Safeguarding San Francisco for All: Immigrant Rights Agenda

Supported By: African Advocacy Network, Arab Resource & Organizing Center Action, Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach
Asian Law Caucus, Bay Area Essential Workers Agenda, Calle 24 Latino Cultural District, CARECEN S.F., Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Chinese Progressive Association, Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth, Filipino Community Center, Free SF, Galería de la Raza, Immigrant Legal Resource Center, Immigration Center for Women and Children, Jobs with Justice SF, La Raza Community Resource Center, Latino Parity and Equity Coalition, Latino Task Force, Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area, Legal Services for Children, Mission Action, Mujeres Unidas y Activas, Nuevo Sol Day Labor & Domestic Worker Center, PANGEA, PODER, San Francisco Immigrant Legal and Education Network, San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, Senior and Disability Action, SF Rising, SOMA Pilipinas, South of Market Community Action Network, United Educators of San Francisco, USF Immigration Legal Clinic

1. Preparedness & Proactive Communication

• A. Partner with Community to Develop Emergency Plan in Anticipation of Federal Action: Develop a community safety plan in case of National Guard deployment, with direct input from community organizations and immigrant rights groups.
  

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  Cities like Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. have already faced National Guard deployments tied to mass deportation efforts. Without local preparation and transparent communication, residents are left vulnerable and unsure where to turn. Trump came close to sending the National Guard to San Francisco, and though he backed down recently, the threat remains imminent. Mayor Lurie’s administration must proactively engage with community partners – community and legal organizations, faith groups, and labor – to co-create an emergency plan that clarifies what residents can expect, where to access resources, and how the City will protect people’s safety and rights. Preparation means our services, resources, and communication systems are ready to support the people who live here – not scrambling to catch up while vulnerable families and individuals face the consequences. We have the chance to learn from what’s happened elsewhere and put our residents first by ensuring they’re informed, prepared, and protected.
• B. Stop Misinformation and Fear with Prompt Verification: Establish reliable communication between SFPD and the Rapid Response Network to avoid misinformation and fear from spreading in local communities.
  

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  The San Francisco Rapid Response Network is a community-led and City-supported effort that provides a 24-hour multilingual hotline, verifies reported ICE activity, and deploys attorneys to provide immediate legal representation for detained individuals. Without reliable and timely communication channels with SFPD, the Network cannot verify whether reported law enforcement activity is actually federal immigration enforcement or routine police work. When community members see unmarked vehicles or officers in tactical gear, fear spreads rapidly in immigrant communities. Direct and immediate communication allows SFPD to quickly confirm or deny ICE involvement, enabling the Network to provide accurate information, deploy resources efficiently during actual ICE activity, and maintain calm when enforcement is not immigration-related.
• C. Prepare to Call State of Emergency: Stand ready to declare a state of emergency if federal immigration raids escalate.
  

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  Emergency powers exist to prevent humanitarian catastrophe when a crisis threatens community stability. Los Angeles County’s October 2025 declaration (passed 4-1) recognizes that federal raids create cascading harm: families lose breadwinners to detention, rent goes unpaid, evictions loom, and fear empties workplaces and schools. The declaration unlocks vital tools to intervene before this spiral destroys families and destabilizes neighborhoods. It enables immediate rental assistance to prevent homelessness, expedited legal services, and the ability to request state support. We used these same emergency authorities during COVID-19 because the scale and speed of the crisis demanded extraordinary intervention. Our local government must stand ready to use every legal tool available to protect residents from this crisis.

2. Sanctuary in Practice, Not Just on Paper

• A. Bring Local Law Enforcement Fully Into Compliance with Sanctuary: Our sanctuary ordinance means that our local tax dollars should be used to promote safety for all residents, not to separate families through mass deportation. We need to ensure all local law enforcement agencies fully comply with existing sanctuary laws and policies and fully restrict collusion with federal immigration agents across all activities and operations, including ICE arrests, data, surveillance, notification and detention requests, and associated public demonstrations.
  1. 1. Immediately stop sharing automated license plate reader (ALPR) data with federal immigration authorities or out-of-state agencies, in compliance with existing state law.
        

