Passes Prop. 314, which allows local AZ law enforcement to arrest and deport unauthorized immigrants

A new Arizona law that gives the state the power to detain and deport migrants who cross the border illegally is set to go into effect after voters approved the proposal with 62.93 percent of the vote in 97 percent of precincts.

Prop. 315 would require police and Border Patrol agents to use an electronic verification program that determines immigration status. Local police can then arrest the person, and a state judge can order deportation. In addition, the proposal would make it a Class 6 felony for anyone who provides false information or documents, and would make the sale of fentanyl a Class 2 felony if the sale results in the death of another person.

According to the proposed proposal, “the people of the state of Arizona” found a need for this law.

“Arizona’s immigration enforcement deficiencies are creating a public safety crisis fueled by transnational cartels engaged in rampant human trafficking and drug smuggling across the state’s southern border,” the proposal reads. “From 2021 to 2023, United States Customs and Border Protection identified two hundred and eighty-two designated terrorist individuals who illegally entered the Southwest border between points of entry. This is 3033% more than in the previous three years, when only nine such persons were detected.”

Also, under this proposal, Arizona is “effectively captured.” And, according to the election results, the voters agree.

Democratic Rep. Analyse Ortiz said the proposal is reminiscent of SB 1070, which was ruled unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court. This bill was passed in 2010 with the intention of reducing the number of illegal immigrants in the state. The law required local police to request proof of documentation if they had “reasonable suspicion” that someone was in the country illegally, leading to racial profiling.

In 2012, the law was partially repealed.

Republican Sen. John Kavanagh said during a debate in September that Prop. 314 differs from SB 1070 in that police would detain people illegally crossing the border and would require “probable cause” to arrest them.

“There are very few police officers in the spaces between the crossings (and) so the worst of the worst, dangerous people come in here,” Cavanagh said. “Public safety is our number one priority.”

One of Ortiz’s other concerns about Prop. 314 is where the funding will come from. This proposal does not include funding, so local law enforcement agencies and jails must cover these costs. The Department of Corrections has already opposed the bill, saying it would overcrowd prisons and cost about $325 million a year.

Kavanagh disputed that, saying that by keeping people from crossing the border illegally, the government would not have to pay the additional costs of keeping unauthorized immigrants in the U.S.

Ortiz said she supports the National Security Emergency Supplemental Act, which provides $118 billion to expand detention facilities and hire more border control agents, asylum officers and immigration judges. The bill was defeated in the US Senate after Trump refused to allow members of the Senate to vote for it.

“We need to allocate more money to make sure the ports of entry have updated technology (and) enough agents staffed to catch those illegal drugs that come through,” Ortiz said.