Two measures affecting immigrants on City Council agenda, including advisory board’s future
Two measures affecting immigrants are being considered next week by the Bellingham City Council, including a move to disband the Immigration Advisory Board, whose meetings have been on hold since the first of the year.
Both measures are scheduled for discussion when the council’s Committee of the Whole meets at 1 p.m. Monday in City Hall, 210 Lottie St. Votes are scheduled when the City Council meets at 7 p.m. and no public hearings are on the agenda. Both meetings will be streamed live on YouTube.
▪ One measure is a resolution to create a temporary “advisory work group” on the Keep Washington Working Act to study and advise the city on policy and compliance.
Keep Washington Working is a 2019 law that prohibits law enforcement officials from detaining or arresting someone just to determine their immigration status, because being undocumented in the United States is not a crime under local, state, or federal law.
▪ A second measure would disband the city’s Immigration Advisory Board, whose meetings have been on hiatus since a Jan. 29 City Council vote.
Councilwoman Hannah Stone, an immigration lawyer who proposed creating the board in 2019, cited “tensions” within the group’s membership and asked for a reboot, according to previous Bellingham Herald reporting.
The Immigration Advisory Board was formed by the council “to review and evaluate existing policies and make specific recommendations to the mayor and City Council regarding city policy related to immigration matters,” according to the city’s website.
Its most recent efforts had included planning for an immigrant resource center.
Members are appointed by the mayor, and the 12-member board has four vacancies.
According to supporting documents on the agenda, Immigration Advisory Board members are being encourage to apply for the committee examining the Keep Washington Working Act.
“This action would provide definitive clarity about the status of the Immigration Advisory Board, especially for current members, rather than leaving the Immigration Advisory Board on pause until 2026. This allows members to apply to participate on the Keep Washington Working working group, another city advisory group, or lend their support to the community in other ways,” the council agenda states.
