Sanctuary cities explainer

Introduction
What is a sanctuary jurisdiction?
Origins of sanctuary policies
The legal debate
Who may be protected by sanctuary policies?
- 1. Visa overstays and violations
- 2. TPS status changes
- 3. Illegal entry
The criminal element
The cost of sanctuary policies
Anti-commandeering court cases
- Prigg v. Pennsylvania (1842)
- Kentucky v. Dennison (1861)
- Hodel v. Virginia Surface Mining (1981)
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) v. Mississippi (1982)
- Puerto Rico v. Branstad (1987)
- New York v. United States (1992)
- Printz v. United States (1997)
- National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (2012)
- Galarza v. Szalczyk (2014)
- County of Santa Clara v. Trump (2017) and City and County of San Francisco v. Trump (2017)
- Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) (2018)
- City of Chicago v. Barr (2020)
U.S. states with laws banning sanctuary policies
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- New Hampshire
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- West Virginia
1-minute survey
Sources

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images & Videos

A classic wooden San Francisco cable car tram travels along tracks in a sunny downtown intersection, with historic buildings and a large tree in the background.

Residents and protesters clashing with United States Border Patrol agents, Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino (third from left and facing the camera), and other federal agents on October 22, 2025, in Cicero, Illinois

People seated in a meeting room hold blue signs reading sanctuary and orange signs reading Los Angeles sanctuary city now, showing support for immigrants at Los Angeles City Hall.

The Science of Fingerprints

Two Border Patrol agents stand near a group of migrants, mostly women and children, seated on a dirt road beside patrol vehicles in a rural area near McAllen, Texas.

At night, immigrant families with children climb from an inflatable raft onto the muddy bank of the Rio Grande after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in Roma, Texas.

A row of shirtless, tattooed men with shaved heads stand closely pressed against a wall, heads bowed, at the Terrorist Confinement Centre prison in El Salvador.

Brandon Johnson, Mayor of Chicago, wearing a suit and glasses, speaks into a microphone during a hearing at the U.S. Capitol.

Sanctuary cities explainer: Media

What are sanctuary policies?

Videos

The Science of Fingerprints

The Science of Fingerprints

Because fingerprints are unique—each consisting of innumerable winding lines and...

Video: Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz

Images

A classic wooden San Francisco cable car tram travels along tracks in a sunny downtown intersection, with historic buildings and a large tree in the background.

San Francisco, California, has long been a sanctuary city

© f11photo/stock.adobe.com

Residents and protesters clashing with United States Border Patrol agents, Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino (third from left and facing the camera), and other federal agents on October 22, 2025, in Cicero, Illinois

Residents and protesters clashing with United States Border Patrol agents, Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino (third from left and facing the camera), and other federal agents on October 22, 2025, in Cicero, Illinois

© Joshua Lott—The Washington Post/Getty Images

People seated in a meeting room hold blue signs reading sanctuary and orange signs reading Los Angeles sanctuary city now, showing support for immigrants at Los Angeles City Hall.

People holding up signs in support of immigrants as the Los Angeles City Council considers a sanctuary city ordinance on November 19, 2024

© Etienne Laurent—AFP/Getty Images

Two Border Patrol agents stand near a group of migrants, mostly women and children, seated on a dirt road beside patrol vehicles in a rural area near McAllen, Texas.

Border Patrol agents processing a group of migrants, mostly women and children, on May 23, 2014, in McAllen, Texas

© Charles Ommanney—Reportage/Getty Images

At night, immigrant families with children climb from an inflatable raft onto the muddy bank of the Rio Grande after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in Roma, Texas.

Immigrant families crossing the border from Mexico to the United States scrambling onto the bank of the Rio Grande at Roma, Texas, in 2021

John Moore/Getty Images

A row of shirtless, tattooed men with shaved heads stand closely pressed against a wall, heads bowed, at the Terrorist Confinement Centre prison in El Salvador.

Gang members

Though some members of the MS-13 and 18 gangs (here pictured imprisoned in El Salvador)...

© Press Secretary Of The Presidency Of El Salvador Handout/Handout—Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Brandon Johnson, Mayor of Chicago, wearing a suit and glasses, speaks into a microphone during a hearing at the U.S. Capitol.

Mayor Brandon Johnson has noted the cost of Chicago's sanctuary policy

© Graeme Sloan—The Washington Post/Getty Images

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