Congress·In Committee·S. 3744

A bill to amend chapter 93 of title 18, United States Code, to prohibit obstruction of immigration laws by official interference.

Senate Bill Would Criminalize Sanctuary City Policies, Jail Officials Up to Life for Non-Cooperation

Jan 29·View on Congress.gov·Read full text

Part of: Graham Proposes Prison Time for Local Officials Defying Immigration Orders

Next up: A senate committee

A senate committee must act next: committee consideration.

Legislative Progress

Senate

House

President

Law

Key Points

This bill would make it a federal crime for state or local government workers to intentionally block federal immigration officers from doing their jobs. It targets policies that prevent local police from working with federal agents to find or deport people who are in the country illegally.
Local officials would be banned from hiding people from federal agents or refusing to let agents into public areas of local jails. They would also be required to give federal authorities at least 48 hours' notice before releasing someone that federal agents are looking for.
The bill sets strict punishments for officials who break these rules. A standard violation could lead to 10 years in prison. If an official's refusal to cooperate leads to someone being released who then seriously hurts or kills another person, that official could face 20 years to life in prison.
This proposal aims to ensure that federal immigration laws are followed across the entire country, even in cities or states that have passed their own rules to limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

ImmigrationCriminal JusticeCivil Rights

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works

This bill is designed to make it easier for federal immigration officers to find, detain, and deport undocumented individuals by criminalizing state and local officials who stand in the way. In cities and states that currently limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement (often called "sanctuary" jurisdictions), undocumented people have had some degree of protection from federal agents. If this bill passes, those protections could disappear, making undocumented individuals significantly more vulnerable to arrest and deportation.

-4

ImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

-4

ImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

State Impacts

StateScoreImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Jan 29, 2026Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.

Jan 29, 2026

Introduced in Senate

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

Related News

1 article

sbynews·Feb 17

U.S. Senate Moves Toward Criminalizing Sanctuary City Mayors and Governors Who Defy Federal Immigration Law

Senate Republicans, led by Lindsey Graham and Eric Schmitt, introduced legislation to strip the 'sanctuary' label of its power. The End Sanctuary Cities Act of 2026 carries a hammer, proposing up to five years in prison for officials who willfully obstruct federal immigration enforcement.

Right

No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

A bill to amend chapter 93 of title 18, United States Code, to prohibit obstruction of immigration laws by official interference.

Bill NumberS 3744

Congress119th Congress

ChamberSenate

Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Data Sources

Congress.gov

Official legislative information

Read Full Bill Text

Sponsor

Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.