House Bill 10 is the North Carolina General Assembly's latest attack on public education and immigrants. This law forces all sheriff departments to cooperate with ICE and takes money from local public schools and gives it to unaccountable, wealthy private schools that primarily serve the wealthiest North Carolinians.
North Carolina sheriffs are already required under current state law to try and determine the legal status of people they arrest and inform ICE. However, current law doesn’t require them to honor ICE detainer requests, which ask local authorities to hold someone believed to be in the country illegally for up to 48 hours so that federal agents can pick them up.
Now, under HB10, all 100 sheriffs in the state are required to notify ICE if they are unable to determine the legal status of a person charged (not convicted) with some felony offenses, 50B violations, and certain A1 misdemeanors. It also compels sheriffs to honor ICE requests to detain individuals suspected of being in the country illegally for up to 48 hours.
The bill circumvents the local authority of sheriffs by requiring them to cooperate with ICE and assist in the federal government’s deportation pipeline. Requiring absolute compliance with ICE’s demands will further erode the trust between immigrant communities and the protective services they should be able to rely on. HB10 does not make our communities safer. Instead, it further marginalizes immigrant communities by fanning the flames of anti-immigrant rhetoric and sowing distrust in our communities.
Additionally, HB10 redirects taxpayers’ money to fund private school education. Private school vouchers will harm students in North Carolina by taking money from public schools and giving public tax dollars to unaccountable private schools. Many private schools in the south were established during desegregation as an alternative option for white families. To this day, private schools in North Carolina continue to primarily serve white children, and vouchers further the backwards trend in North Carolina schools towards segregation.
Once again, NC lawmakers have put money where their values lie: in favor of the wealthy and against the public's interest. Our government has a duty to provide equal access to education and protection for all, but this legislation contradicts their duty to represent the needs of all North Carolinians.
The North Carolina House and Senate passed the bill on September 11, 2024. The Governor vetoed the bill on September 20, 2024. The North Carolina General Assembly has overridden the Governor’s veto, passing HB10 into law. The components of HB10 that require sheriffs to cooperate with ICE will go into effect on December 1, 2024.
