Fullerton’s Council Majority Hides Behind “Fiscal Responsibility” to Deny Immigrant Support

Mayor Fred Jung and council members Jamie Valencia and Nick Dunlap voted to deny aid to immigrants amid ongoing ICE raids in Fullerton at the City Council meeting on November 4, 2025. Their stated reason: the city’s budget deficit. Yet their voting record and subsequent actions tell a different story; one of selective justification and misplaced priorities.

When immigration aid was first discussed at the October 21 Council meeting, Jung opposed it on fiscal grounds. Barely an hour later, he and Valencia voted to spend roughly $2 million upgrading the fire department. When Council Member Ahmad Zahra cautioned that the funding depended on a tax measure voters might reject, Jung dismissed the concern: “You’re gonna jinx it.” This project was ten times the cost of the proposed immigrant aid but was approved without hesitation.

Just weeks earlier, on September 16, Jung, Valencia, and Dunlap supported another $2 million expenditure, this time for new turf at Lions Field. That project benefits a limited group of field users rather than the broader community, yet none of the three voiced budget concerns.

Then, during the same November 4 meeting where they rejected immigrant aid, the council majority voted to give away roughly one acre of city-owned land to a Korean church for only $43,000, with the city covering much of the transaction cost. The parcel, located between a major arterial and railroad tracks, could have served future transit or bike infrastructure needs.

Mayor Jung and Council Member Dunlap have held a majority for five years, yet in that time, Fullerton’s financial outlook has worsened. In 2023, the city projected a $3 million deficit by 2027; by 2025, that figure had more than tripled to over $9 million. Residents are often told their proposals can’t be funded due to fiscal constraints, yet the deficit continues to grow.

These actions reflect not fiscal prudence, but selective justification, as they invoke “budget responsibility” only when it suits political preferences.

The contradiction became starker when Mayor Pro Tem Charles asked Jung whether he would at least support a non-binding resolution affirming the city’s values related to public safety, inclusivity, and transparency. Jung declined. The resolution carried no financial cost; it simply expressed solidarity. His refusal made clear that the objection was never about the budget; it was about values.

Credible city sources say Council Member Valencia has privately expressed support for ICE’s deportation activities. If true, this raises serious questions, given that her district is majority Hispanic and has borne the brunt of recent ICE operations. Valencia has not responded to repeated requests for comment.
The council majority’s record reveals a consistent pattern: restraint for humanitarian initiatives, free spending for politically favored ones, and rhetoric that conceals the underlying motivations.

If fiscal responsibility were truly their guiding principle, their votes would show consistency, and the city’s finances would show improvement. Instead, they reveal a willingness to weaponize the language of fiscal discipline to justify political choices that leave Fullerton’s most vulnerable residents behind.

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