In Los Angeles County, officers from the Department of Homeland Security allegedly attempted to visit two undocumented elementary school students and claimed they were doing a “wellness check” with the permission of the students’ relatives.

The relatives had not given their consent, according to an NPR report last week. 

The NPR report also said the officers were denied entrance to the school. When the school principal tried to write down the officers’ names and identification, the officers quickly pocketed their IDs. The superintendent, who the report said was once living unlawfully in the U.S. himself, said Homeland Security stated that wellness checks were appropriate for “unaccompanied minors.”

The superintendent said he’d never heard of Homeland Security doing wellness checks, and in talking with colleagues across the country, they hadn’t, either. Homeland Security told NPR they were not there to take immigration enforcement action nor did they have a warrant to see the children.

Sen. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, said this kind of story is fueling her efforts to pass Senate Bill 276, which seeks to prohibit schools, including colleges and universities, health care facilities, and daycare facilities, from allowing immigration officials into their facilities without a warrant, as well as penalize, under specific situations, providing the personal identifying information of immigrants.

No such immigration raid has occurred at a school in metro Denver since President Donald Trump took office, though Denver education officials claimed in court filings the operations adversely affected attendance and the mental health of students worried about themselves or family members getting swept up.

The bill comes amid a nationwide illegal immigration crackdown launched by the Trump administration that has resulted in removal from the country of alleged international gang members, the detention of a handful of U.S. citizens, according to one report, and the revocation of visas for international students, including some attending public colleges and universities in Colorado.

If enacted, Senate Bill 276 would also extend the prohibition on local law enforcers from arresting or detaining an individual based on an “immigration detainer request” to all peace officers designated by the state.

On Monday, the Senate adopted the bill on a 22-13 vote, with Democratic Sen. Kyle Mullica, D-Thornton, voting “no.” Republicans also balked at the proposal.

Mullica said he is empathetic, as immigrants try to build a better life for their children and he believes the Constitution is for everyone. He said he had concerns, such as with the process for getting the bill through, including five last-minute amendments on Monday. He said he did not understand how those amendments would impact the bill.

SB 276 has been heavily amended throughout its trip through the Senate, including lengthy modifications last week and on Monday, when substantial changes are not usually allowed.

Current law prohibits a state agency from disclosing personal identifying information or requesting information related to an individual’s immigration status unless required by federal or state law. The bill prohibits political subdivisions, such as schools, and the judicial and legislative branches from disclosing personally identifying information about a person’s immigration status. That also applies to student visa sponsorships and student aid for higher education.

The measure also removes from state law a previous requirement that students applying for in-state tuition at public colleges or universities, or people applying for driver’s licenses, file an affidavit that they have applied for legal status.

Democrats seek 1,000-feet buffer

Amendments adopted by the Senate last week and on Monday included extending the prohibition on immigration officials to include publicly supported libraries, and to apply the “safety area” for schools, daycares, health care facilities, libraries and higher educational institutions to 1,000 feet. It also prohibits those facilities from collecting personal information on immigration status, place of birth and information from passports, unless required by federal or state law.

An amendment further defined health care facilities to include behavioral health, detention and psychiatric facilities run by the state.

According to one amendment, that information could only be released under a warrant or subpoena, a judge’s order, or with the consent of a parent or guardian.

By Sept. 1, 2025, those facilities must adopt policies pertaining to SB 276 for their employees and a separate policy for children, students, patients, library patrons, and the general public.

Another amendment spelled out how a detained person would be transferred to federal immigration officials.

The bill requires a detention facility, such as a jail, to designate an “exit point” that federal officials would use to transfer someone from the detention facility to their custody.

“We’re not talking about abstract concepts,” Gonzales said during the April 15 debate. “We are talking about the Constitution of the United States.”

She added it’s also about ensuring that Coloradans’ due process and constitutional rights are protected. She pointed to a Denver Gazette’s story focused on the deportation of a decorated military veteran, Jose Barco, who was put on a flight to be deported to Venezuela, which refused to take him. Barco had been convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to more than 50 years after he shot into a crowd, hitting a pregnant woman in the leg during a party in Colorado Springs. 

Many believe that crime and his conviction put him in ICE’s radar, part of a campaign by the Trump administration to go after people living unlawfully in the U.S. convicted or charged of violent crimes.  

“Do we believe that the Constitution protects us all?” she said, rhetorically making the point that the U.S. Constitution’s protections extends to everybody.

Gonzales also spoke how many immigrants, who live in mixed-status families with parents unlawfully living in the U.S., are in fear. Gonzales said her bill would create clarity so that Coloradans in mixed-status families know about the policy and risks, and whether immigration officials could go into a childcare facility, and under what circumstances.

An immigration policy that’s out of control

Republicans countered with amendments and objections.

Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen, R-Monument, said immigration policy is out of control, and “we are seeking now to bring it into balance.”

Immigration policy is not a state matter; it’s a federal matter, and SB 276 would undermine federal policy and overstep legislative authority, he said.

Sen. Byron Pelton, R-Sterling, raised points made by sheriffs in his district about how this would work for their operations.

Sen. Scott Bright, R-Platteville, asked whether the bill would increase or decrease childcare options for families, or discourage people from working in the industry.

“This is going to scare some folks,” said Bright, who owns a childcare center. 

He worries about the ability to keep high-quality staff when they must determine whether they’re in compliance with the law. He attempted to remove childcare centers from the bill, which failed.

Those caught violating the law — such as child care facilities that provide the personal identifying information of immigrants — could be fined up to $50,000 per incident, and the money would be turned over to the state’s immigration defense fund.

Republicans’ amendments largely focused on changing state law as it applies to local law enforcement.

One would allow local law enforcement to implement policies authorizing its officers to arrest or detain people on the basis of a civil immigration detainer. Another would allow federal immigration officials unrestricted access to jails.

None succeeded.

The bill was also amended to remove an entire section that required the governor’s office and the attorney general to produce reports on third-party requests for personal identifying information to be provided to federal immigration authorities.

Lundeen said on Monday that the bill could create significant legal challenges, adding that it could violate the Constitution’s supremacy clause, which gives primacy of federal laws over state policy.

SB 276 now heads to the House, where Reps. Elizabeth Velasco, D-Glenwood Springs, a native of Mexico and now a legal U.S. citizen, and Lorena Garcia, D-Adams County, will sponsor the measure.