Dear Assemblymember Bryan:
The League of Women Voters of California writes to support AB 1537 (Bryan), your bill to prohibit local and state law enforcement officers from engaging in any form of secondary employment or volunteering for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Department of Homeland Security, their contractors, or
any entity that assists with or engages in federal immigration enforcement. The bill would also require peace officers to disclose to their employing agency any secondary work related to immigration enforcement, and treats failure to comply as an act of dishonesty, which is grounds for decertification as a peace officer.
The League of Women Voters supports policies that ensure crime prevention and promotion of public safety are the primary roles of state and local law enforcement agencies. By preventing California peace officers from engaging in immigration enforcement activities that are outside the scope of local public safety responsibilities, AB 1537 maintains that focus on local community safety and officer accountability to their communities. The relationship between communities and peace officers is fragile, and trust in and accountability for officers is crucial for community safety and public confidence.
Immigrants are woven into the fabric of our communities. More than 10 million immigrants call California home — nearly one in four of all immigrants living in the United States. California’s Legislature has passed a series of laws designed to ensure that state and local resources are not used to break apart immigrant families or deliver people into ICE custody for detention and deportation. But a significant gap remains; nothing in current state law bars local and state law enforcement officers from moonlighting as ICE or deportation agents.
AB 1537 closes that gap with a straightforward approach: prohibiting local and state law enforcement from taking on a second role with ICE — an agency that has abandoned established law enforcement training and operational standards, acts with shocking levels of violent impunity, is spreading fear across communities nationwide, separating families, and operating without meaningful oversight. ICE’s pattern of abuse continues to escalate with each passing day. Our local and state institutions should not become instruments of deportation. Californians should be able to trust that local and state law enforcement officers act in their interest. AB 1537 strengthens California’s existing commitments by building in the transparency and accountability our communities deserve.
For these reasons, the League of Women Voters of California strongly supports AB 1537, and we thank you for your leadership.
Sincerely,
Dora Rose
Deputy Director
Subject: AB 1537 (Bryan) LWVC Letter of Support to Author
In response to: Author and Assembly Committee on Public Safety regarding AB 1537 (Bryan), to support prohibiting California peace officers from secondary employment with federal immigration enforcement agencies.
