Neighbor News
Explaining the Maryland Trust Act: Immigration Town Hall in Columbia
Columbia legislators tell what the Maryland Trust act would do and why a law to protect immigrants is needed in Maryland.
At the Interfaith Center in Columbia March 26, Maryland State Senator Guy Guzzone and Delegate Clarence Lam discussed the prospects for a bill to protect immigrants that is now before the State Senate. Known as the Maryland Trust Act, the bill passed the Maryland House of Delegates on March 20. It would bar police statewide from stopping, arresting, or detaining individuals to check for immigration violations.
“We are not in the business of detaining non-violent citizens,” said Lam. “Immigrants should not be afraid of their local law enforcement officers and they should not be living in fear of their neighbors. In Maryland, we are a welcoming, diverse community that has no room for hate.”
The law would also limit immigration enforcement in public schools, courthouses, and hospitals.
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Protection of immigrants in Howard County has been hotly debated following a contentious vote on CB-9, the Howard County Sanctuary Bill, and its veto by Howard County Executive Allan Kittleman in February. About one in five residents in Howard County is foreign born, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Supporters of CB-9 and the Trust Act argue that immigrants need the protection of law.
“Peoples’ rights come from laws that can be enforced in court, not just policies,” said immigration lawyer Jonathan S. Greene at the town hall. “Policies can be changed without notice on the whim of a newly elected official or his appointees. Policies can be kept in secret and they can be changed in secret. People need the open protections that come from laws.”
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Guzzone, the Senate Democrats’ majority whip, described the bill’s prospects as “an uphill battle.” It is now under consideration by the State Senate’s Judiciary Committee. Passage depends on its moving out of committee and getting a vote in the Senate before the legislative session ends April 10. Republican Governor Larry Hogan has vowed to veto the bill. Lam said the bill, which would be the first in the nation at the state level, passed with 83 votes in the House of Delegates, two short of the number to overcome a veto.
Indivisible.org Howard County sponsored the event, attended by several hundred. Started in January 2017, Indivisible HoCo is part of a national movement to mobilize citizens to resist the policies of the Donald Trump administration.
