Reclaiming State Sovereignty Over Illegal Immigration in 2025 & Beyond
Here's how Idaho, along with our counties and cities, can combat illegal immigration
By Brian Lenney, Vice Chair Idaho Freedom Caucus and of course, Nampa's Senator
Illegal immigration poses a significant threat to the sovereignty, security, and fiscal health of the United States—and Idaho is no exception. As a state that values tradition, law, and order, Idaho must take decisive action to deter illegal immigration and protect its future.
Which begs the question - what can we actually do about it at a local and state level?
The Fiscal Burden of Illegal Immigration
Illegal immigrants are a net fiscal drain on our country and, by extension, on Idaho. Because they consume more in public services—such as healthcare, education, and welfare—than they contribute in taxes.
According to the Manhattan Institute, the current federal policies under the Biden administration, taxpayers are projected to be on the hook for at least $1.15 trillion to support illegal immigrants. That's more than the entire defense budget or our annual Social Security spending.
This unsustainable burden threatens the financial well-being of our state and its residents.
Source: Welfare Use by Immigrants and the U.S.-Born
The Security Risks of Open Borders
An open border is an open invitation to chaos.
It's not just about people “seeking better opportunities;” it's about
the influx of crime, drugs, human trafficking, and terrorists.
More crime, more trafficking, more drugs, more weapons, and more terrorists in Idaho. That’s what’s on the menu. This undermines the safety and stability of Idaho communities, causing crime, death, and destruction that could have been prevented by simply following the existing law.
And even though Biden doesn’t act like it, we’re a nation built on laws, not selective compliance.
Picture the chaos on the streets if everyone decided to follow traffic laws only when convenient. Allowing illegal immigrants to thumb their noses at our laws erodes the very foundation of our society and sets a dangerous precedent for lawlessness.
The Supreme Court acknowledges that the federal government "has broad, undoubted power over the subject of immigration and the status of aliens"1. Yet, Biden and the Uniparty have failed to enforce these laws, leaving states to bear the brunt of the consequences. for example, here's just one recent story about how Biden's illegal, treasonous open border policy is affecting Idaho.
This dereliction of duty by the federal government is unacceptable. If Washington won't act to protect our borders and enforce our laws, then Idaho must step up to safeguard our state.
Action Plan for Idaho
1. Enforce Employer Accountability with E-Verify
We must hold businesses that hire illegal immigrants accountable. Requiring all employers to use the E-Verify system will ensure that only legal residents are employed. E-Verify "can determine with great accuracy the authenticity of the personal information and credentials offered by new hires. In most cases, verification occurs almost instantly."2 This system effectively deters the employment of illegal immigrants by eliminating the "jobs magnet" that draws them here in the first place.
Arizona set a precedent in 2007 by passing a law that mandates employers to use E-Verify3. The Supreme Court upheld this law, and several other states have followed suit. It's time for Idaho to join them.
2. Impose Strict Penalties on Employers of Illegal Immigrants
Businesses that knowingly hire illegal aliens are complicit in undermining our laws. They often feign ignorance, claiming, "As far as I know, they are here legally," but we all know better. Channel 7 even did a story with folks openly admitting they knowingly hire illegals4.
These employers should face severe consequences, such as the revocation or suspension of their business licenses. The Supreme Court supports this approach, stating that federal law "expressly reserves to the States the authority to impose sanctions on employers hiring unauthorized workers, through licensing and similar laws"5.
3. Eliminate Loopholes for Day Laborers
Idaho should adopt measures similar to Arizona's Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act (SB 1070), which makes it essentially illegal for illegal "day laborers" to be picked up and hired without proper documentation. This reduces the opportunities for illegal immigrants to find work and discourages them from settling in our state.
4. Crack Down on Sanctuary Cities and Counties
While Idaho has made progress with SB 1030 in 2023, declaring sanctuary cities illegal, we must go further. The law needs TEETH. Any city or county that attempts to subvert federal immigration law should face significant penalties. We cannot allow pockets of lawlessness within our state.
