The Arizona State Senate Military Affairs and Border Security Committee advanced Senate Bill 1294, which seeks to provide a prison to the federal government to house illegal immigrants.
SB 1294 passed Monday with a 4 to 3 vote along party lines. It has one more committee stop before going to the state Senate for deliberation.
At the bill’s hearing, Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Scottsdale, the sponsor of SB 1294, said the federal government is increasing its enforcement of immigration laws “at the border and internally.”
Kavanagh added there will be a need for detention facilities to house people adjudicating their immigration status and people with deportation orders.
Kavanaugh said this bill would have a positive impact on the economy of Marana, a city of about 60,000 people near Tucson. He added that the city’s economy suffered “a serious decline” after the prison closed. 13 News reported that when this prison shut down, 100 people lost their jobs.
