Iowa GOP bill cracks down on human smuggling, stoking fears about practical effects

Iowa Republicans advanced legislation Tuesday intended to crack down on the smuggling of undocumented immigrants into Iowa and prevent them from accessing public assistance programs.

A three-person subcommittee advanced House File 2112 Tuesday amid public concerns that it will heighten anti-immigrant sentiment in the state.

It's part of a wider push by Republicans to block undocumented immigrants from accessing taxpayer benefits. Earlier in the week, Republicans advanced legislation that would prevent undocumented immigrants from qualifying for in-state tuition at Iowa's three public universities and 15 community colleges.

"Taxpayers of Iowa should not have their money going to people who are not here legally," said Rep. Skyler Wheeler, R-Hull, who is a cosponsor of the bill and a member of the subcommittee.

No member of the public spoke in favor of the legislation, and several spoke passionately against it.

“I feel attacked. I feel like my family is being attacked, my coworkers — basically anyone I know," said Stephanie Lopez, a Waukee resident who came to speak against the legislation Tuesday. "There's a huge Latino community out here in Iowa, and some of us just had to represent today.

"We pay taxes whether we have papers or not."

Provisions of the bill intended to block human smuggling stoke fears over driving friends to doctor's office, sporting events

One portion of the bill creates a new offense of “smuggling of persons” that is intended to prevent people from bringing undocumented immigrants into the state or shielding them from police officers.

But it stoked fears from people who worried that the bill would make it a crime to drive undocumented Iowans to doctors’ appointments, sporting practices or other events.

Under the bill, a person could be found guilty of smuggling if they transport a person in order to conceal them from a police officer or flee an officer who is trying to make an arrest.

They could also be found guilty if they were to knowingly encourage or induce a person to enter or remain in the U.S. unlawfully by concealing, harboring, or shielding that person from detection.

“I have had (members of the Department of Public Safety) say to me that they had to release people because we didn't have something like this on the books,” said the bill's sponsor, Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison. “Because federal authorities have to cooperate in order to be able to detain someone, and federal authorities are not cooperating.”

Many of the people who spoke against the bill worried about its practical effects, saying they did not feel comfortable requiring their friends and family members to share their immigration status before offering rides.

Holt said that is not the bill’s intent, and he hopes to amend it to make clear that it wouldn't criminalize those actions.

“That’s something we’re definitely going to look at it,” he said. “That’s something very concerning — that’s not the intent. And so we’ll take a look at that.”

Legislation would block undocumented immigrants from accessing public assistance programs

Another section of the bill says that undocumented immigrants would be unable to access public assistance programs. The goal, Holt said, is to prevent people who are in the country illegally from accessing “anything that taxpayers would be paying for.”

“We want to make sure that we’re not incentivizing people to come to this state if they’re not here legally,” he said.

Luke Elzinga, a lobbyist for the Des Moines Area Religious Council, opposed the bill and said Iowa already is checking immigration status before distributing public assistance and called the bill "a solution in search of a problem."

Additionally, he said, he worries the legislation sends the wrong message to Iowa families.

"We also believe this bill reinforces harmful anti-immigrant rhetoric that can prevent mixed-status households from enrolling eligible citizen children in SNAP," he said. "… These are children citizens eligible for the program who are not participating out of fear, and we believe this bill further contributes to that fear and chilling effect."

Holt said that lawmakers will be talking with other groups to see if that section of the bill is necessary. If it's redundant, he said, it might also be amended.

Des Moines Register reporter Nixson Benitez contributed to this report.

Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa GOP bill cracks down on smuggling of undocumented immigrants