On last night’s vote regarding the proposed Separation Ordinance:
Last night, before I cast my vote, I wanted to say clearly: I appreciated the community members who brought this proposal forward and the Human Rights Commission for giving it serious consideration. What I value is community members and groups getting involved and wanting to make change. Even when we don’t always agree, it’s not easy to step up the way they did.
This wasn’t the first time the Council considered this ordinance. I voted against it before, and my position hadn’t changed because my underlying legal concerns hadn’t changed either.
As I understand it, Iowa Code Chapter 27A places real restrictions on what local governments can do regarding immigration enforcement. In my view, several parts of the ordinance, as drafted, may have conflicted with those state restrictions.
The potential consequences concerned me most. My understanding is that Iowa law provides that if a local entity is found to have intentionally violated these provisions, it can become ineligible to receive state funds. That matters a great deal, especially when we’re talking about millions of dollars allocated from the state to local community projects. That was a risk I wasn’t willing to accept for our city without being fully confident we were on solid legal ground, and I wasn’t there. If we were to move forward and end up in a legal dispute over this, we could also have taken on real legal costs on top of that funding risk. We’re already potentially facing hard decisions on the budget side of things, and we may continue to do so due to changes at the state legislative level this past year. I wasn’t willing to layer that kind of self-inflicted risk on top of what we’re already navigating.
I also want to be honest about something: I don’t agree with much of what’s happening at the federal level on these issues. That’s a personal view, and it’s not why I voted the way I did. My job up here is to think about the whole city, every resident, every service we provide, and every dollar in our budget. I have to weigh the impact of any decision on all of that, not just the piece I feel strongly about personally.
The ordinance failed 0-7 at last night’s meeting. That’s not the end of the conversation for me, and I want that to be clear. I’m glad to see the Human Rights Commission already exploring initiatives such as “Know Your Rights” resources and the Immigrant Community Needs Assessment, and I’d support continuing that work.
Thank you to my colleagues on Council and to the community members who engaged with me on this issue. I took it seriously, even when I voted against it.
This public statement is being issued following last night’s Council vote, in my role as a city councilmember, to inform the community and provide context on selected local discussions and decisions that may impact residents. It reflects my individual perspective and is not an official position of the City or City Council.