5. Empower Law Enforcement Officers
Our law enforcement officers should have the authority to determine the legal status of individuals they encounter during lawful stops when there is reasonable suspicion of illegal status. This isn't about racial profiling; it's about giving officers the tools they need to enforce the law effectively.
Participate Fully in the 287(g) Program
Idaho must require all local law enforcement agencies to participate in the 287(g) program, which "deputizes" local officers to work with ICE and enforce federal immigration laws. Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris has already committed to this on a recent X space. However, currently, only two counties in Idaho participate (Gooding and Power)6. Expanding this statewide would significantly enhance our ability to enforce immigration laws at the local level.
6. Criminalize Harboring & Transporting Illegal Immigrants
Idaho should make it a crime to hide, lure, or transport illegal aliens. This would deter individuals and organizations from facilitating illegal immigration and help to root out networks that enable this unlawful activity.
7. Deny Licenses and Identification to Illegal Immigrants
Efforts to roll out the red carpet by doing things like giving driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, such as those continually proposed by Idaho State Senator Jim Guthrie, are misguided.
Instead, we should go the other way and make it illegal to issue driver's licenses, vehicle registrations, or any official documentation to those who are in our country unlawfully. Providing these documents only enables illegal immigrants to embed themselves deeper into our society.
Closing Thoughts…
This isn't about xenophobia, skin pigmentation, or intolerance…
This is about preserving the rule of law, protecting our communities, and ensuring the future prosperity of Idaho.
By making it exceedingly difficult for illegal immigrants to live and function in our state, and by imposing heavy consequences on those who enable them, we send a clear message: Idaho stands for law and order.
If the federal government refuses to enforce immigration laws, then Idaho must take matters into its own hands. Our state's sovereignty, security, and prosperity depend on it.
Footnotes
1. Arizona v. United States, 567 U.S. 387, 394 (2012). ↩
2. Robert Rector, Reducing Illegal Immigration Through Employment Verification, Enforcement, and Protection, Heritage Foundation, Backgrounder No. 2192 (Oct. 7, 2008), p.2; Link. ↩
3. Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting, 131 S.Ct. 1968, 1977 (2011). ↩
4. Local news report on employers admitting to hiring illegal immigrants ↩
5. Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting, 131 S.Ct. at 1987. ↩
Thanks for joining us in the fight to keep Idaho free. Idaho is worth defending!
(reposted from Sen Lenney Substack comment - https://brianlenney.substack.com/p/reclaiming-state-sovereignty-over/comment/72338791)
Awesome work, Sen. Lenney! Thank you for so clearly stating the problems and the solutions.
We've added your article to several Substack posts in hopes of sharing your message far and wide in Idaho:
-> https://substack.com/@bige47/note/c-72337589
-> https://eolson47.substack.com/p/health-freedom-and-other-solutions
-> https://eolson47.substack.com/p/idahos-illegal-immigration-open-borders
Thank you for doing all you can to protect the citizens of Idaho. I think the plan you laid out is excellent. We simply cannot sustain paying for illegal immigrants' healthcare, housing, travel, etc. - as Biden's Admin has been doing with taxpayer money, without it collapsing our economy. Obama-Biden-Harris are using the Cloward and Piven strategy to collapse the economy in order to replace it with a different system controlled by a power elite. Furthermore, the immigrants being shipped into our country over the past 4 years are not the same immigrants we were used to. They are not young Mexican families crossing the border in pursuit of a better life, as for so long was the case. By and large the current administration is importing young men of fighting age, from China, from the Middle East, and they are importing criminals without vetting, gang members, child sex predators, gun smugglers, and human traffickers, as you mentioned. The intent is to continue to overthrow our country, our freedoms, our economy, our traditions, our morals, and our sense of peace. It has nothing to do with ethnicity and everything to do with legality. Immigrants have always been welcomed to our country, but they must do so legally! Again, thank you!