Iowa Faces Legal Battle Over Controversial Immigration Law Implementation

Civil rights organizations lodged an official complaint against Iowa state officials on May 9, seeking to halt the implementation of the state’s recently enacted immigration law, which is scheduled to take effect on July 1. Under the new law, a foreign national who has been deported from the United States in the past is prohibited by law from entering Iowa, irrespective of their current immigration status. The American Immigration Council and national and state chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union have brought the suit, representing the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice. The groups will provide counsel to illegal immigrants impacted by the law. The groups assert, in a complaint lodged with the District Court of Southern Iowa, that Iowa has exceeded its jurisdiction by intervening in areas of law that are constitutionally protected by the federal government....