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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

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The Nevada Immigrant Coalition (NIC) condemns Senate Passage of Cruel Budget aimed at increasing enforcement and cutting crucial services

Las Vegas, NV – Today, the Senate passed the reconciliation bill, which plans to add $150 billion for Trump’s mass deportation agenda, funding mass family separation while cutting crucial social safety net programs like Medicaid, SNAP, school lunches, and many other benefits that support hard-working families around the country rely on.

The Nevada Immigrant Coalition (NIC) issued the following statements:

“The reconciliation bill would make ICE the highest-funded federal law enforcement agency in the history of the United States, even bigger than the FBI and with a larger budget for detention than the entire Federal Bureau of Prisons. Funding to feed hungry children and seniors is being cut, while increased for the separation of working families. This budget is not just numbers on a page, it’s a roadmap for cruelty. It abandons the families who work hardest and make the biggest sacrifices to keep our country moving forward. This budget would gut essential programs like Medicaid and SNAP, forcing working people and immigrant families to carry the weight of political decisions made without them at the table. It’s a betrayal of our values and a direct attack on communities already struggling to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads.

In Nevada and across the country, immigrants are vital – caring for our children, rebuilding our infrastructure, and keeping our economy alive. They are not outsiders. They are our neighbors, friends, loved ones, and essential workers who kept this country afloat during a global pandemic. If passed, this budget will rip away the limited stability working families have left and cause devastating impacts to our economy. 

The Nevada Immigrant Coalition urges members of the federal delegation to hold the line for working families and our futures. 

This isn’t just about dollars, it’s about whether we protect families or punish them. Across the country, families are barely getting by, and instead of delivering relief, this budget would take more away. It will separate parents from their children, block access to health care, and leave immigrant communities even more vulnerable.”

Totaling approximately $126 billion for border and immigration enforcement, this bill provides(According to the National Immigration Law Center as of 07/01/2025): 

• $59 billion for Customs and Border Protection (CPB) personnel, vehicles and facilities, including:
  • $47 billion for border wall 
  • $7 billion total for CBP agents and vehicles 
  • $5 billion for CBP facilities and checkpoints 
• $45 billion for family detention and adult detention, including the provision of unlimited authority for duration of detention of families pending a removal decision (a blatant attempt to supercede the Flores settlement, a settlement agreement in place since 1997 that requires protections for immigrant children in government custody including a limit on the duration of family detention; more here)
• $6.17 billion for border technology and surveillance, including a particularly concerning provision dedicating funding to the investigation of children arriving unaccompanied at the border 
• $10 billion for a new “State Border Security Reinforcement Fund” that provides grant funding for state and local governments for activities on or after January 20, 2021 including border wall and barrier construction and direct immigration detention and enforcement related activities (available through Sept. 30, 2034) 
• $450 million for Operation Stonegarden, a grant program for state and local cooperation with border enforcement activities
• $10 billion (was $6 billion in original version) for DHS out of any money in Treasury not otherwise appropriated for reimbursement of costs taken “to safeguard the borders of the United States to protect against the illegal entry of persons or contraband” 

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The Nevada Immigrant Coalition (NIC), led by the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada (PLAN), Culinary Union, and Make the Road Nevada, with support from over 20 statewide partners, has mobilized in response to the surges in ICE activity in Northern and Southern Nevada. The NIC will post all breaking news and confirmations of ICE activity in Nevada on Instagram and Twitter (X)

The Nevada Immigrant Coalition (NIC) urges members of the immigrant community to know their rights, have family preparedness plans in place, and be aware of ICE officers in plainclothes and unmarked vehicles. All Nevadans, regardless of immigration status, have rights and deserve due process.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS:

If ICE stops you . . .

*You can ask the officers if you are being detained, if you are not, then you are free to leave.

*You have the right to remain silent. You do not have to answer any questions regarding your immigration status, where you were born, or how you entered the United States.

*Do not physically resist a government official and do not run away.

*If you are over 18 or over, and a non-citizen, an immigration officer may request to see your immigration documents.  If you have your documents, the law requires you to share them if you have them.

*If you do not have your immigration documents, you still have the right to remain silent and ask for an attorney.

*Do not provide false documents to officials.

If ICE comes to your home . . .

*In most circumstances, you are not required to open the door for ICE if they don’t have a judicial warrant. A Judicial warrant is a document that is signed by a judge.

*You have the right to remain silent and not answer any questions.

If ICE takes you into custody . . .

*You have the right to ask to speak with an attorney.

*You have the right to not sign any document that you do not understand. Even if the ICE officers are persistent and want to pressure you, do not sign.

*In certain cases, you can request to see the immigration judge. Depending on your circumstances, you may be able to ask for bail to be released from custody.

*You have the right to request to contact your country’s consulate for help.

*If you have minor children, let the officers know that you are the parent or primary caregiver. ICE may “exercise discretion” and let you go.

To find loved ones who may have been detained: Search the ICE Detainee Locator.

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ABOUT THE NEVADA IMMIGRANT COALITION: 

The Nevada Immigrant Coalition (NIC), founded in 2006, ensures immigrant, refugee, and new American voices are heard at a local, state, and federal level to advocate for humane and fair immigration policies. The Nevada Immigrant Coalition focuses on strengthening a network that provides services, resources, and deportation defense to immigrants and refugees across the state while strategically organizing around issues that are important to all Nevadans. We believe in working towards a Nevada that welcomes, respects, and protects everyone regardless of their immigration status.

Get updates from the Nevada Immigrant Coalition (NIC) on Instagram and Twitter (X).