Rogers Mayor Steve Womack may be on the verge of proposing that the city emulate a Pennsylvania city with a tough anti-immigrant policy. The Morning News has dug up a memo to council members suggesting he’s about to propose an ordinance targeting undocumented immigrants.
With the e-mail to council members, Womack attached copies of a law from Hazleton, Penn., as “information only” and noted he asked the city’s legal staff to come up with possible ordinances on the issue that will be “useful” to Rogers.
Lipscomb said Thursday he believes the Pennsylvania law is “rock solid,” and defensible legally. It addresses the issue as “a nuisance” and nuisance abatement is something the city has plenty of power to regulate, he said. He’s planning to present Womack with a similar ordinance for Rogers, but he said it will have stronger language when it comes to what constitutes a nuisance.
The Hazleton law, the Illegal Immigration Relief Act, calls for a $1,000-per-day fine on any landlord who rents to an illegal immigrant and revokes for five years the business license of any business hiring an illegal immigrant. It also makes English the city’s official language and bans city employees from translating documents without official authorization.
Womack said he hopes his suggestion generates some “wholesome constructive discussion” that will help Rogers officials address the issue.
Womack is angry about possible involvement of immigrants in a police shooting last week and drug violations. No bona fide American citizen would use drugs or shoot anyone, naturally.