Coloradans Navigating Complex United States Immigration System

SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 26-006

BY SENATOR(S) Jodeh and Weissman, Amabile, Ball, Cutter, Danielson, Exum, Gonzales J., Kipp, Kolker, Lindstedt, Marchman, Michaelson Jenet, Mullica, Roberts, Rodriguez, Snyder, Sullivan, Wallace, Coleman; also REPRESENTATIVE(S) Joseph and Ricks, Bacon, Boesenecker, Brown, Camacho, Carter, Clifford, Duran, English, Espenoza, Froelich, Garcia, Gilchrist, Goldstein, Hamrick, Jackson, Lindsay, Lukens, Mabrey, Marshall, Martinez, Mauro, McCormick, Nguyen, Paschal, Phillips, Rutinel, Sirota, Smith, Stewart K., Stewart R., Story, Titone, Valdez, Velasco, Willford, Woodrow, Zokaie, McCluskie.

CONCERNING THE. COMMITMENT TO COLORADANS NAVIGATING THE COMPLEX UNITED STATES IMMIGRATION SYSTEM AND ENSURING TRANSPARENCY IN FEDERAL ENFORCEMENT IN OUR STATE.

WHEREAS, Immigrant Coloradans are students, workers, business owners, caregivers, parents, faith leaders, longtime residents, and new arrivals who together shape the civic, economic, and cultural life of our state; and WHEREAS, In 2025, the Colorado Fiscal Institute reported that immigrants in the state of Colorado contribute $2 billion in state and local tax revenue annually, a significant contribution to our economy; and WHEREAS, Immigration in Colorado reflects a broad and complex spectrum beyond the binary of "documented" and "undocumented", including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients, asylum seekers, Temporary Protected Status holders, international students, refugees, survivors of trafficking and domestic violence, seasonal workers, and mixed-status families; and WHEREAS, When immigrant community members are unjustly

targeted or subjected to opaque enforcement practices, it undermines not only individual rights but the health, safety, and well-being of all Coloradans-disrupting schools, health-care systems, workplaces, and families; and WHEREAS, A 2021 report by the American Immigration Council shows 17.8 million children in the United States have at least one foreign-born parent, and as many as half a million United States citizen children experienced the deportation of at least one parent between 2011 and 2013; and WHEREAS, Additionally, a 2020 study by the American Immigration Council reported that detention or deportation of a family member resulted in significantly higher rates of suicidal thoughts, alcohol abuse, and aggression; and WHEREAS, Colorado has taken meaningful steps to recognize and protect the civil rights of immigrant community members, including the passage of House Bill 19-1124, Senate Bill 21-131, Senate Bill 25-276, and other measures that promote transparency, limit discriminatory practices, and reinforce the dignity and equality of residents regardless of immigration status; and WHEREAS, Heightened federal enforcement rhetoric, coupled with immigration enforcement actions carried out without clear identification or accountability, has contributed to increased fear, confusion, and racial profiling of Black and brown Coloradans, disproportionately impacting immigrants and African, Caribbean, Latin American, Middle Eastern, and Asian communities in Colorado; and WHEREAS, The Colorado Polling Institute found in November 2025 that a majority of Hispanic voters feared unlawful detention of their community members, and that 64% of Coloradans are concerned that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is detaining people who should not be detained; and WHEREAS, The use of masked or unidentified personnel and unmarked vehicles in civil immigration enforcement, which represents a form of deindividuation, increasing the likelihood of aggressive, anti-social behavior, has led Colorado community members to reasonably

