Residents press Santa Maria council to form immigration ad hoc committee; mayor asks staff to draft resolution

Dozens of residents told the Santa Maria City Council on Jan. 20 that federal immigration enforcement is destabilizing families and asked the council to create an immigration ad hoc committee and to make local ICE arrest data part of the public record.

Speakers representing community organizations, advocacy networks and individual residents described recent enforcement activity they said occurred in and near Santa Maria and pressed the council to act. "As of today there have been 475 kidnappings within our region, with 373 of those happening here in Santa Maria," said Michelle Ambrise, a policy advocate and volunteer with the 805 Rapid Response Network, quoting figures provided by local rapid-response groups. Several other speakers repeated similar tallies and urged the council to request information from Immigration and Customs Enforcement after any city arrest.

The calls came during the public-comment period and were led by a mix of community organizers and civic groups. Cliff Solomon of Indivisible Santa Maria asked the council to establish an ad hoc committee to examine local options; Ginny (Jeannie/Ginny) Sparks of Santa Barbara County Action Network urged the council to direct the police department to intervene if ICE actions exceed legal bounds; Lisa Thornhill of the League of Women Voters read the League's national statement urging due process for immigrants.

Mayor Alice M. Patino and council members acknowledged the concerns but noted limits on local authority. The city clerk read the public-comment rules and a reminder about the Ralph M. Brown Act’s restriction that the council cannot take action on items not on the posted agenda. Councilmember Escobedo asked for a clarification about the provenance of arrest numbers after speakers cited different tallies; speakers attributed those figures to local rapid-response organizations and a Tri-County tally.

To respond, Councilmember Aguilar Hernandez asked the mayor to place a resolution or proclamation on a future agenda. The mayor and City Manager Rollins said staff will draft language and bring it back for council consideration. "City manager, you would take a lead in drafting that resolution?" a councilmember asked; the city manager said he will and later confirmed he will bring a work plan and the immigration item to the Feb. 3 meeting for discussion.

The council did not take formal action on immigration at the Jan. 20 meeting. Instead, it directed staff to prepare draft language and to consult sample language from neighboring jurisdictions, with opportunities for councilmembers to provide edits before the item is posted for public review.

What happens next: City staff will prepare a draft resolution for council review; the city manager said he will return on Feb. 3 with a work plan and recommended language for council consideration.