Trump Signs 'Sanctuary City' Crackdown; Somerville in the Crosshairs

SOMERVILLE, MA – President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a promised executive order cracking down on the more than 300 sanctuary cities across the country – including Somerville. Details of the order are sparse to far, but it includes withholding federal funds to local governments except those mandated by law for law enforcement, according to the text of Trump's executive order.

Somerville has been a sanctuary city since 1987, and Mayor Joseph Curtatone has previously said that it would remain one amid the president's threats to pull federal funding.

At a press conference Wednesday, Curtatone reaffirmed the city's stance in light of the president's executive order.

"Our city, Somerville, Massachusetts, will not waver," Curtatone said. "Somerville will stand with you regardless of your race, creed, color, gender, nationality, legal status, religion, disability, gender identity or sexual orientation. And Somerville will remain a sanctuary city. We will not turn our back on our neighbors. Our diversity is our strength."

In a statement last year, Curtatone said the city receives about $6 million in recurring federal funds, but said Wednesday that number could be as high as $12 million in annual funds.

SEE ALSO: Open Letter: Somerville Will Stand With You

Sanctuary cities and counties are called that because they refuse to turn undocumented immigrants over to federal officials for deportation. Problematically for local officials, the term does not have a hard and fast legal definition. They are left looking instead to possible precedents, such as a bill proposed by Republicans during the last congressional session. The language in that bill carried a broad definition of "sanctuary city" that swept in even municipalities that do not explicitly identify themselves as such.

In Massachusetts, whatever definition is put forth through Trump's executive action will almost definitely include self-described sanctuaries such as Cambridge and Somerville, and will likely also sweep cities like Boston into the mix, too.

Sources tell Patch the most likely target of funding would be the various grants given to local governments through the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security.

The two departments administer billions in grants — many of which go to law enforcement agencies in the more than 300 cities and counties that have declared themselves sanctuary cities.

These range from Homeland Security's Urban Area Security Initiative, which helps cities prepare for acts of terrorism, to the Edward Byrne Grant Program, which was named for a New York City Police Officer killed in the line of duty and provides funding for a range of programs including crime victim assistance, drug patrols and drug treatment.

Trump's action against sanctuary municipalities is one part of a series of expected executive orders on immigration issues that will be unveiled over a couple of days - the most notable of which will be an order formally moving forward with his campaign promise to build a wall on the Mexican border.

Colin Miner and Alison Bauter contributed to this report.

Photo via The White House