Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, speaks during the Dentons Legislative Conference on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2023. Photo by Leslie Bonilla Muñiz of Indiana Capital Chronicle.

By Leslie Bonilla Muñiz
Indiana Capital Chronicle

INDIANA — A Senate homeland security committee on Tuesday, Jan. 16, voted to advance legislation empowering the Indiana Attorney General’s Office to enforce a 13-year-old law banning sanctuary city ordinances.

Senate Bill 181 comes after Indiana’s two highest courts dismissed lawsuits aimed at a pair of Hoosier cities.

It’s Sen. Eric Koch’s second shot at the legislation. The Senate approved his first attempt 40-9 last session, but it died in the House when it wasn’t given a committee hearing.

“The attorney general only enforces the laws that the Legislature gives the attorney general the authority to enforce,” said Corrine Youngs, the Attorney General’s Office policy director and legislative counsel. “This amendment will allow the attorney general to enforce this law.”

Indiana Code bars local governments and their employees from refusing to communicate or cooperate with federal immigration authorities about the immigration status — lawful or unlawful — of an individual. The General Assembly approved it in 2011.

Since then, the cities of East Chicago and Gary have passed ordinances that, for example, restrict local cooperation with federal authorities to detain non-citizens or require that investigations into an individual’s legal status be court-ordered.

But the Indiana Supreme Court in 2022 dismissed a lawsuit against Gary’s ordinance, marshaled by prominent conservative attorney Jim Bopp. The court ruled that the four plaintiffs lacked standing because they hadn’t suffered individualized harm related to the ordinance.

That year, the Indiana Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit against East Chicago’s ordinance, also for lack of standing and injury.

Sen. Gary Bryne, R-Byrnesville, said he feared that Koch’s bill would “take something away from our citizens.”

Youngs said that residents suing would continue to struggle to establish standing because of the legal precedents set, and that residents would still be able to voice their concerns to the attorney general’s office.

Sen. Jim Tomes, R-Wadesville, suggested that the “may” provision allowing the attorney general to bring an enforcement action be swapped to a “shall” requiring that undertaking.

The committee approved the bill 7-1, with Sen. David Vinzant, D-Hobart, voting against.