UPDATES ON IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT ISSUES
April 21, 2025
by Monalisa S. Tu’itahi, Conference Immigration Coordinator
The Conference Justice and Compassion Ministries are committed to supporting the Annual Conference by providing strategic support and advice to help our churches and members navigate the complex and changing landscape of immigration policies and laws. Part of this support entails providing updates on the Trump administration’s executive orders that impact current immigration enforcement issues. The Conference Immigration Coordinator and the Immigration Task Force will facilitate Q & A sessions that will focus on updates on current immigration enforcement issues that may have a direct impact on our churches and members. We will be focusing on these issues during our first online Immigration Q&A session scheduled for April 29, 2025 at 6 pm PDT. Please register at this link.
Sensitive Location Policy Rescinded
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, “ICE,” continues to have legal authority to enter sensitive locations like schools, hospitals, and places of worship. In 2011, the Obama administration enacted an enforcement policy for DHS which designated certain places as “sensitive locations” for the purposes of immigration enforcement. “Sensitive locations” included churches, schools, and hospitals. Under that policy, ICE could not enter churches or schools for enforcement actions (i.e, arresting and detaining people) unless it was necessary to protect lives or prevent harm or injury to people. This was not federal law. It was simply an agency policy of self-restraint adopted by DHS, which means DHS and/or the President could change it at any time.
The new administration terminated the policy. Federal law itself did not change, ICE always had statutory authority to enter churches, hospitals, etc., with valid warrants under federal statutes. But due to agency policy, they did not. That policy is now gone.
The concept of offering “sanctuary” to undocumented persons was never supported in federal statutes or case law. It was tangentially supported by the voluntary enforcement policy adopted by DHS. That policy has been rescinded.
In response, several lawsuits were filed in Federal court challenging the constitutionality of this policy. The Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection (ICAP) at Georgetown Law filed a lawsuit, Mennonite USA v. DHS, on behalf of over two dozen Christian and Jewish religious denominations and associations, including the General Commission on Religion and Race of The United Methodist Church. A motion for a preliminary injunction of the current policy was filed as part of this litigation. On April 11, 2025, a US District Court judge denied the preliminary injunction motion. This is just a decision on the preliminary injunction, it is not the final disposition of the case.
ICE Enforcement at Places of Worship
Under federal law, ICE may enter any “public” space to engage in enforcement activities. However, they cannot enter “private” spaces freely.
A “public” space in the context of a general business would be a parking lot, lobby, and designated waiting areas and restrooms. “Private” spaces would be warehouses, manufacturing areas, offices, and similar operational areas.
The church context is different and presents open legal questions.
Some churches are taking the position that the entire church building (or building in the context of a campus) are private spaces not open to ICE. They have put up signs on their doors saying ICE is not welcome on the property and cannot enter the buildings because they are private. The legality of this approach has not been addressed by courts.
A more conservative approach in interpretation is that parking lots, lobbies, and narthex would be public areas, while the sanctuary (worship space), offices, and classrooms would be private. Areas you wish to designate as private should be designated as such with a “Private” sign and kept locked when not in use. You should have a written policy stating visitors may not enter those areas without permission. Absent a valid judicial search warrant, they are not supposed to enter private areas without your consent.
However, if there is a preschool or private school on your campus, you should treat the entire building and campus as private space(s). This is an entirely reasonable approach due to heightened security concerns of schools. School districts in many cities and states are doing this.
The New Registration Requirement
The Trump administration’s Registration requirement for most undocumented immigrants is another tactic in its campaign to cause panic and fear throughout the country. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been clear that the central purpose of Registration is to gather information about all noncitizens and use this information to locate, apprehend, and remove them as quickly as possible. The new registration requirement took effect April 11, 2025.
Registration is a process of notifying the government of your presence in the U.S. as a noncitizen. The requirement to “register” is in our immigration laws but has been rarely used. The law requires all noncitizens over age 14 who remain in the U.S. for 30 days or more to register. (The law instructs parents to register those that are under age 14.) The law requires people to register before the 30-day period ends. The government posted a new form on the USCIS website for those that are not yet registered to use, Form G-325R.
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
On April 7, 2025, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to create a framework for the sharing of information between the agencies, with the specific aim of helping DHS, particularly ICE, in their enforcement efforts, including the identification and potential deportation of undocumented immigrants. This agreement enables DHS, specifically ICE, to access names, addresses, and other financial information from IRS records.
Cuba Haiti Nicaragua Venezuela (HNV) Humanitarian Parole Progam
The Trump Administration had announced that individuals who entered under the CHNV parole program (also referred to as the “Biden program”) would lose protection and work authorization on April 24, 2025. A federal judge has put this on hold. On April 14, 2025, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued a Preliminary Injunction Order in this case. This means that individuals who entered through CHNV and whose parole has not yet expired or been terminated, continue to remain in valid parole status for the remainder of their parole period, and their work permits also continue to be valid until their expiration dates. Pursuant to the order, the parole termination notices that were sent to aliens from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela are stayed and therefore not currently in effect. No new requests for CHNV parole will be processed. Litigation is ongoing and is subject to change.
*This is general information, and is not legal advice.
