Fresno County has a new ‘sanctuary city.’ Will it protect the undocumented from deportations?
The small farmworker city of Huron has formally declared itself a “sanctuary city” to try and shield its undocumented residents from the threat of deportation.
The Jan. 15 resolution, passed by the Huron City Council days before President Donald Trump’s inauguration, prohibits the use of city resources or personnel to assist federal immigration enforcement actions, except when it has to do with a convicted felon. The resolution also affirms that all residents, regardless of immigration status, will have equal access to city services, programs, and facilities without fear of discrimination or retaliation.
Huron’s decision to become a sanctuary city is a rarity in the central San Joaquin Valley, where few municipalities have passed such measures. It also comes as the Trump administration has targeted large Democratic-leaning metros that have declared themselves as sanctuary cities to carry out deportation raids.
In 2017, the Merced County city of Livingston made headlines for becoming the Valley’s first sanctuary city. Efforts to push for sanctuary protections have failed in cities like Fresno and Mendota. Sacramento became one of the first sanctuary cities in the country in 1985.
A resolution typically deals with special or temporary matters and does not create a permanent rule of governance or conduct like an ordinance, according to the League of California Cities.
Though the resolution is nonbinding, Huron officials said they felt it was important to send a message to its residents, many of whom are undocumented.
“My residents deserve to feel confident, safe and comfortable in their community without fear of being a victim of a crime without the ability of reporting it out without fear of being detained for being an economic/climate refugee,” Mayor Rey León said in a Jan. 16 Instagram post.
The west Fresno County city of 6,733 residents has long been a hub for farmworkers. As of July 2024, 98% of Huron residents identify as Hispanic or Latino and 41% are foreign born, according to U.S. Census data.
There is no universal definition for a sanctuary city. According to the American Immigration Council, a sanctuary policy generally refers to a state’s or locality’s role in cooperating with federal authorities to enforce immigration law. However, these policies do not actively prevent federal immigration enforcement officials from carrying out their duties.
Trump threatens sanctuary cities
On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order aimed at preventing sanctuary city jurisdictions from receiving federal money and potentially calling legal action against them if they interfere with the enforcement of federal law.
León did not respond to a request for comment on how Trump’s executive order would impact the city’s resolution. State leaders have pushed back against the threat.
“No matter what the president may imply, state and local law enforcement cannot be commandeered for federal immigration enforcement,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement.
Bonta also called Trump’s threat to prosecute state and local officials who resist or refuse to comply with federal immigration enforcement agents a “scare tactic,” Politico reported.
Trump made similar efforts to withhold federal funding from so-called sanctuary cities during his first term. San Francisco and California sued the Trump administration in 2017 and a federal judge sided with the state, saying the directive was unconstitutional.
The Trump administration also sued California in 2018 over its sanctuary policies, but the lawsuit was dismissed.
A Tulare County city could also vote on a sanctuary city designation in the coming weeks or months. The Lindsay City Council decided during the Jan. 14 meeting that they would put schedule a discussion item on declaring Lindsay a sanctuary city on a future agenda.
This story was originally published January 29, 2025 at 7:00 AM.
