In February 2025, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a bill into law strengthening immigration enforcement in the state.
We previously wrote about this law here.
The law created a Centralized Immigration Enforcement Division at the state level that coordinates directly with the Trump administration on federal immigration policies, establishes a new driver’s license distinguishing U.S. citizens from lawful permanent residents, and through provision of grants, encourages local governments to participate in enforcing federal immigration authorities.
The law also made it a felony for elected officials to vote for so-called sanctuary city policies, punishable by up to six years in jail, a $3,000 fine, and the law requires removal of any official who violates the law “as soon as practicable.”
This week, the ACLU of Tennessee filed a lawsuit against Tennessee on behalf of seven Nashville Councilmembers in state court challenging the portion of the law related to sanctuary city policies. The plaintiffs allege that the law violates the First Amendment rights of elected officials and is unconstitutionally vague in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Since 2019, Tennessee law has already prohibited elected officials from adopting sanctuary policies, which are defined as “any formal or informal policy that in any way limits state or local government cooperation with federal immigration agencies.”
Epstein Becker Green will continue to monitor these developments and provide updates.
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