Kolkhorst bill offers new way to enforce immigration measures

Friday, February 18, 2011 1:54 PM CST
AUSTIN — State Rep. Lois W. Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) has a bill which she said would give Texas congressional offices a new way to help enforce federal immigration laws.

Current federal policy allows the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to selectively enforce whether they will pick up an illegal immigrant from a local city or county jail.

As a result, illegal immigrants who have broken state and local laws are sometimes set free from city and county jails, instead of being detained and deported.

Even when federal authorities eventually choose to take custody of an illegal immigrant, often times, local taxpayers must pay the incarceration costs in the meantime.

Under Kolkhorst’s HB 1455, if federal authorities fail to take custody of an illegal immigrant who is arrested for committing a local crime, the police or sheriff have the option to transport them to the office of a member of the U.S. Congress or Senate, and document each occurrence.

“People are looking for new ways to fight the criminal elements of illegal immigration,â€