Label
Council Members Komives, Gadus and Melden
Title
Enacting a new Toledo Municipal Code Chapter 116 Inclusive Community.
Body
SUMMARY & BACKGROUND:
The purpose of this ordinance is to establish our city as an inclusive community, to declare that all are welcome here, and to increase public confidence in the City's government. In order to keep residents safe, the city must limit its interactions with federal immigration officers. If our local police work on behalf of federal officers, their job becomes more costly, draining the city's limited resources. This would also impair community relations with the local police.
It is not within the purview nor mandate of the City to enforce federal immigration law or seek the detention, transfer, or deportation of Toledo residents for civil immigration purposes, nor should the City's resources be expended toward that end. The City will equally enforce the law and serve the public without consideration of immigration status, citizenship, national origin, race, or ethnicity.
This Council finds that an atmosphere of trust and cooperation between City departments, officers, employees, and agents and all residents, regardless of federal immigration status, is essential to advancing the City's mission, vision, and guiding principles, including community safety, support for youth and education, economic development, and financial stability. The City has a strong commitment to social justice and inclusion and one of the City's most important objectives is to enhance the quality of life of all of its residents, including immigrants.
Further, the City acknowledges that immigrants have off-set our declining population, increased our labor market, and are twice as likely to start their own businesses. The immigrant population in Toledo has about $242 million in spending power and pays $31 million in state and local taxes. More than half our immigrant population is eligible to naturalize. It is essential that the City ...
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