Leaders from cities and counties across the country stand up for sanctuary policies and oppose the Trump administration’s illegal attempts to coerce enforcement of federal immigration law through funding cuts.
OAKLAND, CA (May 29, 2025) — In response to the Trump administration releasing a list of so-called sanctuary jurisdictions to target further, 56 local governments and a nonpartisan nonprofit called Public Rights Project (PRP) issued the following statement today. Sixteen local governments in the coalition, in partnership with PRP, have already won a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit against the administration’s ongoing attacks on communities with sanctuary policies.
The ruling came in response to a lawsuit led by San Francisco and Santa Clara County, with 14 other jurisdictions and Public Rights Project. The case is City and County of San Francisco, et al., v. Donald J. Trump, et al., U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Case No. 25-cv-01350.
Coalition statement
Sanctuary policies are legal and make us all safer. These laws limit using local resources — such as public employees’ time, money, and facilities — to assist with federal civil immigration enforcement. When local law enforcement isn’t viewed as an extension of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), research shows neighborhoods are safer. People are more likely to report crimes, cooperate with investigations, and come forward as witnesses. Sanctuary policies also enhance economic stability and public health by ensuring that all residents feel welcome and can fully contribute to civil society. Our jurisdictions prioritize the safety and well-being of all residents and ensure that our limited resources are used to support local community members.
These executive orders and other administrative actions are fear tactics. To be clear, the Trump administration is once again asserting power it doesn’t have. This time, it’s to coerce compliance with its federal immigration agenda. What’s happening is a blatantly illegal attempt to sidestep Congress and bully local governments into doing ICE’s job by threatening to cut off billions in federal funding. This funding is taxpayer money meant to serve local communities, not be held for ransom. Millions of people rely on these dollars for critical services and programs like roads and public transit, homelessness prevention, gang violence prevention, disaster relief, health care, opioid treatment, victim services and emergency response.
We have won this fight before — and we will win again. The administration’s actions and threats defy the Constitution and decades of legal precedent. The courts rejected this playbook in 2017, and the law hasn’t changed. More recently, on April 24, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the executive order, preserving funding for now. The judge agreed that the communities faced immediate harm and are likely to prevail, as the administration’s orders are just as unconstitutional today as they were eight years ago.
We stand united as a coalition and call on our fellow local leaders to join us.
Our coalition includes:
- Brenda Adams, Supervisor, Canaan, New York
- Luis Alejo, Supervisor (District 1), Monterey County, California
- Soli Alpert, Chair, Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board, Berkeley, California
- Burhan Azeem, City Councilor, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Nikki Fortunato Bas, Supervisor (District 5), Alameda County, California
- Valarie Bachelor, School Board Director, Oakland, California
- Rachel Barnhart, Legislator, Monroe County, New York
- Daniel Biss, Mayor, Evanston, Illinois
- Xouhoa Bowen, Vice Mayor, San Leandro, California
- Erica Briggs, Councilmember (Ward 5), Ann Arbor, Michigan
- Chelsea Byers, Mayor, West Hollywood, California
- Melvin Carter, Mayor, Saint Paul, Minnesota
- Michael Chameides, Supervisor (Ward 3), Columbia County, New York
- David Chiu, City Attorney, San Francisco, California
- Aurin Chowdhury, Councilmember (Ward 12), Minneapolis, Minnesota
- John Clark, Mayor, Ridgway, Colorado
- Alison Coombs, Councilmember (at-large), Aurora, Colorado
- Christine Corrado, Councilmember, Brighton, New York
- Kara Davis, District Attorney, Wasco County, Oregon
- Becky Corran, Councilmember, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Kara Davis, District Attorney, Wasco County, Oregon
- Olgy Diaz, Councilmember (at-large), Tacoma, Washington
- Jilline Dobratz, City Clerk, West Bend, Wisconsin
- Jack Eckblad, Supervisor (District 4), Milwaukee County, Wisconsin
- Justin Elicker, Mayor, New Haven, Connecticut
- Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft, Mayor, Alameda, California
- Heather Ferbert, City Attorney, San Diego, California
- Jacob Frey, Mayor, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Bubba Fish, Councilmember, Culver City, California
- Nikki Fortunato Bas, Supervisor (District 5), Alameda County, California
- Brenda Gadd, Councilmember, Nashville and Davidson County
- Ed Gainey, Mayor, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Adrian Garcia, Commissioner (Precinct 2), Harris County, Texas
- Heidi Garrido, Councilmember, Hopkins, Minnesota
- Iris Guzman, Deputy Mayor, SeaTac, Washington
- Beau Harbin, Legislator (District 2), Cortland County, New York
- Bruce Harrell, Mayor, Seattle, Washington
- Krissie Harris, Councilmember (2nd Ward), Evanston, Illinois
- Jani Hitchen, Councilmember (District 6), Pierce County, Washington
- Susan Hughes-Smith, Legislator, Monroe County, New York
- Christopher Jaramillo, School Board President, Montgomery, Pennsylvania
- Nick Komives, Councilmember (at-large), Toledo, Ohio
- Otto Lee, Supervisor (District 3), County of Santa Clara, California
- Jessie Lopez, Councilmember (Ward 3), Santa Ana, California
- Signe Lindell, City Councilor (District 1), Santa Fe, New Mexico
- Neil Makhija, Commissioner, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
- Robert Magee, Corporation Counsel, Albany, New York
- Alexander Marion, City Auditor, Syracuse, New York
- Elisa Marquez, Supervisor (District 2), Alameda County, California
- Marc McGovern, Vice-Mayor, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, Councilmember (District 2), San Antonio, Texas
- Yasmine-Imani McMorrin, Councilmember, Culver City, California
- Joe Mellis, Deputy County Counsel, Los Angeles County, California
- Steve Mulroy, District Attorney, Shelby County, Tennessee
- Linda Mussmann, Supervisor (4th Ward), Hudson, New York
- Patricia Nolan, City Councilor, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Jonathan Nieuwsma, Councilmember (4th Ward), Evanston, Illinois
- Linea Palmisano, Councilmember (13th Ward), Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Sean Parker, Councilmember (District 5), Nashville, Tennessee
- Dontae Payne, Mayor, Olympia, Washington
- Isabel Piedmont-Smith, City Councilor, Bloomington, Illinois
- Veronica Pillar, Legislator, Tompkins County, New York
- Delishia Porterfield, Councilmember (at-large), Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee
- Jacqueline Porter, City Commissioner, Tallahassee, Florida
- Rossana Rodríguez Sánchez, Alderperson (33rd Ward), Chicago, Illinois
- Santiago Rosas, Alderperson (District 2), Sun Prairie, Wisconsin
- Brandon M. Scott, Mayor, Baltimore, Maryland
- Sumbul Siddiqui, City Councilor, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Gina-Louise Sciarra, Mayor, Northampton, Massachusetts
- E. Denise Simmons, Mayor, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Seema Singh, Councilmember, Knoxville, Tennessee
- Maraskeshia Smith, City Manager, Santa Rosa, California
- Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler, City Councilor, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Lena Tam, Supervisor (District 3), Alameda County, California
- Caroline Torosis, Mayor Pro Tempore, Santa Monica, California
- Mai Vang, Councilmember (District 8), Sacramento, California
- Terry Vo, Metro Councilmember (District 17), Nashville and Davidson Counties, Tennessee
- Ginny Welsch, Councilmember (District 16), Nashville and Davidson Counties, Tennessee
- Braxton White, Commissioner, Clarion County, Pennsylvania
- Ayesha M. Wilson, City Councilor, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Keith Wilson, Mayor, Portland, Oregon
- Sue Wilson, Councilmember, Richmond, California
- Robin Wilt, Councilmember, Brighton, New York
- Jamila Winder, Commissioner, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
- Robin Wonsley, Councilmember (Ward 2), Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Natalya Zernitskaya, Councilmember, Santa Monica, California
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About Public Rights Project
As a nonpartisan nonprofit organization, Public Rights Project helps local government officials fight for civil rights. We do this by building their capacity to protect and advance civil rights, convening and connecting them on issues of civil rights, and providing legal representation to governments to help them win in court on behalf of their residents. Since our founding, we’ve built a network of over 1,300 partners, including elected officials and 227 government offices across all 50 states, and helped recover over $46 million in relief for marginalized people.