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NORMAN, Okla. (KFOR) – The immigration debate has come to the Oklahoma Senate this session. A new bill would allow the state to withhold state funds that don’t follow federal immigration laws.

There are a lot of layers to the fight over immigration. One is the social layer, or the safe zone for families, another is the economic impact.

But the real concern for an Oklahoma lawmaker is how cities and their police departments deal with their undocumented residents.

“A sanctuary city is simply a city in which the local municipal resources are not spent doing the work of the federal government when it comes to immigration,” said Kate Bierman.

The Norman City Councilwoman says it’s not the city’s responsibility to force people out or lock them up if they’re undocumented.

But a state senator says that’s a clear violation of federal law.

“They should be following the constitution, not ignoring the constitution to have the sanctuary policy,” said Nathan Dahm.

The Republican State Senator from Broken Arrow says his new bill, SB 1459, would allow Oklahoma to withhold state funds from cities that ignore federal immigration laws.

Dahm says it’s more of a criminal issue rather than a social issue.

“We have actually seen other areas and localities say, No, you are not to honor that.’ You are supposed to release that individual and ignore the federal law enforcement detainer. We have seen some of those other people who have been released go on to commit other crimes, including even up to murder,” Dahm said.

We asked the Senator for examples, but he wasn’t able to show us specific cases.

Bierman says they don’t have a set and firm stance on arrest, but…

“We are already judicious with our municipal resources when it comes to doing the federal immigration work that ICE does. We are there, in terms of what people believe a sanctuary city is,” Bierman said. “We don’t have a say on what the federal government does. We do have a say on how our tax dollars are spent.”

But Dahm says that kind of stance is exactly why he authored this new bill.

“When they are specifically flaunting it, passing resolutions saying that they are going to ignore the Constitution, that rises to a whole new level. They have a duty and a responsibility to follow the Constitution,” Dahm said.

The bill has just been filed. The legislative session starts on Monday. In the meantime, Norman is moving forward with their plans. Their human right commission will go before the City Council on February 4.