The proposed immigrant protections touted by Gov. Kathy Hochul in her State of the State address don\u2019t go far enough, the leaders of some advocacy groups said.<\/p>\n
Rosa Cohen-Cruz, immigration policy director for The Bronx Defenders and a spokesperson for the New York For All Coalition, said Hochul\u2019s proposals \u2014 which include a measure barring the use of state resources for immigration enforcement \u2014 \u201cfall short of what is required.\u201d<\/p>\n
She called on Hochul to support the New York for All Act, a pending state bill that would block both state and local officers from enforcing federal immigration laws and sharing sensitive information with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, absent a judicial warrant.<\/p>\n
Other immigration advocacy leaders more gently nudged Hochul toward the more comprehensive New York for All Act, which they said would accomplish some of the aims supported by the governor.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe thank Governor Hochul for committing to not using state resources for federal immigration enforcement, and New York For All is the comprehensive bill that will end collusion with ICE without a judicial warrant,\u201d Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the statewide nonprofit New York Immigration Coalition, said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Hochul touted three measures supporting immigrants in New York who lack permanent legal status, including creating new avenues for those harmed by abusive practices to bring legal claims against ICE officers. New York state is home to an estimated 780,000 \u201cundocumented\u201d individuals, according to data<\/a> from the Center for Migration Studies.<\/p>\n The measures come as state and local governments, mostly in Democrat-led cities and states, face stepped up immigration enforcement from the Trump administration. Tactics by enforcement agents \u2014 including the fatal shooting by an ICE agent of a 37-year-old U.S. citizen in Minneapolis last week \u2014 have drawn sharp criticism across the country.<\/p>\n \u201cProtecting New Yorkers also means this: standing up to ICE agents who abuse their power,\u201d Hochul said at her address on Tuesday. \u201cWhat we\u2019ve seen lately has gone too far, and enough is enough.\u201d<\/p>\n The New York for All bill has gained traction in recent weeks, gaining a powerful new ally in state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Yonkers Democrat. Several members of Congress also signed a letter<\/a> calling on Hochul and other state leaders to back the bill.<\/p>\n