Editorial: Governor makes wrong call on immigration bill

Just as Green Valley residents thought they were grabbing politicians’ attention on illegal immigration, Gov. Janet Napolitano vetoed a bill Monday to crack down on the problem.

We hope the Legislature overrides her veto and passes HB 2807, which would require local police departments and sheriff’s departments to formulate a policy to deal with federal immigration laws.

Nothing in state law, Napolitano argued, prevents local agencies from working out agreements with the federal government on immigration enforcement. They only need federal training, she said.

“Many (local police agencies) have already entered into these agreements on a voluntary basis,” the governor wrote. “A legislative mandate to that effect is unnecessary.”

We believe a mandate is necessary to make it a priority and to find funding for the programs, which Napolitano said could cost the state more than $100 million. Congress only appropriated $5.5 million for training local police throughout the nation.

When Congress failed to pass immigration reform last year, Napolitano took the lead and signed into law an employer-sanctions bill to cut off the incentive for illegals to enter Arizona. She should have taken the initiative again with a mandate for local police.

The bill offers police and deputies to receive special training to enforce immigration laws. Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik is a supporter of having his personnel federally deputized.

The legislation addressed the lack of federal funds, requiring the state to pick up cost of training, not just for its own Department of Public Safety officers but also for local police or sheriff’s departments.

“If federal funding is not available, Arizona taxpayers would be required to pay an approximately $100 million bill at a time we are facing significant budget shortfalls,’’ she wrote.

We have criticized Napolitano before on spending. We disagreed with her decision to provide benefits for domestic partners, for example, at a time the state is facing a $1.5 billion shortfall.

Funding for health benefits ranks low on the scale of importance, in our opinion, compared to the effort to secure the border and arrest illegal border-crossers.

Many legislators thought the bill, which had bipartisan support, was a good compromise between those who want no state and local role and those who believe all officers should be involved in detaining illegals.

Rep. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, said he is working on a bill that would go directly to voters in November. Under his measure, anyone in this country illegally or remained here on an expired visa would be guilty on a state charge of trespass, whether on public or private property.

“If you’re in the state, you enter or remain in the state in violation of federal law, you’ll be charged with a Class 1 misdemeanor on first offense,” Pearce said. “If you re-enter, you’ll be charged with a Class 4 felony. It gets real serious.”

Interestingly, Napolitano has refused to weigh in on controversial sweeps being made by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio. He has ordered deputies into neighborhoods on sweeps, looking for traffic violations to pull over drivers and check their immigration status.

“Racial profiling and targeting a sector of the population based on race, color of skin and national origin will only multiply as has been demonstrated in the Maricopa County Sheriff Office’s operations,’’ officers of Somos America — “We Are America” — wrote to the governor last week.

The group said the legislation “will amplify sweeps of this style, violate many individual’s civil liberties and often result in costly litigation.”

It might result in more sweeps, true enough, but it also will put more manpower on the problem. The focus would help the U.S. Border Patrol, make communication easier and make our neighborhoods safer.

Unsigned editorials represent the opinion of this newspaper. Respond with a Letter to the Editor by e-mailing letters@gvnews.com.