The battleground state of New Hampshire formally banned the establishment of “sanctuary cities,” which defy immigration law by refusing to allow local law enforcement personnel to collaborate with federal immigration agents, after both chambers of the state legislature moved to do so.
“There will be no sanctuary cities in New Hampshire, period, end of story,” Republican Governor Kelly Ayotte said following a bill signing ceremony at the State Capitol on Thursday. The governor signed House Bill 511 and Senate Bill 62 to ban sanctuary cities and support cooperation between state and local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities.
“I said from the beginning that we won’t let our state go the way of Massachusetts and their billion-dollar illegal immigrant crisis. Today, we’re delivering on our promise by banning sanctuary cities and supporting law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities. New Hampshire will never be a sanctuary for criminals, and we will keep working every day to remain the safest state in the nation,” Ayotte said.
Banning sanctuary cities was a central campaign promise for Ayotte, who previously served as the state’s attorney general before a six-year term in the U.S. Senate from 2011 through 2017. The governor frequently took aim at neighboring Massachusetts with the campaign slogan, “Don’t Mass up New Hampshire,” a reference to the deep blue state’s lenient immigration policies.
“I campaigned on making sure we would not have sanctuary cities here in New Hampshire, and we don’t want to go the way of Massachusetts that has had a billion-dollar illegal immigration crisis,” the governor told Fox News.
While Ayotte noted that she supports legal immigration, the governor described sanctuary city policies as a blatant violation of federal law and a threat to public safety. “New Hampshire is ranked the safest state in the nation, and I was glad I was able to sign the bill banning sanctuary cities to make sure we remain that way,” she added.
Both bills were passed through the GOP-controlled state legislature mostly along party lines.
State Senator Bill Gannon, the legislation’s top sponsor in the State Senate, described the measures as a way to “make us an even safer place to work, live, and raise a family.”
State Rep. Joe Sweeney, the lead House sponsor, said that “we are taking the handfcuffs off our law enforcement officers, and hopefully they’ll be able to work with our federal government, ICE, to put the handcuffs on the criminal illegal aliens that are violating and disobeying our laws.”
According to the New Hampshire Municipal Association, there are currently no sanctuary cities in the state. A handful of cities and towns in the state have described themselves as “welcoming cities” that encourage a welcoming environment for all people, regardless of their race, ethnicity or origin, however.
State Republicans argued that the bill was necessary to prevent these communities from declaring themselves as sanctuary cities.
With Thursday’s signing, New Hampshire became the 11th state to explicitly ban sanctuary cities. At the federal level, President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order that will pull funding from states that have sanctuary cities.
