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Council schedules committee review after vote fails to add immigration ordinance to agenda
Summary
Councilmember Hainem introduced an ordinance to limit use of city resources for federal immigration enforcement; procedural concerns and short notice led council to decline adding it to the amended agenda and instead schedule a committee of the whole for Feb. 17 to review the measure.
Councilmember Hainem introduced Ordinance 37‑2026 on Feb. 2, a proposal that would direct Sylvania not to devote city resources to federal immigration enforcement and to assure equal access to city services regardless of immigration status. Hainem described the ordinance as ‘‘simple and limited’’ and said he had vetted it with immigration counsel; he asked for a first reading so the public could review what the ordinance would and would not do.
Several councilmembers said they were uncomfortable with the process and timeline. Mayor Frey and others pressed for review by the law director and police chief before advancing the ordinance, citing late distribution of the draft and the need for staff analysis. In a roll‑call vote to add Ordinance 37 to the amended agenda the motion failed (2 yays, 5 nays). Council subsequently scheduled a Committee of the Whole to discuss the ordinance at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 17, for fuller review and staff input.
Why it matters: the measure would formalize how city resources are used in relation to federal immigration enforcement and include nondiscrimination language; councilmembers said legal and operational implications require a fuller staff and legal review prior to further public proceedings.
