Santa Cruz County, CA Immigration Policy: Sanctuary Policy Preemption (2026)

07, 'Use of County Property for Civil Immigration Enforcement Prohibited,' was adopted by Ordinance 5510 on March 24, 2026. 010 that the detention and deportation of Santa Cruz residents solely on the basis of their immigration status interferes with the mission and values of the County, and that County resources should not go toward civil immigration enforcement. 020 defines a 'Staging Area,' 'Processing Location' and 'Operation Base' as places used to assemble, mobilize, process, detain or coordinate immigration enforcement activity. 030(A), bars any County-owned or County-controlled parking lot, open space or building from being used for any of those three purposes, and separately bars any County department, agency, officer or employee from consenting to such use, or from letting federal officials into non-public areas of County facilities without a valid judicial warrant; 'administrative warrants' issued by anyone other than a federal or state judicial officer do not count.

Subsection (B) exempts actions by Santa Cruz County's own law enforcement officials acting within their official duties. The County Executive Office must write implementing procedures and ensure physical barriers such as locked doors and gates limit access where appropriate. The ordinance carves out express exceptions for valid judicial warrants, criminal-law investigation or enforcement, and any person's rights under federal or state law, and it disclaims creating any County power that conflicts with federal or state law.