(The Center Square) – A bill moving through the Washington State Legislature would allow lawful permanent residents and foreign nationals who are recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program to be able to enforce state law as police officers and press charges as deputy prosecutors, a move one critic says would enable noncitizens to “take away the rights of U.S. citizens.”
“We’re talking about a police officer’s ability to take away your rights under certain situations,” Rep. Jenny Graham, R-Spokane, said prior to a Thursday vote in the House Community Safety Committee. “These would be individuals that are not U.S. citizens that have the ability now to take away the rights of a U.S. citizen.”
Under federal immigration law, foreign nationals who obtained green cards are able to live as permanent residents, own property, and join the U.S. armed forces.
The initial DACA program was established in 2012. In 2021, a federal court ruling found the program unlawful and blocked new applications, though current DACA recipients’ protections and renewals were maintained. DACA recipients, while protected from deportation and eligible for work authorization, do not have lawful immigration status and are not considered U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents.
Senate Bill 5068 would enable foreigners authorized to work in the U.S. and DACA recipients to apply for and be hired as law enforcement officers, including with the Department of Fish & Wildlife, and non-elected positions such as deputy prosecutors.
The bill cleared the state Senate with a unanimous vote, and was voted out of the House Community Safety Committee with some revisions that include protecting law enforcement agencies from employment discrimination claims if the applicant is rejected based on the determination that the hiring them would be “impractical.”
Additionally, the revised bill prohibits the Criminal Justice Training Commission from denying or revoking officer certifications of a person who cannot legally own or possess a firearm under federal law due to their immigration status.
Committee Chair Roger Goodman, D-Kenmore, told colleagues that the “intent is to widen the pool of possible recruits to include not only those who are lawful permanent residents or green card holders and DACA recipients, but a wider universe of those who are legally authorized to be in the United States.”
“It could be that some of these recruits who are lawfully allowed to be in the United States are nevertheless prohibited from carrying weapons under federal law,” he added. “So the amendment provides that that does not prevent them from being trained and certified and employed by law enforcement agency.”
However, Rep. Brian Burnett, R-Wenatchee, opposed the bill based on “concerns over the ability for these officers … to carry firearms off duty and or across state lines,” saying it “would not be legal for them to do so. We do not want to set these people up for failure or criminal charges. I think that we have a commitment to protect our citizens … but also the agencies that these people would be working for.”
