Sedgwick County Commission passes resolution on illegal immigrants

Sedgwick County commissioners are asking the state to tighten constraints on illegal immigrants.

A resolution passed Wednesday asks that Kansas pass legislation preventing illegal immigrants from receiving in-state tuition. It also asks the state health department to restrict their access to Women Infants and Children, a nutrition program designed for low-income women and their children.

The vote was 3-2, with Commissioners Karl Peterjohn, Richard Ranzau and commission Chairman Jim Howell holding the majority. Dave Unruh and Tim Norton voted no.

The decision came after almost two hours of passionate public comments. Some speakers came forward in support of the resolution, but the majority of commenters opposed it.

“This is not local, this is arbitrary; it’s unnecessary, and it just looks like it’s mean-spirited,” Roger Hughey said, addressing the commissioners.

Ranzau, however, said the resolution is not about prejudice or hate but about sovereignty and respect for the country.

“This has nothing to do with race, has nothing to do with being unkind or uncompassionate,” Ranzau said. “It is about the law.”

Talk about the resolution began in October when commissioners said they sought a clear stance on illegal immigration from the state government.

About 20 people came forward to voice their opinions to commissioners Wednesday morning. Although Howell asked speakers to keep their comments under three minutes, many went over, and the debate lasted more than two hours.

Access to nutrition

Many speakers urged the commissioners not to prevent illegal immigrants from receiving WIC. They said the program provides essential nutrition to those who would otherwise not get it.

Jane Byrnes, a registered dietitian, said she’s interested in keeping people healthy rather than the “far more expensive option” of getting them back to health. She said early nutrition is important for mothers and children.

“Nutrition, unfortunately, is considered lightweight by many policymakers,” Byrnes said. “And it’s especially critical at the beginning of life, during pregnancy, infancy and childhood.”

Gail Kinzer said she knows the benefits of WIC first-hand. Without the program, she said, she would not have survived as a pregnant, unmarried teenager in Los Angeles. Kinzer said she and her daughter now lead successful lives, thanks to the nutrition they received from WIC.

“I’m not sure why we would pick out this one life-sustaining program ... and take money away from that,” Kinzer said.

Access to education

There were concerns about what a ban on in-state tuition would mean for illegal immigrants. Joseph Shepard, student body president at Wichita State University, said education is the pathway to a better life for undocumented students.

“For a large number of undocumented students, they can’t tell you about their native country,” Shepard said. “Because when they came to the United States, they were brought here young by their parents, with aspirations to create a better life for them and give them the opportunity to have access to the tools and resources needed in order to live a successful life.”

Shepard said paying in-state tuition does not mean a free pass for illegal immigrants.

“In America, we teach our young people that the key to success is education. However, that education comes at a higher cost for undocumented students,” Shepard said. “For some undocumented students, and most of them, quite frankly, they’re ineligible for financial aid in these cases. And these students pay the entire tuition cost out of pocket.

“Several of those undocumented students work two or three jobs just to make ends meet to pay for their college tuition in full.”

Financial burden

A major issue for those in favor of the resolution is that the state is helping illegal immigrants through the use of tax dollars. Walt Chappell said he thinks the United States cannot financially support such laws much longer.

“We are becoming a nation that is broke,” Chappell said.

He encouraged commissioners to pass the resolution and “get some honest dialogue” about immigration.

However, others said that providing in-state tuition and the WIC program to illegal immigrants ultimately saves the state money.

“Tax dollars are saved if you produce a skilled and educated workforce that will remain here and give back to this country and community,” Gretchen Eick said. “We know that preventive health care practices and sound nutrition reduce the expense of emergency room visits, that having babies who are healthy saves taxpayers in the years ahead, because those children thrive as healthy kids, healthy adults, etc.”

Former commissioner Kelly Parks said he thinks the responsibility to provide for the needy should not fall to the public sector but instead to charities and nonprofits.

“Go knock on their door,” Parks said. “If there’s someone out there who is hungry, the churches will step up and do this. Use those as fail-safes on the program.”

The Rev. Michael Poague said that in his experience as a pastor, churches do not have the resources to provide the kind of help programs like WIC provide.

The church “could do a little bit, but we can’t be the safety net for the whole county,” Poague said.

Waiting for a response

The resolution asks that the state either pass legislation barring illegal immigrants from in-state tuition and WIC or publicly explain why it won’t. Howell said he wanted to make clear that the resolution asking the Kansas Legislature to act is not binding – it’s an effort to let the state know Sedgwick County “wants to get serious.”

Ranzau said he thinks it’s time state government gives a public statement on immigration issues.

“They need to stand up and respond to the people of Sedgwick County and the state of Kansas,” he said.

This story was originally published July 6, 2016 at 9:20 AM with the headline "Sedgwick County Commission passes resolution on illegal immigrants."