Revised October 8, 2018
/g3
SB54 California Values Act and City of Pomona Ordinance No. 2017-4244 Staff Guidelines and Training (All City Departments except the Police Department) Overview
California Senate Bill 54 (SB54), California Values Act, sets parameters for cooperation of local agencies and officials with federal immigration enforcement agencies. The intent of SB54 is to promote trust and communication between immigrants and local law enforcement agencies; to preserve, create, and provide effective law enforcement services to our community.
The City of Pomona adopted Ordinance 2017-4244 on December 18, 2017. The ordinance’s intent is to establish policies which safeguard public safety while upholding SB54. The ordinance limits the use of City resources to enforce federal immigration law and maintains consistency with the City’s core values as expressed in past acts, resolutions and mission statement and those State values codified in SB54.
The purpose of this overview is to provide guidelines and training to City personnel relating to immigration and interacting with all members of the community, immigrants, and federal immigration officials.
Employees of the Pomona Police Department have separate guidelines relevant to law enforcement. The City Manager shall be responsible for training City personnel regarding the scope and requirements of the ordinance and SB54. The City Manager shall report to the City Council the status of training and compliance with SB54 annually or as requested by the City Council.
Guidelines for City Employees (Excluding the Pomona Police Department) A copy of Ordinance No. 2017-4244 and Senate Bill 54 are attached for review. The enforce
ment of federal civil immigration law falls exclusively within the jurisdiction of the federal governm
ent. No City department, employee, or official has any inherent authority or duty to investigate federal civil immigration law or assist
enforcement with such federal law.
Members of the community must feel secure that contacting any City employee or being addressed by any City employee will not automatically lead to an immigration inquiry or deportation. City employees shall not inquire into an individual’s immigration status for immigration enforcement purposes.
Requests by
federal immigration officials for assistance from the City of Pomona should be directed to a supervisor. T
he supervisor, in consultation with their department director, is responsible for determining whether the requested assi
stance would be permitted under the California Values Act. Information regarding the citizenship or immigration status of a person shall not be disclosed by the City, except as otherwise provided under appl
icable federal law not in conflict with the provisions of SB54. Should a City employee suspect any person’s involvement in criminal activity, reports should be made to the Pom
ona Police Department, regardless of an individual’s immigration status. The City shall not enter int
o any contract, intergovernmental agreement, and/or memorandum of understanding unless such contract, intergovernm
ental agreement, and/or memorandum of understanding
is in com
pliance with SB54. SB 54 prohibits the use of agency moneys or personnel to investigate, interrogate, detain, detect or arrest perso
ns for immigration enforcement purposes (Government Code Section 7284.
6). Questions regarding compliance should be directed to the office of the City Attorney prior to enteri
ng into the contract, agreement, and/or memorandum of understanding.
ATTACHMENT NO. 4