Judge Issues Preliminary Injunction Against Iowa Immigration Rule

(USNewsBreak.com) – Immigration is a hot-button issue in the United States. Since President Joe Biden took office, Republicans have called on his administration to enforce stricter border policies. Several states have tried to take matters into their own hands during this time. Now, a federal judge has prevented Iowa from implementing one of its laws.

In April, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds (R) signed Senate File 2340 (SF2340) into law. The legislation authorized state police to arrest and deport undocumented immigrants. In a statement following its signing, she blamed the Biden administration for “fail[ing] to enforce our nation’s immigration laws,” thereby risking the “protection and safety of Iowans.”

Legislators had slated the law to take effect on July 1, but the Biden administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) intervened. It first notified Iowa officials that the law violated the US Constitution. In May, the DOJ sued Iowa, citing the Supremacy Clause. In its complaint, the DOJ argued that only the federal government has the “exclusive authority […] to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens.”

The federal government argued that allowing a state law, even one that adopted federal standards, to regulate immigration would lead to mass confusion. Additionally, the Iowa law doesn’t make any provision for noncitizens who the US previously deported but who reentered the country legally after going through the proper channels. A judge agreed.

On Monday, June 17, US District Judge Stephen Locher effectively prevented the law from going into effect, issuing a preliminary injunction “pending further proceedings.” Naturally, the state’s attorney general, Brenna Bird, said she planned to appeal the decision, taking to X, formerly Twitter, to note her displeasure at the ruling and the Biden administration’s alleged open-border policies.

Texas also tried to implement a similar law in March, but a three-judge panel in a federal appeals court put it on hold just hours after it took effect. The DOJ is also taking action against similar legislation in Oklahoma.