18-04-2025
Pair of legislative proposals push back against Trump's anti-immigrant offensive
'Across the nation, we have seen instances where officers have gone to schools and have intimidated teachers, staff and students,' said Democratic Assemblymember Cecelia González. (Photo: Alejanda Rubio/Nevada Current)
President Donald Trump's efforts to carry out mass deportations and detain legal permanent residents and green card recipients has created increased 'fear and uncertainty' throughout the state, immigrant groups have told Nevada lawmakers.
Two bills proposed this session, which recently passed out of committee, seek to provide a measure of reassurance to anxious families. One would protect students from being taken from school by immigration officials. Another would establish a procedure for families to select potential temporary guardians if parents are deported.
'While we may not have control over the events that are unfolding on a national scale, we do have the power to make a meaningful impact within our own communities,' Noé Orosco, the Government Affairs Manager with Make the Road Nevada, told lawmakers in March.
The Trump administration has defied court orders seeking to restrict aggressive federal immigration tactics, and rescinded long-standing policies that prohibit immigration enforcement in 'sensitive' places such as schools, churches, and hospitals.
Assembly Bill 217 would prohibit school employees from granting permission to immigration officers to enter a school, or provide student records, including information on a student's family, without a warrant.
'Across the nation, we have seen instances where officers have gone to schools and have intimidated teachers, staff and students,' said Democratic Assemblymember Cecelia González, who sponsored the bill. 'This is really a response to the fears of our students, staff and families and mixed-status families.'
González, who presented the bill to the Assembly Education Committee in March, said Clark and Washoe county school districts already have existing policies to prevent employees from granting permission to immigration enforcement officials seeking to enter a school.
The bill would simply codify that policy and ensure other districts throughout the state follow suit.
González sought to make a violation of the law a misdemeanor, which received pushback from Nevada Association of School Boards.
The bill was amended so the first violation 'will be disciplined under the discretion of each school district.' School employees could face a misdemeanor charge for any subsequent violation.
The original version of the bill also prevented school police from using tasers and 'chemical agents' such as pepper spray on students but was edited out of the legislation to focus on immigration enforcement.
Orosco, who presented the bill alongside González, said the legislation was needed to address 'an overwhelming sense of fear and uncertainty, particularly those who come from mixed-status families.'
The anxiety students feel about losing a parent to deportation, or being taken as well, 'follows them into the classroom where it severely impacts their ability to concentrate and engage in learning,' he said.
'Many students are afraid to attend school because they worry about their family safety,' he said. 'The thought of immigration enforcement officers potentially being present on campuses creates an environment of distress.'
AB 217 passed out of committee in late March with only Republican Assemblymember Richard Delong opposed.
'My concern with the bill, and I will be a no on this, is because there's a chance that federal law could change in the future and thus we set up a situation where no matter what a school official does, they're going to be in violation of one law or another,' he said. 'I don't want to put anyone in that position'
Democratic Assemblymember Selena Torres-Fossett, the committee chair, pointed out that 'federal law can change at any point, and our state laws could be a violation of federal law at any point.'
González, along with Democratic state Sen. Fabian Doñate, are also sponsoring Assembly Bill 460 that seeks a streamlined process for selecting a temporary guardian for minors prior to any immigration action.
'I think there's some value in the fact that individuals were coming to us with this solution, and so that's why we're putting that bill forward,' Doñate said during the March bill hearing.
Nevada is home to one of the largest populations of mixed-status families in the country, González said at the hearing.
A 2020 report published by the American Immigration Council estimated that 'about one in seven children in the state was a U.S. citizen living with at least one undocumented family member.' Some estimates put that number in Nevada at one in 10 households
Both figures make it likely that throughout the state 'that in every single one of our districts there are hard working families that pay taxes and contribute to our community, yet live with the daily fear of separation,' González said.
The legislation, which passed unanimously out of committee last week, would establish a form for parents or guardians to nominate a temporary guardian for a minor.
The form would need to be signed by the parent or guardian, two 'impartial adult witnesses' and notarized before being placed in the Nevada Lockbox, an electronic registry maintained by the Nevada Secretary of State.
The legislation would require 'a court to consider the form requesting to nominate a guardian of a minor in determining which person is most suitable to be the guardian for the minor,' González said.
'Regardless of where we stand on immigration policy, we can all agree that children should not bear the brunt of these challenges,' González said. 'As policymakers, we have a responsibility to provide solutions that prioritize family unity, stability and the well being of our most vulnerable children.'
The original version of the bill also sought to expand eligibility for welfare support assistance for children living with guardians if an immigration order led to their separation. It also allocated $2 million to the Nevada's Department of Education for the Trauma Recovery Grant Project, which provides funding for trauma support for children.
Both were removed from the bill.
'It's not lost on me the conversations that we've been having about our state's budget and what that is going to look like this session and beyond,' she said. 'If we have the opportunity to include (the funding), we would love to.'
