Iowa Deportation Law Draws Threat to Sue From US as Overreach
(Bloomberg) -- The Biden administration told Iowa it will sue to block a new law that makes it a crime to reenter the state after being deported from the US, saying it is preempted by federal law, undermines foreign relations and effectively creates a second immigration system.
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The bill, SF 2340, which was signed by Governor Kim Reynolds last month, is scheduled to go into effect on July 1. In a letter Thursday, Principal Deputy Attorney General Brian M. Boynton told Reynolds the Justice Department will file suit if Iowa doesn’t agree by May 7 to drop plans to enforce the law.
Boynton said the law interferes with the US’s ability to enforce reentry and removal provisions of the Immigration and Naturalization Act. It “conflicts with various provisions of federal law permitting noncitizens to seek protection from removal to avoid persecution or torture,” according to the letter.
Boynton noted that the law is similar to a Texas measure that would let the state arrest and deport people who enter the country illegally, which was blocked by a federal judge in Texas in February.
“The only reason we had to pass this law is because the Biden Administration refused to enforce the laws already on the books,” Reynolds said in a statement. “I have a duty to protect the citizens of Iowa. Unlike the federal government, we will respect the rule of law and enforce it.”
The letter was reported earlier by the Associated Press.
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