NASHVILLE – Gov. Bill Haslam on Monday said he is allowing a controversial “sanctuary cities” bill to become law without his signature, arguing it does little in light of current federal policies and the “best thing is to move on.”
Haslam, a Republican, told reporters the legislation has “stirred up on both sides what I think is some irrational fear.”
The legislation, which becomes state law Tuesday and takes effect Jan. 1, 2019, requires local law enforcement officials to comply with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement requests to hold immigrants for purposes of deportation.
If city and county governments don’t comply, state government could withhold economic and community development grants for those communities going forward until such time they comply.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam gives his annual State of the State address to a joint convention of the Tennessee General Assembly Monday, Jan. 29, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Zaleski)Noting the bill had been amended at various stages during the legislative process, the governor said “this is not the bill we started with” and that a number of constitutional concerns had been resolved to his satisfaction.