"New Orleans is one of nine jurisdictions that will have to prove to President Donald Trump's administration that it's complying with federal immigration law, according to a letter the Department of Justice sent to those communities Friday as it moves toward a crackdown on so-called "sanctuary cities."
But New Orleans' inclusion on the list appears to stem from a policy that has since been substantially revised and which now explicitly matches and references the requirements sought by the Department of Justice.
"They’re not doing a lot of in the weeds thinking. They’re painting with a pretty broad brush," said Zach Butterworth, the city's federal lobbyist.
The letter requires the nine communities to certify that they do not prohibit law enforcement from passing along information about an individual's immigration status to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or risk losing grant funds. New Orleans gets between $3.2 million and $3.7 million in grants from the Department of Justice each year."