Nevada governor, AG spar over policies for dealing with immigration enforcement

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford speaks to the Las Vegas Sun editorial board Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. Photo by Wade Vandervort

Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo and Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford gave a potential preview of the 2026 gubernatorial election, sparring over Ford’s recommendations for how agencies deal with immigration enforcement issues.

Lombardo jumped on the policy recommendations released Monday, saying “the attorney general does not have the authority to make Nevada a sanctuary state or jurisdiction.”

Ford, who has said he is exploring a run for governor, quickly shot back, saying he does not support sanctuary policies.

“The Legislature mandated my office to provide model policies to help entities understand their legal responsibilities when it comes to immigration enforcement," Ford said in a statement. "That’s exactly what we did — nothing more, nothing less."

The Legislature directed the Attorney General’s Office in 2021 to come up with a plan for how state agencies should deal with immigration enforcement issues.

As mandated by the Legislature, the policies “prioritize fostering trust” between the public and law enforcement and limiting the involvement of local police with federal immigration enforcement. They also cover how schools, courts and hospitals should interact with federal immigration officials.

Agencies that do not want to follow the model must report to the Attorney General’s Office why they are not adopting it and detail their policies.

Lombardo said in a statement today he was reviewing the guidelines. He emphasized that the policies are “non-binding and non-mandatory.”

Republicans have criticized Ford, the former majority leader of the state Senate, over his previous support for legislation in 2017 that would have prevented law enforcement from aiding in federal immigration enforcement.

“No provision of these model policies limits Nevada law enforcement agencies or officers from complying with state law, federal law or valid court orders,” Ford’s office said in announcing the policies. “These policies do not give sanctuary to criminals.”

Some of the recommended policies are already in place in Las Vegas. For example, Metro Police do not honor Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer requests not approved by a judge.

Other recommended policies include Nevada courts not collecting information on immigration status unless it’s necessary, schools letting parents know if their children are being interviewed by federal immigration officials and hospitals not disclosing patient information unless required to do so by law.