Associated Press
SANTA FE, N.M. — The Santa Fe City Council passed a resolution Wednesday night that affirmed the city’s immigrant-friendly policies without using the word “sanctuary.”
The council voted 8-0 to approve the resolution, with one council member absent on an out-of-town trip.
The vote came more than a week after the City Finance committee unanimously approved a softened version aimed at not starting a fight with President Donald Trump, who has promised to punish local governments that don’t help federal authorities increase enforcement of immigration laws.
Santa Fe’s resolution, which restates a policy under which local police have operated since 1999, has gone through multiple versions since first being introduced in December with the most notable change being the removal of the word “sanctuary.”
Rather than specifically identify Santa Fe as a sanctuary city, supporters said the resolution affirms the city’s status as “a welcoming community for immigrants and refugees.”
The resolution also states that the city has the authority to preserve the confidentiality of information collected from residents, including a person’s immigration status.
City Councilor Joseph Maestas, one of the resolution’s sponsors, was previously quoted as saying the policy is a way of “thumbing our nose at” the Trump administration.
After hours of discussion during previous committee meetings, the proposal was amended and the word “sanctuary” was removed to make it more palatable to some councilors.
Maestas has said that changing the words doesn’t diminish the intent of the resolution.
Cities and counties across the U.S. are immersed in a debate over what role, if any, they should play in immigration enforcement as Trump seeks help from local law enforcement to boost deportations of those living in the country illegally.
Many large cities including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago have pledged to resist and not cooperate with requests for help from federal immigration officials.
“This community has been under immense pressure to abandon our embrace of all immigrants into this family, an idea that has been at the center of Santa Fe’s identity for centuries,” Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales said in a statement. “We responded with courage and integrity, sending a message that no matter what happens in Washington, we will stand up for who we are and continue to fight for our values.”