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        California’s SB 34 already prohibits agencies from sharing ALPR data with out-of-state agencies – the law exists, it just needs to be enforced. The SF Standard reported in September that San Francisco has allowed out-of-state agencies to run more than 1.6 million illegal searches of the city’s license-plate reader database, including at least 19 that were flagged as related to ICE. When local police ignore it and feed license plate information to ICE, everyday errands become surveillance traps. Immigrant families fear that dropping kids off at school or going to work could lead to detention. When that fear spreads, people stop reporting crimes, delay getting medical care, and withdraw from community life. We’re not asking for new protections – we’re demanding compliance with state laws already on the books.
     2. End the practice of deporting people who may be trafficking victims and screen people to identify if they are trafficking survivors prior to charging.
        

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        Many people arrested for street-level drug sales are trafficking victims, coerced into criminal activity by the same networks that exploit them. Yet SFPD and the District Attorney do not screen these individuals to determine if they are trafficking survivors prior to booking them into jail and charging them. Over 100 people have been funneled through a federal deportation pipeline, separated from their families and permanently exiled. The District Attorney’s office files charges while simultaneously alerting federal prosecutors, who then bring federal charges and pressure people into “fast-track” plea deals that lead to immigration detention and deportation. This practice undermines San Francisco’s Sanctuary Ordinance and the state California Values Act (SB 54), which prohibits City resources from aiding federal agents with mass detention and deportation. When immigrant communities see the justice system as a pathway to deportation, trust collapses – families stop reporting crimes and witnesses disappear.
     3. Prohibit SFPD from assisting ICE with traffic enforcement and creating a perimeter.
        

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        SFPD Interim Chief Paul Yep issued Department Notice 25-089, Immigration Enforcement on Aug. 26, 2025, which purportedly reaffirms the prohibitions in Department General Order (DGO) 5.15 against assistance with ICE. However, this Department Notice undercuts DGO 5.20 by allowing officers to assist ICE by “maintaining a perimeter” and “directing traffic.” During the protests against ICE over the summer, SFPD officers were seen standing guard as ICE vehicles entered and exited the ICE building in SF at 630 Sansome and also acting as security guards for ICE. To justify SFPD’s actions, Mission Local reported that SFPD Deputy Chief Derrick Lew stated at townhall that, “We can’t just sit by and watch our fellow law enforcement agent or officer get hurt.” SFPD should not assist ICE with traffic enforcement or maintaining a perimeter. SFPD should not be acting as security guards or escorts for ICE agents or ICE vehicles.
     4. Mandate that SFPD collaborate with community organizations to implement California’s new laws prohibiting masked federal agents and requiring visible identification.
        

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        When masked agents in unmarked vehicles detain people without identifying themselves, it’s impossible to tell legitimate law enforcement from impersonators. California recently passed two laws addressing this: Senator Wiener’s SB 627 prohibits law enforcement officers from wearing facial coverings that conceal their identity, and Senator Pérez’s SB 805 requires plainclothes officers to visibly display identification including their agency and either a name or badge number. Both laws apply to federal agents operating in California and take effect in early 2026. SFPD must now develop implementation policies. Rather than writing these behind closed doors, SFPD should partner with immigrant rights groups, civil liberties organizations, and community members who have witnessed unidentified abductions. Their input will ensure policies genuinely protect San Franciscans and prevent interpretations that undermine the law’s intent.
     5. Explicitly prohibit SFPD officers from off-duty employment with ICE, CBP, DHS contractors, or any immigration enforcement agency.
        

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        When police officers moonlight as ICE agents, they shatter community trust and violate San Francisco’s sanctuary policies. Right now, nothing stops an SFPD officer from working for ICE on weekends without disclosure, creating a direct conflict with the city’s Sanctuary Ordinance and California’s SB 54. Immigrant communities can’t trust police who might be deporting their neighbors on their days off. Add ICE, CBP, and DHS contractors to SFPD’s list of forbidden employers, require officers to certify they’re not doing immigration enforcement work, and close this dangerous loophole before residents have to wonder whether the officer taking their report today will be involved in mass deportations tomorrow.
     6. Protect civil liberties and local oversight by refusing to rejoin the FBI’s so-called “Joint Terrorism Task Force” (JTTF) and maintain San Francisco’s 2017 withdrawal.
        

