U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will not be conducting immigration enforcement at Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara.

Nevertheless, the Santa Clara City Council still unanimously passed a policy prohibiting city cooperation with ICE at a special meeting Feb. 3.

The topic came up at the council’s previous meeting, where the council hastily agendized discussion of a policy at the behest of Council Member Kevin Park.

City Manager Jovan Grogan told the council the policy borrowed largely from similar such policies, specifically in San Jose. Consequently, he said the policy is unable to capture Santa Clara’s unique needs.

City Attorney Glen Googins said the signs and barriers will discourage ICE from staging, processing or establishing an operations base.

“Really, at the core of the policy … is a general prohibition on the use of city facilities, parking garages and open spaces that are owned or controlled by the city, the city of Santa Clara,” Googins said. 

The “mechanism for enforcement,” Googins said, would be a civil injunction. 

The city will provide “Know Your Rights” pamphlets. The policy does not apply to city property subject to an existing lease, nor does it limit “lawful judicial warrants or enforcement of criminal law.” 

Vice Mayor Albert Gonzalez — who, along with Council Member Kelly Cox, drafted a letter to city employees — said concerns from the immigrant community are not abstract, but grounded in real experiences, recent national events and deep distrust of immigration.

ICE’s behavior, he said, “blurs the line between lawful activity and intimidation.”

With the city hosting major international events, Gonzalez said, the city needs “concrete, enforceable city policy.”

“With that visibility comes responsibility, where residents deserve clarity, protection within the limits of the law and a local government that acts decisively instead of symbolically,” he said. “This moment requires more than reassurance. It requires visible action that is legally sound, operationally feasible and responsive to the lived reality of our residents.”

Since voters elected Santa Clara Policy Chief Cory Morgan, the council has, as Googins put it, “meaningful limitations” in its authority to give him directives. 

However, a slew of state laws already protect cities from having to cooperate with ICE, and the city’s policy doesn’t guarantee immigrants’ safety from ICE action.

Both Googins and Grogan said the policy made them uncomfortable.

“Good policy making, especially in complex areas in policy and the law … are not typically rushed, and are not typically off the shelf,” Googins said.

During a nearly two-hour public comments section on the topic, droves of commenters, including several from local advocacy groups, implored the council to act.

Hector Hernandez said his family lives in constant fear and wants politicians to support immigrants, not turn their backs on them.

Sean Allen, president of Silicon Valley NAACP, said Morgan’s comments about cooperating with ICE depending on the necessity seemed like a loophole. He added that the proposed resolution “sounds like a bunch of words, not commitment.”

“There is no such thing as a necessary cooperation for civil immigration enforcement,” he said. “You cannot take the profit of black excellence and pay it back to the community with terror.”

Mark Geron said he was “disappointed with the flaccid response” and that the council was trying to “sweep any action under the rug.”

After public comments, each council member took turns decrying ICE’s actions.

Cox said she wanted to be frank about the city’s inability to promise safety, otherwise the city would “over-commit and under-deliver.”

The city will continue to refine the policy as the FIFA World Cup approaches later this year.

The next regularly scheduled meeting is 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 10 in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 1500 Warburton Ave. in Santa Clara.

Members of the public can participate in the City Council meetings on Zoom at https://santaclaraca.zoom.us/j/99706759306; Meeting ID: 997-0675-9306 or call 1 (669) 900-6833, via the City’s eComment (available during the meeting) or by email to PublicComment@santaclaraca.gov.

Contact David Alexander at d.todd.alexander@gmail.com.

Previous City Council Meetings:
SVP Gives Bi-annual Report, Council to Discuss Opposing ICE at Super Bowl
Santa Clara Puts Bond Money to Work
Santa Clara Budget Surplus to Bolster Reserves
NFL to use Soccer Fields During Super Bowl