H.R. 515: Justice for Victims of Sanctuary Cities Act of 2021

117th Congress · introduced 2021-01-28 · Immigration · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2021-01-28 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Budd, Ted [R-NC-13] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Justice for Victims of Sanctuary Cities Act of 2021

Plain summary

Justice for Victims of Sanctuary Cities Act of 2021 This bill provides a private right of action against state and local jurisdictions with certain policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement efforts, and contains additional provisions related to such jurisdictions. Currently, such cooperation is generally not required. An individual (or certain relatives of such an individual) who is the victim of any felony for which an alien has been arrested, convicted, or sentenced to a prison term of at least one year may sue a state or local jurisdiction if the jurisdiction failed to comply with (1) certain Department of Homeland Security (DHS) requests related to arresting and detaining aliens, and (2) a DHS request to detain the alien in question or provide a notification about the release of the alien. A jurisdiction that accepts certain federal grants may not assert immunity in such a civil action. A jurisdiction (or employee of a jurisdiction) that complies with certain DHS detainer requests shall be deemed to be acting as an agent of DHS. A complying jurisdiction or employee of the jurisdiction shall not be liable in any lawsuit relating to compliance with such requests. In a lawsuit against an employee of the jurisdiction, the United States shall be substituted in as the defendant, and remedies shall be limited to provisions for bringing tort claims against the federal government.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Justice for Victims of Sanctuary Cities Act of 2021

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Budd, Ted [R-NC-13] · 31 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Ralph Norman (R-SC), Rick W. Allen (R-GA), Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), Brian Babin (R-TX), Roger Williams (R-TX), Jodey C. Arrington (R-TX), Jack Bergman (R-MI), Paul A. Gosar (R-AZ), Jim Banks (R-IN), Andrew S. Clyde (R-GA), Jason Smith (R-MO), Carol D. Miller (R-WV), Ken Calvert (R-CA), Lance Gooden (R-TX), Randy K. Weber, Sr. (R-TX), Thomas Massie (R-KY), Mary E. Miller (R-IL), Ronny Jackson (R-TX), Gary J. Palmer (R-AL)

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Budd, Ted [R-NC-13] reported raising $1.8 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-117hr515.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/117/hr>

Record fed-us-cong117-hr515 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong117 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong117