https://www.cbsnews.com/chicag...forcement-pritzkers/

Non-U.S. citizens may soon be able to become police officers pending Governor Pritzker's approval.

Federal law only allows U.S. citizens to serve as officers and deputies. But, since this bill passed the Illinois House and Senate, we could soon see work-eligible immigrants become a part of law enforcement in the state of Illinois.

In 2021, the Federal Government passed a bill that allowed some undocumented immigrants to become healthcare workers and military members. The bill's sponsor called the introduction of this new bill a "natural progression."

quote:

Federal law only allows U.S. citizens to serve as officers and deputies.

Not true. (Besides, if that claim were true, this state law wouldn't be able to override such a federal law.)

There are already a number of other states where non-citizens with work visas or permanent residency can be LEOs. A quick Google showed this is the case in California, Colorado, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia. There may be others.

Some other states have a citizenship requirement but allow certain exceptions. For example, Tennessee and Maryland waive citizenship requirements if the non-citizen is an honorably discharged military servicemember.

And while Arkansas has a citizenship requirement, it also allows certain specific non-citizens to become law enforcement officers, most notably Marshall Islanders. We have the largest population of Marshallese residents outside of the Marshall Islands, and while the Marshall Islands used to be a US territory and they have "free association" with the US and can come/go and work without a visa like a citizen, they have been an independent nation since the 1980s and are not fully US citizens.

Hey Rogue,

many of us here on the forum are familiar with the DOD security clearances, including the requirements, EBI's etc.

What type of background check (security clearance equiv) does a local/county LEO typically face and how similar would it be to the DOD EBI's ??

Are there different levels. DOD has secret, TS, SCI, etc, etc.

it seems the LEO clearances don't even require citizenship, which surprises me, a lot.

Here is another article that states "Federal law currently forbids non-US citizens to serve as police officers and deputies." Maybe Federal law prevents Federal Law Enforcement from being non citizens and the media got it mixed up. Federal law also makes marijuana illegal but the states are legalizing it anyway so who knows.

https://nypost.com/2023/08/01/...damentally-bad-idea/

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, D., signed a bill into law that allows non-US citizens to become police officers in the state, angering critics who slammed the idea of foreigners arresting American citizens as “a fundamentally bad idea.”

Illinois House Bill 3751 will no longer require US citizenship as a qualification to become a police officer in the state.

The bill was signed by the Democrat governor on Friday and will go into effect on January 1, 2024, despite facing heavy opposition from GOP lawmakers and prominent police groups.

The bill “provides that an individual who is not a citizen but is legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law is authorized to apply for the position of police officer, subject to all requirements and limitations, other than citizenship, to which other applicants are subject,” HB3751 reads, adding that non-US citizens must be able to obtain, carry, purchase, or otherwise possess a firearm under federal law to apply for the job.

Immigrants who remain in the country under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Act, are also entitled to apply for a position to join law enforcement, the bill states.

Federal law currently forbids non-US citizens to serve as police officers and deputies.

Writing these days is complete crap.

Seems to me there are three distinct types of individuals in this area: 1) US citizens, 2) legally resident, employment eligible folks who are not US citizens, and 3) those who are not employment eligible (whether they are in the country illegally or whether they are here on a tourist or other visa that does not allow employment.

When they say “migrant”, they do not make it clear which of the tree categories the individuals fit in. They could be in the country legally and authorized to work, they could be in the country illegally, they could be Bubba the citizen from another state. Sigh…

Swell idea Pritzger. Another reason why I no longer reside in Illinios. It was bad in the early 70s when I departed. The corrupt Daley administration would never go for that unless they were imported from Ireland.
I do miss the many ethnic restaurants as well as the museums.

Democrats Ask Biden to Declare Emergency as Illegal Immigrants Flood NYC

https://www.theepochtimes.com/...yLeS5iQVbIn%2BfpoCZR

Fifty-four elected officials in New York City have sent a letter to President Joe Biden to address the influx of illegal immigrants in the city, asking him to declare a federal state of emergency so that the illegal immigrants can legally work in the country.

More at link

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:
Hey Rogue,

many of us here on the forum are familiar with the DOD security clearances, including the requirements, EBI's etc.

What type of background check (security clearance equiv) does a local/county LEO typically face and how similar would it be to the DOD EBI's ??

Are there different levels. DOD has secret, TS, SCI, etc, etc.

it seems the LEO clearances don't even require citizenship, which surprises me, a lot.

Varies significantly by agency. On the low end, there are many agencies (especially smaller ones) that are essentially just taking a job application and a set of prints. On the far end, there are agencies (especially larger ones) with dedicated personnel for background investigations that are going out and talking to people (both applicant provided references and ones they develop as well as neighborhood canvasses and stuff like that).

Many hiring processes also include things like credit checks. Polygraphs, whether you agree with them or not are also relatively common.

Like DaBigBR said, it typically involves a state and federal fingerprint criminal history check at a minimum, plus an agency-led background investigation whose depth can vary greatly from agency to agency.

It's generally not going to be as rigorous as a higher level DOD security clearance, and it won't grant them a formal security clearance.

The only time a formal security clearance is needed for a local LEO is if that officer is going to be participating on some federal task forces, or otherwise routinely needs access to classified national security/antiterrorism information as part of their duty assignment. Then they could obtain a formal security clearance through the federal government, pretty much just like a military servicemember or federal agent.

But most information that a local law enforcement officer would need access to at the federal level would be unclassified. So it's not like every local cop is running around with a Secret or Top Secret clearance.

Use them exclusively for Pritzker's security detail.....................