The North Carolina House passed a bill Wednesday that would require all sheriffs to comply with voluntary detention requests from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The vote was 67 to 43.
The bill will now go to Governor Roy Cooper’s desk. Cooper has overridden similar bills twice before. If he vetoes the bill this time, Republicans could override his veto with a supermajority.
North Carolina House Representative Laura Budd of Mecklenburg County spoke about the message the bill would send to immigrants in the state’s workforce.
"If we want to be number one and stay number one for business in the United States of America, this is the exact opposite approach to doing that that will be successful," Budd said. "It doesn't do anything but roll up the welcome mat and tell them, 'you're not welcome, we don't want you.'"
HB 10 also requires sheriffs to determine if inmates are legal U.S. residents when they’re arrested for certain felonies and misdemeanors. If the person is undocumented, authorities will have to notify ICE of the inmate's status.
