A growing migrant crisis burdens and threatens Colorado. It is the fault of Colorado’s Democratic establishment, which asked for it.

The reason migrants seek and are sent to Colorado is not the scenery. Colorado is a sanctuary state — every square inch of it — as codified by recently enacted laws. The Legislature should rescind sanctuary status immediately, before things get worse.

Consider House Bill 19-1124, signed into law in 2019. Titled “Protect Colorado Residents From Federal Government Overreach,” the law gave federal officials the middle finger.

The law prohibits state officials from arresting or detaining an individual based on a civil immigration detainer. It prohibits probation officers from providing migrant’s identifying information to federal authorities.

Stay up to speed: Sign up for daily opinion in your inbox Monday-Friday

“The federal government does not have the authority to command state or local officials to enforce or administer a federal regulatory program,” states HB 1124.

And: “Colorado has the right to be free from mandates or financial obligations to perform the duties of the federal government …”

And: “Any requirement that public safety agencies play a role in enforcing federal civil immigration laws can undermine public trust …”

In every way possible, this tells federal immigration authorities to buzz off. It guarantees migrants they will live free of federal laws within Colorado state lines.

House Bill 23-1100, enacted last year, prohibits local cops from assisting with immigration enforcement. It requires local governments to “terminate any existing agreements for the purpose of housing or detaining individuals for federal immigration” authorities.

Invitations don’t get more seductive. We say come to Colorado for guaranteed protection from immigration laws and those who enforce them. Yet, as they pour in by the tens of thousands, we have leading state Democrats — most notably Denver Mayor Michael Johnston — begging feds for cash.

It sounds like this: Federal government, stay out of Colorado. That said, please pay us for this crisis we caused.

In addition to state laws that snub federal immigration law, Colorado welcomes migrants by giving them services and other resources funded by and intended for Colorado residents who fall on hard times.

Elected officials of Colorado Springs, El Paso County and other jurisdictions have worked this year to say they are not “sanctuaries” for migrants. None of it matters because the state’s sanctuary statues undermine them.

Republican state Rep. Richard Holtorf and Republican state Sen. Mark Baisley want to fix this mess, so they introduced HB24-1128 – assigned to a kill committee by Democratic leadership.

The bill seeks to negate Colorado’s statewide sanctuary guarantees by requiring Colorado law enforcement officers to cooperate with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. The law would obligate local law enforcement to report any probable cause that indicates an arrestee “is not legally present in the United States.”

El Paso County Sheriff Joseph Roybal, who serves Colorado’s most populous county, wants HB 1124 to pass. He and Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell are drumming up support.

“As the sheriffs, it is our duty to uphold the laws of our Constitution and protect the citizens in our perspective counties,” said Roybal, the first Hispanic sheriff in El Paso County history.

“I will not be a spectator and allow the state of Colorado to keep me from upholding my duties as sheriff.”

By making Colorado an official sanctuary state, Democratic Gov. Jared Polis, Johnston and other state Democrats escalated crime, homelessness and dependency. They drained resources funded by taxpayers who barely scrape by after years of inflation.

It is time to mitigate the damage by dumping sanctuary status and authorizing police to help enforce the law. House Bill 1124 would do just that.

Denver Gazette Editorial Board