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        San Francisco pulled out of the JTTF in 2017 because of concerns that the first Trump administration would weaponize the task force to unfairly surveil Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian community members, and other marginalized communities. Those concerns remain valid today. The JTTF operates in secrecy and has a documented history of targeting marginalized communities. Officers deputized as FBI agents operate under looser federal standards that allow them to stop, question, and surveil people more easily than California law permits. The FBI retains control over these officers, making it nearly impossible for San Francisco to oversee their activities. Rejoining hands control to federal agents who answer to an administration targeting communities based on religion and immigration status. Without local accountability, the JTTF destroys the community trust that public safety depends on. Stay out of JTTF!
     7. Ensure the San Francisco Sheriff fully upholds due process and does not turn any of our neighbors over to ICE.
        

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        While our Sanctuary Ordinance limits assistance with ICE, it has a set of complicated exceptions that allow but do not require the Sheriff to notify ICE of release dates/times of people who are eligible to be released. To prevent serious abuses, it is imperative that the Sheriff’s Department not use local tax dollars to notify ICE. This invites ICE to show up at our jails and intimidate and arrest family members who are visiting their loved ones in jail. It also subjects individuals who are eligible to be released from the jail to double punishment, funneling them into immigration detention and potential deportation to 3rd countries, like the notorious CECOT prison in El Salvador. By contrast, Sheriff’s Offices in other Bay Area counties including San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Alameda have stronger, bright-line Sanctuary laws that do not allow for any local law enforcement collusion with ICE.
• B. Designate City Property as ICE Free Zones: Establish ICE Free Zones across all municipal property by banning federal immigration agents from using City lots, garages, and facilities as staging grounds for mass deportations.
  

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  Cities across the country are refusing to let their own taxpayer-funded infrastructure be turned against residents. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s “ICE Free Zone” executive order blocks ICE from exploiting public parking lots and vacant land as launch points for mass detention and deportation. It mandates creating an inventory of properties of potential interest, posting clear signage, and directing employees to immediately report violations. The City of San Jose and Santa Clara County are following suit, recognizing that local officials can’t wait until federal agents show up in their neighborhoods to finally decide they should have protected community spaces. Our tax-funded, public property belongs to the people who live here, not to the agents terrorizing them.
• C. Audit & Make Recommendations to City Departments:Require the Controller’s Office and Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs to audit all City departments for Sanctuary policy compliance, including reviewing procedures and staff directives, examining complaint resolutions, and making recommendations for improvement. 
  

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  Sanctuary policies are only as strong as their enforcement. Without independent audits, we have no way to know if departments are complying with Sanctuary policies, unknowingly falling short due to outdated procedures, or deliberately finding workarounds. Most City employees are deeply committed to serving immigrant residents, but unclear directives can create unintentional violations. An independent audit gives departments the clarity and tools they need to deliver on the City’s sanctuary promise.

3. Scale up Legal Defense and City Services

• A. Fund Immigrant Legal Defense:Quickly approve supplemental funds for immigrant legal defense organizations to meet skyrocketing caseload pressures in these unprecedented times. Also, raise the annual baseline budget for immigrant legal services to match demand and position organizations to respond rapidly to changing conditions.
  

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  The $878,000 in emergency funding that supported Attorney of the Day programs, the SF Rapid Response Network, and legal clinics expired mid-year, creating a gap just as demand has intensified. ICE arrests at check-ins and court hearings in the Financial District happen daily now – people showing up for routine appointments are being detained without legal counsel present. Front-line attorneys and Rapid Response teams are the first line of defense in these moments, providing immediate legal advice and connecting families and individuals with longer-term representation. These organizations, and the San Francisco Public Defender’s Immigration Unit have proven they can respond effectively when resourced – the question is whether we give them the capacity to meet this moment and respond to changing enforcement patterns without scrambling for emergency funds each time. Full funding means no San Francisco resident faces immigration court proceedings without an attorney, ensuring basic due process.
  
  
• B. Invest Now in the Services Families will Need Most: Scale up funding and services for individuals and families impacted by mass detentions and deportations by investing significantly more in City services, including rental assistance, food security programs, and language access.

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  When ICE detains a parent, families lose income overnight. Rent goes unpaid. Groceries run out. In this critical time when information changes rapidly and people need to know how to stay safe, language access becomes a lifeline. This is the moment to prioritize this crisis with significant investment in emergency rental assistance, expanded food bank capacity, and comprehensive language access: interpretation services, culturally competent translated materials, and support that meets families and individuals where they are. We need infrastructure in place before the full scale of the crisis hits our neighbors.
• C. Deploy Emergency Support for Unhoused Families and Individuals: Expand 24-hour emergency shelter access, provide safe school transportation, and end RV towing policies that leave unhoused immigrant families vulnerable to ICE abductions.
  

