist federal immigration enforcement actions. There are, though, carve-outs in the law for people convicted of serious felonies, the letter said.
“The exceptions also extend to individuals incarcerated for minor offenses who are pending release. Upon release, the release date may be made available to ICE,” the commission wrote. “This will similarly affect misdemeanor offenders who committed a crime within the past five years. This is a grave concern that constitutes double punishment and undermines fairness and justice.”
The commission requested that Long Beach further expand and strengthen its local sanctuary policy to protect residents regardless of their conviction status, citing policies implemented by nearby cities such as Huntington Park, Cudahy and Lynwood as examples.
“We support the request that no data be shared with immigration officials regardless of prior conviction history,” the letter said.
The commission, meanwhile, also asked the City Council to consider taking a stronger stance against federal immigration authorities’ use of public spaces to stage their enforcement actions, including by examining Los Angeles County’s deterrence implementation plan. Last year, the county Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance establishing “ICE-Free Zones,” effectively banning the agency from using county-owned or -controlled properties for their operations.
“We respectfully recommend that the city of Long Beach examine the county of Los Angeles’s deterrence implementation plan for public spaces,” the commission wrote, “and determine whether a similar approach can be replicated here.”
The commission also asked the council to amend the language of the Values Act to explicitly ban immigration officials from using public spaces.
The commission has asked the City Council to “take a proactive approach and develop an implementation plan,” regarding the enforcement of Senate Bill 627, otherwise known as the state’s “No Secret Police Act,” which went into effect in January.
Since its approval, the federal government has filed a lawsuit challenging the law, arguing that it can’t be enforced against federal officers, according to the city. The state agreed not to enforce the law while the case is pending, according to the city, and in February, a court issued a preliminary injunction preventing its enforcement against federal agents.
“It is likely that the order will be appealed,” the city says on its website, “and the ruling on the preliminary injunction is not a final decision, so the city will continue to track the litigation.”
The commission also raised concerns about surveillance technology, including the use of automated license plate readers and facial recognition technology. The city published a memo on Thursday responding to the commission’s letter, saying it already has strong protections in place to ensure that data isn’t shared with immigration authorities. Still, the commission said, there may be more the city can do.
“This may already be under review, as the City’s Equity and Human Relations Commission and the Technology and Innovation Department are believed to be examining the matter,” the commission wrote. “Nevertheless, data collection and privacy rights are major concerns for all Long Beach residents, and we urge the City Council to take meaningful steps to protect our community’s personal data.”
Other requests from the commission include updating the Values Act to include specific language preventing any cooperation with immigration authorities and ensuring provisions of the Values Act are enforced with disciplinary actions when needed, including with city-contracted vendors.
“We support the (Long Beach Justice Fund Coalition’s) demands,” the commission wrote, “and respectfully ask that we stand behind our values and stipulate that the contract will be terminated should a vendor violate the privacy provisions; assess penalties to the vendor; and disqualify the vendor from any future city contract opportunities and commit to not contract with companies that have a history of sharing or selling data to the Department of Homeland Security.”
The council is not required to act on requests made by city commissions. Concerns raised by commissions, however, can be brought before the City Council with sponsorship from council members.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.