Oklahoma legislative leadership introduces immigration bill, seeks to create new criminal law

OKLAHOMA CITY (KSWO) - The Oklahoma Speaker of the House Charles McCall and the Oklahoma Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat jointly authored a bill introduced April 15, which would create a brand new law in the state centering around immigration.

This new law, if the bill is signed by the governor, would be called impermissible occupation. The law would make it illegal for anyone who does not have legal authorization to enter the United States to come into Oklahoma.

As first reported on by your 7News team last week, a first offense is a misdemeanor and carries a jail time no longer than a year and fines up to $500. After punishment, the person charged would be given 72 hours to leave the state and would be prohibited from coming back to Oklahoma anytime thereafter.

Additional offenses would be a felony, and could land someone behind bars for two years and fines up to $1,000.

The legislation also contains language that would prohibit cities across the state from becoming sanctuary cities.

A paragraph within the introduced legislation declares that a crisis exists in the state.

In response to the introduction of the bill, members of the Oklahoma Legislative Latino Caucus came out opposing the measure and even offered differing solutions to address America’s immigration problem.

Rep. Arturo Alonso-Sandoval (D-89), one of the members of the caucus, said the bill does not have any provisions accounting for the many undocumented Oklahomans who also pay taxes in the state.

“This bill fails to recognize that there are current undocumented Oklahomans who are long term residents,” Alonso-Sandoval said. “Many of these people have been in Oklahoma for decades and have contributed immensely during that time. These people are hard-working individuals who pay millions in taxes to Oklahoma each year. We have serious concerns about the taxpayer cost of enforcement and the risk of increased racial profiling that could put documented citizens living in Oklahoma at risk.”

7News spoke with Michael Brooks (D-44), another member of the Latino Caucus, earlier in the session after Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond urged the legislature to produce a bill like the controversial Texas SB 4 measure.

Brooks said he’d hope the legislature would take a comprehensive approach to immigration and account for those who have been in the state for years.

“So, if we’re gonna criminalize the fact that people are undocumented, then to be able to provide a path or a way for people who have already put down roots, who are already paying taxes, to provide them an opportunity perhaps not to be guilty of that crime. So to me, if they’re gonna pass something like that, for those longtime residents of the state of Oklahoma, for them to be allowed perhaps to qualify for a state ID or a State license, and with that state ID or a State license they wouldn’t be subject to the criminal law.”

The bill, HB4156, currently sits in the Oklahoma House, awaiting its first hearing.