By Andrew Goudsward and Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department has sued New York state officials including Governor Kathy Hochul over alleged failures to enforce federal immigration law, Attorney General Pam Bondi told reporters on Wednesday.
Bondi said the lawsuit, which also names Attorney General Letitia James and the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) head Mark Schroeder, takes aim at a “green light law” that bars the state from sharing vehicle and address information with federal immigration authorities.
The complaint, filed in federal court in Albany, New York, alleges that the New York law violates a provision of the U.S. Constitution, which holds that federal law preempts state and local laws that may conflict with it. It seeks a court order barring New York from enforcing the law.
Bondi said the law limits the state’s ability to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement because it contains a “tip-off provision” that requires the state’s DMV to inform someone when federal immigration officials request his or her information.
“This is a new DOJ, and we are taking steps to protect Americans,” Bondi told reporters. “New York has chosen to prioritize illegal aliens over American citizens.”
James said she was “prepared to defend our laws”.
“Our state laws, including the Green Light law, protect the rights of all New Yorkers and keep our communities safe,” she said in a statement.
The lawsuit comes just days after the Justice Department sued Illinois over immigration enforcement.
In the Illinois case, the department targeted a so-called sanctuary law known as the TRUST Act, saying the law interferes with federal immigration enforcement and violates the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause.
That clause states that federal law preempts state and local laws that may conflict with it.
“We did it to Illinois. Strike one. Strike two is New York, and if you’re a state not complying with federal law? You’re next,” Bondi said.
The lawsuits are the latest actions by the administration of President Donald Trump to step up immigration enforcement.
Prior to Bondi’s confirmation, the department issued a memo to all federal prosecutors ordering them to prioritize immigration cases and to even criminally probe state and local officials who resist such efforts.
To date, however, no such criminal charges have been filed.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Andrew Goudsward; additional reporting by Costas Pitas; Editing by Scott Malone and Stephen Coates)