fear arbitrary detention, impersonation, or abuse of authority-resulting in avoidance of schools, public transit, health-care facilities, faith spaces, shelters, civic events, and other essential services; and WHEREAS, Such fear erodes public trust, impedes community cooperation, and compromises public safety by driving people away from institutions intended to protect health, education, and well-being; and WHEREAS, When schools are disrupted or parents are forced to live in fear, children experience psychological trauma that can impair learning, health, and long-term well-being, with consequences that reverberate across families, communities, and generations; and WHEREAS, In Minnesota, a state that has experienced heavy ICE presence, the total number of school absences increased 13 % among Spanish speakers, 8% among Karen speakers, and 6% among Hmong speakers between December 1, 2025, and January 6, 2026; and WHEREAS, Allowing ICE presence to affect our students jn Colorado schools could have dire consequences for the state, as chronic absenteeism is linked to lower high school graduation rates; and WHEREAS, Renee Good was killed by an ICE agent on January 7, 2026, while trying to follow direction to leave; and WHEREAS, Alex Pretti was killed by United States Customs and Border Protection agents on January 24, 2026, while protecting a woman being beaten by United States Customs and Border Protection agents; and WHEREAS, The lives of 32 immigrants were lost while held in detention centers in 2025 due to inhumane conditions and lack of access to health care, while survivors have an increased likelihood of mental illness and PTSD, especially if their detention surpassed 6 months; and WHEREAS, According to a 2025 report by Physicians for Human Rights, ICE facilities subjected over 10,500 individuals to solitary confinement for, on average, 38 consecutive days, more than double the 15-day threshold for torture as defined by United Nations human rights experts, as well as isolating individuals with vulnerabilities, such as mental health issues, nearly twice as long as compared to 2022; and

WHEREAS,So far, under this presidential administration, there have been a reported 20 cases of civilians posing as ICE agents for nefarious reasons, demonstrating that face coverings and agents' failure to identify themselves pose a threat to all Coloradans and erode public trust in law enforcement; and WHEREAS, State, local, and federal governments share responsibility for ensuring that enforcement practices are carried out in a manner consistent with constitutional protections, civil rights laws, and fundamental norms of transparency and accountability, preventing discrimination, trauma, and unjust detainment; and WHEREAS, The General Assembly affirms that true community safety requires transparency, legal clarity, and the ability for all residents to move, work, learn, worship, seek care, and live without fear of coercive interaction or identity-based targeting; now, therefore, Belt Resolved by the Senate of the Seventy-fifth General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the House ofRepresentatives concurring herein:

( 1) That we, the members of the Colorado General Assembly: (a) Reaffirm the civil rights oflmmigrant Coloradans and affirm that dignity, belonging, family unity, and freedom from intimidation are fundamental rights of all who call Colorado home; (b) Support the right of members of the public to robustly exercise their First Amendment rights to free speech and to petition their government for redress, and urge that all protests be peaceful in nature; (c) Call on federal agencies to end anonymous enforcement tactics and urge immigration authorities, when operating within Colorado, to adopt enforcement practices that are transparent and accountable, including by immediately ending the routine use of masked or unidentifiable personnel, unmarked vehicles, and plain-clothes detainment without prior identification; requiring visible agency identification and prompt disclosure of name, agency, and badge or credentials upon engagement with the public; and ensuring that residents can readily distinguish lawful officers from private actors, vigilantes, or impersonators;

(d) Call upon federal agencies. to protect community access to education, health care, and civic participation and aid and refrain from civil immigration enforcement actions in or near courthouses, schools, health clinics, faith spaces, food distribution sites, and civic gatherings except in narrowly defined circumstances involving a verified and imminent public safety threat; (e) Advocate for modernized, humane federal immigration reform; (f) Call on Congress and federal leadership to pursue reforms that reflect lived realities and economic needs, including creating functioning, timely pathways to citizenship for long-term residents, Dreamers, and mixed-status families; expanding worker protections and lawful labor pathways that reflect Colorado's economic reality; strengthening protections for survivors, refugees, and asylum seekers; and modernizing processing systems that currently leave families in indefinite limbo; (g) Support state-level transparency measures and urge continued investment in state-level oversight, community reporting mechanisms, and public transparency tools to ensure compliance with civil rights standards and to prevent discriminatory or covert enforcement practices within Colorado; (h) Declare that Colorado is home to one of the most diverse immigrant populations in the country and that Immigrant Coloradans contribute to every sector, from education and health care to construction, entrepreneurship, public service, and culture; (i) Reaffirm that ensuring Immigrant Coloradans' ability to live safely and move without fear is not a partisan preference, but a matter of constitutional dignity and collective well-being; and G) Call on federal partners to uphold transparency, accountability, and humane enforcement practices so that every family, regardless of

immigration status, may participate fully in the communities they have built and sustained.

James Rashad Coleman Sr. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE

Julie McCluskie SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Esther van Mourik SECRETARY OF THE SENATE

Vanessa Reilly CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES