The Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) carried out searches and served audit notices to 77 businesses in Northern California this week, indicating that ICE chief, Thomas Homan, intends to fulfill his promise to enforce federal law in the 'sanctuary state.'
In what is likely the largest localized operation of its kind under the Trump administration thus far, agents targeted workplaces in the Bay Area and Sacramento - a region well-known for sheltering illegal aliens and a stronghold of rogue California governor, Jerry Brown, who recently signed a bill into law declaring the entire state a 'sanctuary' for illegal immigrants and criminals.
In a statement released by ICE, the agency provided details, protocols, and motives for the sweep -
From Jan. 29 to 31, 2018, ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents served notices of inspection (NOIs), also known as I-9 audit notices, to approximately 77 businesses across the San Francisco area of responsibility. A notice of inspection alerts a business owner that HSI is going to audit their hiring records to determine whether or not they are in compliance with the law. Employers are required to produce their company’s I-9s within three business days, after which HSI will conduct an inspection for compliance.
ICE Deputy Director Tom Homan previously stated that he has directed Homeland Security Investigations to step up worksite enforcement — to include conducting more I-9 audits in furtherance of pursuing more criminal investigations.
The actions taken this week reflect HSI’s stepped-up efforts to enforce the laws that prohibit businesses from hiring illegal workers. HSI’s worksite enforcement strategy is focused on protecting jobs for U.S. citizens and others who are lawfully employed, eliminating unfair competitive advantages for companies that hire an illegal workforce, and strengthening public safety and national security.
NOIs were served in San Francisco, Sacramento, San Jose, and throughout the AOR.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, anticipating deeper scrutiny and action from immigration enforcement agencies, issued a shocking warning last month to California employers that his office would pursue penalties and fines of up to $10,000 if they cooperated with federal authorities.
"It’s important, given these rumors out there, to let people, and more specifically employers, know that if they voluntarily start giving up information about their employees in ways that contradict our new California laws, they subject themselves to actions by my office," Becerra saidat a press conference in January.
'Community organizers' involved in crusading on behalf of illegal aliens have set up hotlines for 'immigrants' to call to report raids, and are organizing training sessions for 'legal observers and moral witnesses' to hamper law enforcement.
"We denounce the racist agenda at play and the trauma that raids inflict on immigrant communities," has announced one such group, Faith In Action. "As leaders in San Mateo County, we know our immigrant neighbors make up a vital part of our families and our community. And as people of faith, we believe all members of our community should be treated with dignity, no matter what they look like or where they were born."
The latest enforcement blitz comes just days after ICE carried out raids of nearly 100 7-Eleven convenience markets across 17 states - including California.
Acting ICE director Homan recently called for criminal charges to be brought against politicians who advance 'sanctuary' policies and thwart federal immigration law, and fired a warning shot across the bow of California lawmakers in the process.
"I think we charge some of these sanctuary cities with violating federal law," Homan said in an interview on Fox News. "This isn’t the America I grew up in. We gotta take these sanctuary cities on. We gotta take them to court, and we gotta start charging some of these politicians with crimes."
"California better hold on tight,” he added. “They’re about to see a lot more special agents - a lot more deportation officers."