Allentown council adopts amended 'welcoming city' ordinance after hours of public comment

The Allentown City Council on Wednesday passed Bill 4, an ordinance that codifies city practice of providing services without regard to immigration or refugee status and directs the city to pursue becoming a certified “welcoming city” through Welcoming America, as amended to remove a mandatory certification requirement.

The measure passed 7-0 after more than three hours of debate and public comment in council chambers that drew dozens of residents, religious leaders and immigrant-rights advocates. The final ordinance retains provisions that prohibit city officials from inquiring into or collecting immigration status except where required by state or federal law, while changing language that would have required certification into language that “shall pursue” certification and that the council “suggest” the city obtain a Welcoming America star rating.

Supporters said the ordinance will protect trust between immigrants and city services so people will report crimes, use health care and turn to municipal agencies without fear. “When something matters, you write it down,” Councilwoman Cece Gerlach said in support of the bill, urging the council to codify the city’s existing practices.

The measure’s opponents — including Mayor Turk and the city solicitor — said they agree with the ordinance’s goals but warned against making compliance dependent on the standards of an outside nonprofit. Maria Montero, the city solicitor, told council that “Welcoming America is a non government organization that formally designates local governments as certified welcoming with a star ranking system” and said it is unknown what legal actions could follow if the city failed to obtain or maintain that private organization’s ranking.

Mayor Turk said the administration already has administrative policies instructing city staff, including police, not to ask about immigration status and argued the mayor’s office is responsible for developing and changing administrative policy. “So, yeah, with all that said, I oppose this bill as an ordinance,” he said, urging the council to coordinate with the administration on implementation rather than mandate certification by ordinance.

Allentown Police Chief Charles Roker spoke against converting the policy to ordinance but described current department practice. “We do not, as a matter of practice, ask for immigration status of any person as we are not federal immigration officers,” Roker said, and emphasized the department’s commitment to public safety and collaboration with local communities.

Speakers from faith groups, local nonprofits and immigrant-rights organizations urged passage. Belem Orazco of Make the Road PA summarized the supporters’ view: “The welcoming city policy does not prevent ICE from coming to Allentown. They can show up in any city at any time. But what welcoming city policy does ensure is that ICE has to follow the rule of law and obey the constitution.” Several parents and young people described fear among children and families and urged the council to put protections into law rather than rely solely on administrative practice.

Councilmembers debated narrow wording edits proposed by Gerlach to address legal and administrative concerns. The final amendment changed several mandatory verbs in the draft ordinance to softer language (for example, replacing “shall obtain” with “shall pursue” and “requiring” with “suggesting” in parts of the text), and added a requirement that the administration report progress to council on certification efforts.

After the amendment passed on a voice and roll-call sequence, council approved the ordinance as amended by a recorded vote of 7-0. The council did not record individual member votes in the public record excerpted here beyond the final tally.

What happens next: the administration said it has already opened discussions with Welcoming America and that pursuing certification will require a self-assessment, a desktop review and an audit by Welcoming America staff. The mayor’s office also warned council that certification likely requires budgeting for staff or other resources to support immigrant-inclusion work.

The ordinance directs city officials to maintain existing limits on collecting or sharing immigration status information except where state or federal law or a court order requires sharing and to clarify the internal procedures that govern those interactions. Council members said the ordinance aims to make the city’s commitments durable across administrations while preserving cooperation on criminal matters when federal or state authorities supply proper legal process.

The council adopted the measure before moving on to the remainder of its agenda.