Senators Approve Ban On Sanctuary Campuses In Final Vote

Lawmakers voted to send the governor a bill banning so-called sanctuary campuses in Indiana.

The measure bars higher education institutions that accept federal or state dollars from adopting the designation. The Indiana Senate approved the measure 38-10.

The move is largely symbolic because Indiana has no sanctuary campuses. Faculty and students pressured several universities to claim that status after the presidential election, including Indiana University, the University of Notre Dame and Ball State University. In one case, about a dozen protesters interrupted a speech by a top IU official with calls to establish a sanctuary campus in Bloomington.

The pro-sanctuary movement comes from concerns about the fate of students who are unauthorized immigrants. A sanctuary campus would promise not to help immigration authorities learn someone’s citizenship status.

Bill author Sen. Mike Young (R-Indianapolis) argues government entities shouldn’t be able to pick and choose which laws to follow, warning that it would be a dangerous precedent to set.

While no higher education institution in Indiana has claimed the status, many administrations have pledged to support all students.