Raleigh. The controversial HB10 bill, which would force all North Carolina sheriffs to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), is under review by a legislative committee awaiting a final vote this week.
The House of Representatives last week rejected the Senate-approved version, and the bill went to a conference committee, where members of both chambers must resolve differences and reconcile a final version.
The point of disagreement is about a provision added by the Senate, according to which any citizen or agency can file a formal complaint with the attorney general against sheriffs who fail to comply with the mandate to cooperate with ICE.
Republican Rep. Destin Hall (District 87), the bill’s lead sponsor, told the News and Observer newspaper that they needed to make some “technical changes” to the bill and anticipated it could be voted on as early as this week.
As of Monday, however, the Senate had not named its two representatives on the conference committee to review the bill. Hall and Rep. Brenden Jones (R-District 46) are the two-House appointees.
Once the conference committee issues its final version, HB10 will have to be ratified by the full House of both chambers before being sent to Gov. Roy Cooper.
Cooper, a Democrat, has vetoed two similar bills in the past five years, but this time his veto could be overridden as Republicans now hold a supermajority in both chambers of the Legislature.
If signed into law, HB10 would force sheriffs and jail administrators to consult with ICE to determine the immigration status of detainees charged with certain felonies.
In addition, it would force local authorities to comply with all ICE detainers and hold immigrants subject to those warrants for 48 hours regardless of the crime for which they were arrested.
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