Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is threatening to withhold state funding from local governments if they do not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement officials.
Gov. Youngkin’s proposal comes as the governor seeks to eliminate the Commonwealth’s “sanctuary cities,” which are areas that choose to protect migrants without legal status rather than cooperate with federal officials to enforce immigration law.
Youngkin first floated the idea of withholding funding in December.
The proposal would ensure that state funding does not go to counties or cities with “sanctuary city” policies such as ignoring detainer requests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the outlet reported.
“This is not a decision for people to make locally,” he said, according to Fox 5 DC. “This is for the betterment of all our safety. We are not a sanctuary state and therefore we’re not supporting localities that are declared sanctuary cities.”
Chair of the Board of Supervisors for Fairfax County, Jeff Mckay, told Fox 5 DC that Youngkin’s plan would effectively “defund the police,” as he claims that Fairfax County is not a “sanctuary city” and asserts that officials follow all legal detainers.
“Ultimately, what he’s saying is, if you don’t agree with his non-lawyer definition of ‘sanctuary city,’ it could affect your law enforcement agency, and he’s doing this because he’s alleging significant crime is occurring,” McKay said.
The General Assembly, which has a Democrat majority, will take up the governor’s proposal next week.
