Federal Law Versus State Law in Immigration
An immigration bond is a contract between an insurance company like US Immigration Bonds & Services, its agent, the principal, and The Department of Homeland Security. For an immigration bond, US Immigration Bonds guarantees Homeland Security that the principal, or bonded alien, will appear for immigration proceedings up until the alien is deported from the US, leaves on their own will, or is granted residency.
Federal law is created at a national level, applying to the entire United States and its territories. The Constitution forms the basis for federal laws and establishes government power and responsibility.
State law is specific to each state in America. They apply to residents and visitors of the state, as well as business or any organizations that are operating within the state.
When it comes to the US immigration policy, immigration is regulated at the federal level. The Supremacy Clause of the US Constitution means that federal laws trump state laws, disregarding certain matters that pertain to the states. This means that the federal government has the power to enact and enforce the immigration laws of the United States, while the state still continues to play an important role for the regulation of immigration. The federal government has involved state and local officials in the enforcement of immigration laws since the 1930s. Federal law has also tried to involve all state law enforcement agencies in immigration policing through certain programs.
There are states that passed laws in regards to immigration, such as the use of E-Verify. E-Verify is the system to check the employment eligibility of job applicants. However, setting immigration laws and policies is a national responsibility. Because state laws differ, it is best for US immigration to be regulated on a federal level.
One of the main issues in immigration is the stance on illegal immigrants. Due to the fact that there are approximately 11 million illegal immigrants in the nation, several states have acted on their own to enforce immigration laws on illegals. One law passed by the state of Alabama is known to be one of the strictest laws in the nation. The law requires the state’s public school system to determine the legal residency of students and prevents any illegal immigrants from obtaining a driver’s license. It also allows for police officers to detain a person suspected of being in the country illegally if they cannot prove residency when pulled over. The law has been challenged in federal court and there have been other situations across the country in states like Arizona, Georgia, Indiana, and Utah.
Although immigration laws come from the federal level, US Immigration Bonds predicts that state immigration laws will continue to arise until Congress can come up with comprehensive immigration reform.




