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Rep. Meng leads federal push to rein in ICE with new accountability bills
As Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani say they are investing millions to help give unaccompanied minors legal representation, Rep. Meng says she is pushing a slew of bills to curtail the arrests.
“This is not about public safety. Some people thought that they voted for President Trump because he would increase public safety, but this is just scaring our families,” Meng said. “He is using ICE to go after people who are citizens, people who are as young as six years old; he has even gone after people who are here legally. What he is doing is scaring people.”
Meng has introduced these three bills aimed at reining in ICE at the federal level:
The Uniform Standards for Federal Law Enforcement Act would give Congress and the courts greater authority to hold individual federal agents accountable for alleged misconduct by codifying existing Department of Homeland Security policies into federal law.
The Safe Check-Ins for Immigrants Act would allow immigrants pursuing lawful citizenship or visa status to attend required hearings and check-ins remotely, rather than appearing in person and potentially facing detention by ICE.
The ICE Badge Visibility Act increases transparency and accountability by requiring ICE agents to clearly display their badges and agency affiliation during enforcement operations and prohibiting them from wearing masks.
The recent ICE activity appears to have been concentrated on snatch-and-grabs on the street level, everything from car stops to confronting delivery workers. Masked agents have also been seen hanging around homes and questioning locals. Meng did not mince words when it came to these tactics, charging that ICE is terrorizing the community. She also called on Congress to take action.
“ICE agents are terrorizing schools and small businesses, racially profiling people, tearing children from their parents, and killing Americans. Congress cannot allow them to continue to operate this way without real oversight or accountability,” Meng said. “These bills are not controversial, and I will work tirelessly to ensure these commonsense reforms become laws.”