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  Unhoused families and individuals who depend on our shelters are left exposed and vulnerable to ICE when facilities close during the day, forcing them onto the streets where they become targets for mass detentions and deportation. We’ve done this before: during COVID, the City activated emergency protocols to provide 24-hour shelter access, and faith groups have stepped up during winter months to offer additional safe spaces. These aren’t new ideas; they’re proven solutions that saved lives. We need that same urgency now. Unhoused immigrant families are too terrified to take their children to school, fearing deportation at every turn. Providing school bus transportation directly from shelters would ensure students who attend schools throughout the district can access education safely. And the City’s RV towing policy must end immediately: it destroys the only shelter many immigrant families have, leaving them completely exposed. We’re not asking for the impossible. We’re demanding the City use tools it’s already deployed to protect our most vulnerable neighbors.

4. Support Immigrant Workers, Small Businesses, and Street Vendors

• A. Launch Emergency Support Programs for Workforce Disruption: Create immediate relief programs to stabilize workers, including day laborers and domestic workers, small businesses, and street vendors facing the anticipated impacts of mass deportation operations.
  

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  Mass detentions and deportations are already disrupting San Francisco’s workforce and local economy. Families are preparing for possible separations, workers are attending legal consultations, and employers worry about sudden staffing shortages. Street vendors—many of whom rely on daily sales to support their families—are losing income as fear keeps customers and vendors off the streets. When enforcement intensifies, the effects will ripple through workplaces and commercial corridors: lost income for families, exhaustion for remaining staff, shuttered vendor operations, and fewer customers in impacted neighborhoods. Immediate action is needed: establish grant programs to help small businesses and vendors cover temporary losses, launch “Shop Local, Support Community” campaigns promoting businesses in affected neighborhoods, and provide emergency leave for workers attending legal proceedings, caring for loved ones, or sheltering in place and implement a temporary moratorium on street vendor enforcement to prevent additional economic harm during this period of uncertainty.
• B. Protect Workers from Immigration Retaliation in the Workplace: Pass local ordinances that shore up worker protections.
  

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  Unscrupulous employers are weaponizing the threat of mass deportations to silence workers who speak up about wage theft, unsafe conditions, and harassment. San Francisco’s Office of Labor Standards Enforcement assisted over 17,000 workers last year and has some of the nation’s strongest labor protections, but current laws don’t explicitly address immigration-related threats. We need new ordinances that ban retaliation against workers asserting their rights regardless of immigration status, establish penalties for employers who exploit deportation fears, and strengthen enforcement through proactive investigations. Workers contributing to our economy deserve protection, and businesses that follow the law deserve a level playing field.
• C. Educate Employers About Rights & Responsibilities: In partnership with OEWD, OLSE, OCEIA, and the Office of Small Business, launch a citywide employer education campaign to ensure all San Francisco employers understand their rights and responsibilities on immigration and ways they can support their employees and local community.
  

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  Many employers want to do right by their workers but don’t know how – they cooperate with ICE beyond what’s legally required because they don’t know they can say no, or they don’t know how to protect their workplaces when enforcement shows up. But confusion also creates opportunity for unscrupulous employers to exploit immigrant workers, using fear of deportation to threaten them or violate labor protections. We call on the City to partner with legal and worker organizations to provide employer-facing webinars, training, and guides connecting businesses to City and community resources. This makes clear what employers must do under the law to protect worker rights and how to support their workforce during enforcement actions – so immigrant workers can show up without fear and responsible employers can operate with confidence.

 5. Public Education

• A. Launch Multilingual Know Your Rights Campaign: In collaboration with community partners, launch a multilingual “Know Your Rights” campaign and digital toolkit. Leverage local media, community-led, City-funded forums, and the City’s communication channels (e.g. bus stops, government buildings, public health clinics, parks, billboards, radio, etc.).
  

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  Residents need to see their City actively standing with vulnerable communities by amplifying rights education through every available channel. A multilingual campaign that meets people where they are – at bus stops, clinics, and community spaces – equips individuals with practical tools to assert their rights and reduces the fear that comes with uncertainty. Legal protections mean little if they’re inaccessible to non-English speakers or those without internet access. By launching this campaign, the City can bridge language and access barriers so that every resident can assert their rights when it matters most.