Judge blocks Colorado labor agency from sharing immigrant info with ICE

DENVER (CN) — A Denver judge on Wednesday granted a Colorado employment director’s requested injunction, blocking the governor’s order to disclose information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

"Compliance with the subpoena would violate the statutory prohibition on providing personal identifying information for immigration enforcement,” wrote Second Judicial District Judge A. Bruce Jones in a six-page opinion.

On April 25, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security sent Colorado’s employment agency an immigration enforcement subpoena, prompting Democratic Governor Jared Polis to order the Department of Labor Standards and Statistics to comply. After internal objections failed, Moss sued Polis on June 4, arguing the subpoena response would violate state law. He was joined by the Colorado AFL-CIO and civil rights group Towards Justice.

Colorado laws SB21-131, the Protect Personal Identifying Information Kept by State Act, and SB25-276, the Protect Civil Rights Immigration Status Act, bar state agencies from sharing names, birthdates, family contacts and other personal data with ICE.

In the 14-page complaint, Moss said the laws “reassured members of the public that they can use state services, including for reporting labor violations and claiming labor rights, without fear that Colorado will misuse their personal information by turning it over to federal immigration authorities to seize and deport them.”

Although the law contains exceptions to allow disclosures to aid criminal investigations, the subpoenas at issue were served by a Homeland Security Investigations special agency in an effort to aid ICE.

"The subpoena is analogous to, and is a means of achieving, a ‘welfare check’; it is several steps removed from a criminal investigation,” wrote Jones, an appointee of Democratic Governor Bill Ritter.

In recent years, Colorado has strengthened protections for immigrants, including two laws—HB19-1114, Protect Colorado Residents From Federal Government Overreach, and HB23-1100, Restrict Government Involvement in Immigration Detention—that bar local governments from aiding federal immigration enforcement.

Conservative counties sued to repeal the laws and are appealing after dismissal. In May, the Trump administration also sued over so-called sanctuary laws, arguing federal immigration enforcement needs local cooperation.

Jones ordered the injunction to remain in place and “preserve the status quo pending a trial on the merits.”

Moss is represented by civil rights attorney Laura Wolf at Spark Justice, who did not immediately return a request for comment.  

A spokesperson for Polis said the governor is reviewing his options.

"The governor and his legal team are reviewing the written injunction to determine next steps," the spokesperson wrote over email. "The governor will of course comply with the order as we have always said we would."

Attorney Christopher Beall represented Polis at Recht Kornfelt in Denver, who declined to comment.

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