Patrick vows Texas Senate will move against ‘sanctuary cities’ in 2017
AUSTIN — With debate over U.S. immigration policies once again approaching full boil, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Wednesday pledged that the Texas Senate would pass a bill in 2017 to clamp down on so-called sanctuary cities.
Patrick lamented that the Legislature this year failed to enact a measure to stop cities from telling police that they can’t ask the immigration status of people they stop. He vowed that the next legislative session will be different.
“I’m totally confident that we now have the votes,” the Republican said. “I’m totally confident that one of the first measures we will pass in 2017, when we come back, will be to ban sanctuary cities in Texas.”
Patrick made his pledge at a Capitol news conference, joined by four county sheriffs opposed to a recent change the Obama administration made to deportation policies. The change narrowed the authority of federal officials to place holds on immigrants for up to 48 hours past their scheduled release while their legal status was investigated.
Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/state/headlines/20150805-patrick-vows-texas-senate-will-move-against-sanctuary-cities-in-2017.ece
