House Bill 1050
By: Representatives Frye of the 122nd, Evans of the 57th, Roberts of the 52nd, Gisler of the
121st, Sanchez of the 42nd, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 35-1-17 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to state
and local law enforcement actions relating to immigration laws, authority, immunity, and
penalty, so as to provide for the protection of student data from immigration officials under
certain circumstances; to limit government cooperation of public school employees,
administrators, and officials with immigration enforcement; to prohibit the presence of
immigration enforcement officers on public school premises without a valid judicial warrant
or order; to restrict immigration officer liability in instances in which the officer is located
on or within 300 feet of a public school site; to mandate the designation of a school
administrator in each school district to be responsible for and adequately prepared for
interactions with immigration enforcement personnel; to restrict the access to student records,
with the exception of medical emergencies, unless a valid judicial warrant, order, or parental
consent has been provided; to provide for legislative intent; to provide a definition; to
provide for related matters; to provide for an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and
for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Code Section 35-1-17 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to state and local
law enforcement actions relating to immigration laws, authority, immunity, and penalty, is
amended by revising said Code section as follows:
"35-1-17.
(a) <del>Legislative intent.</del> It is the intent of the General Assembly to promote compliance with
state law related to deterring the presence of criminal illegal aliens and require Georgia law
enforcement officials to work in conjunction with federal immigration authorities and to
utilize all resources made available by the federal government to assist state and local law
enforcement officers in the enforcement of the laws of this state and of the United States.
<ins>It is also the intent of the General Assembly to protect students in public schools in this
state from unlawful, undue, or otherwise deleterious encroachments by immigration
enforcement activities and actions.
</ins> (b) <del>Cooperation with federal authorities.
</del> (1) To the extent authorized by federal law, state and local government employees,
including law enforcement officers and prosecuting attorneys, shall send, receive, and
maintain information relating to the immigration status of any individual as reasonably
needed for public safety purposes. Except as provided by federal law, such employees
shall not be prohibited from receiving or maintaining information relating to the
immigration status of any individual or sending <ins>to</ins> or exchanging such information with
other federal, state, or local governmental entities or employees for official public safety
purposes. <ins>However, government employees who are employees, administrators, or
officials of public schools in this state shall send, receive, and maintain information
relating to the immigration status of any student to any immigration or public safety
official if and only if the information is proven necessary for public safety purposes. As
used in this Code section, the term 'public school' means schools operated by a county
school system or an independent school system in this state.;
</ins>
(2) State and local agencies shall promote compliance with state law related to deterring
the presence of criminal illegal aliens and shall be authorized to enter into memorandums
of understanding and memorandums of agreement with the United States Department of
Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, or any other federal agency for the
purpose of enforcing federal immigration laws, including 287(g) of the Illegal
Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 or a similar federal
program. A local agency shall seek such memorandums of understanding annually when
no current memorandum of agreement is in effect;.
(3) Except as provided by federal law, no state or local agency or department shall be
prohibited from utilizing available federal resources, including <del>data bases</del> <ins>databases,
</ins> equipment, grant funds, training, or participation in incentive programs for any public
safety purpose related to the enforcement of <del>state and federal</del> <ins>federal and state
</ins> immigration laws; <del>and.
</del> (4) <ins>With the exception of a medical emergency condition as defined by Code
Section 31-11-81, no federal, state, or local immigration agency shall access any public
school database management system, including student profiles and personal information,
without a judicial order, lawfully issued subpoena, or parental consent.
(5)</ins> When reasonably possible, applicable state agencies shall consider incentive
programs and grant funding for the purpose of assisting and encouraging state and local
agencies and departments to enter into agreements with federal entities and to utilize
federal resources consistent with the provisions of this Code section.
(c) <del>Authority to transport illegal aliens.</del> If a state or local law enforcement officer has
verification that a person is an illegal alien, then such officer shall be authorized to securely
transport such illegal alien to a federal facility in this state or to any other temporary point
of detention and to reasonably detain such illegal alien when authorized by a federal
immigration detainer or federal arrest warrant. Nothing in this Code section shall be
construed to hinder or prevent a peace officer or law enforcement agency from arresting
or detaining any criminal suspect on other criminal charges.
(d) <del>Authority to arrest illegal aliens.</del> When authorized by federal law, a state or local law
enforcement officer shall be authorized to arrest any person based on such person's status
as an illegal alien or for a violation of any federal immigration law.
(e) <del>Immunity. A</del> <ins>Unless acting on or within 300 feet of the outer boundary of a public
school site, a</ins> law enforcement officer or government official or employee, acting in good
faith to enforce immigration laws pursuant to a memorandum or an agreement with federal
authorities to collect or share immigration status information, or to carry out any provision
of this Code section, shall have immunity from damages or liability from such actions.
<ins>(f) Except as required by federal or state law, or as required to administer a federally or
state supported educational program, public school employees, administrators, and officials
shall adhere to the following:
(1) Each public school shall designate an administrator responsible for appearing in
person at the public school site and interacting with federal, state, or local immigration
enforcement personnel and any law enforcement agency working as an extension of said
officers;
(2) No public school employee, administrator, or official shall allow immigration
enforcement officers onto the premises of a public school without a valid judicial warrant
or order. The designated administrator shall request and verify that an immigration
enforcement officer has valid documentation and authority under this Code section and
valid self-identification when such officer is on a public school site;
(3) Each public school shall be prohibited from disclosing student education records or
student data as defined under Code Section 20-2-662, whether verbally, written, or in any
other manner, to any immigration enforcement officer without proper legal
documentation or parental consent. Any disclosure of a student's education records
pursuant to a valid judicial warrant, judicial subpoena, or court order shall be in
</ins>
<ins>accordance with the requirements set forth in Section 99.31(a)(9)(ii) of Title 34 of the
Code of Federal Regulations; and
(4) No public school shall discipline, suspend, terminate, or otherwise punish an
employee, administrator, or official for implementing the protocols of this Code section.
(f)(g)</ins> <del>Penalty.</del> A local governing body of a law enforcement agency that violates this
Code section shall be subject to the withholding of state funding or state administered
federal funding other than funds for the purposes of providing those services specified in
subsection (d) of Code Section 50-36-1. As a condition of funding to a local governing
body, the Department of Community Affairs, the Department of Transportation, or any
other state agency that provides funding to local governing bodies shall require certification
pursuant to Code Section 50-36-4 as proof of compliance with this Code section. No
county commission shall be subject to the withholding of state or federal funding pursuant
to this subsection when a sheriff or his or her employee violates this Code section."
SECTION 2.
This Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law
without such approval.
SECTION 3.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.