TO: Mayor and City Council
THROUGH: Krishna Namburi, City Manager
FROM: Courtney Knox Busch, Assistant City Manager / Director for Strategy & Engagement
SUBJECT:
title
Update on City activities following Council’s adoption of the December 1, 2025 Emergency Declaration related to community impacts of federal immigration enforcement (Resolution No. 2025-33).
Ward(s): All Wards
Councilor(s): All Councilors
Neighborhood(s): All Neighborhoods
Result Area(s): Safe and Healthy Community.
end
SUMMARY:
summary
On December 1, 2025, Salem City Council adopted an Emergency Declaration related to community impacts of federal immigration enforcement activities. The Emergency Declaration followed public testimony from community members who expressed concerns about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers engaging in conduct that infringes on the constitutional rights of members of the Salem community. The Emergency Declaration reaffirmed City policy and its commitment to Oregon sanctuary laws and our residents affected by federal immigration enforcement.
This quarterly report to the Salem City Council is provided, as outlined in the December 1, 2025 Emergency Declaration <https://salem.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7766423&GUID=D55D5E9C-B866-4A80-9982-866B8F07A908> related to community impacts of federal immigration enforcement (Attachment 1). Since the December 1 Emergency Declaration, staff have conducted community listening sessions, developed and distributed pocket-sized Family Resource Guide, recorded Know Your Rights training, installed signage to delineate non-public spaces at City-owned facilities, prepared and released required staff training, and updated the City’s lobbying platform.
end
ISSUE:
Receive status report on City activities following Council’s adoption of the December 1, 2025 Emergency Declaration related to community impacts of federal immigration enforcement.
RECOMMENDATION:
recommendation
Information only.
body
FACTS AND FINDINGS:
The December 1, 2025 Emergency Declaration related to community impacts of federal immigration enforcement outlined a series of activities for the Human Rights Commission and City staff. Staff are providing Council and the community with an update on progress of tasks from the Declaration.
1. Know Your Rights training. The Human Rights Commission was tasked with preparing a Know Your Rights Training. The Human Rights Commission secured Oregon Law Center as the Know Your Rights training provider and solicited questions from our community in advance of the taping. The training and responses to community questions was produced with CC Media support on January 23, 2026. The training is airing in Spanish and English, accessible via a QR code and on CC Media channels and YouTube. The Human Rights Commission anticipates broad distribution of the training and staff are supporting efforts to secure additional language translation.
2. Coordination with community partners. The Declaration specified groups for staff to engage, including immigrant rights advocates, legal services providers, educational institutions, local business owners, neighborhood leaders, and faith leaders for the purposes of supporting communication and outreach.
To-date, staff have met with Mano a Mano, Latinos Unidos Siempre (LUS), Salem-Keizer School District, as well as faith-based organizations and non-profits in our community. Needs identified include financial support for housing assistance, legal aid, food security, and medical needs. Of the needs described, housing assistance is the service most closely aligned with City’s existing lines of businesses.
As part of our engagement efforts, staff prepared and distributed Family Resource card. A print-ready version is available in Attachment 2. The Family Resource guide, produced in Spanish and English, is designed to fold into a business card-sized resource with web resource links and QR codes. To-date, the Family Resource card is available in all City facilities including Salem Housing Authority, Salem Public Library, Salem Police Station, Center 50+, Customer Service Center locations, and Salem Municipal Court. Staff have shared the Family Resource card with:
o Mano A Mano/LUS
o Salem Keizer School District & Community School Outreach Coordinators
o Equity Partnership Roundtable
o Salem Alliance Church
o Immigrant Connection National Network/Baraka Legal Services
o Creating Opportunities Family Resources
o Early Learning Hub
o Northwest Human Services
o Early Childhood Programs
o Neighborhood Associations
o Latino Business Alliance
o Community Business and Education Leaders Collaborative (CBEL)
In addition to the Family Resource guide, the City continues to host an Immigration Resources web page, accessed from its home page, in both Spanish and English.
Through our engagement, staff learned of a network of organizations who came together originally in service of families during the SNAP gap. This group, now called the Marion-Polk Safety Net Collaborative, is striving to connect existing service providers to support families in need. The group’s stated purpose is to “convene safety net organizations to track federal policy changes and impacts on the local community with the goals of educating, advocating, and mitigating.”
To-date, the group has focused on food insecurity and housing, with plans to address collaboration across other family support needs including health at future gatherings. The organizing leads include Marion Polk Foodshare and Salem Leadership Foundation. At a recent gathering, staff from Salem Housing Authority presented on housing needs in our communities.
3. Advocacy. The Emergency Declaration, approved December 1, 2025, included specific direction for legislative advocacy for the City to undertake. On December 8, 2025, the Salem City Council adopted the legislative advocacy platform <https://salem.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7768915&GUID=EEBAA8F6-958E-42F9-92E9-02374E9316B7> for State and Federal advocacy. This priority has been added to the “Public Safety” section on page 6 of the 2025-26 Legislative Policy Statements:
Immigration Enforcement. Encourage Oregon’s federal delegation to sponsor legislation for: (a) a comprehensive approach to solve our broken immigration system in order to provide a realistic pathway to citizenship for all aspiring Americans, and (b) protect our immigrant and other vulnerable communities from the unlawful and unnecessary actions being taken by federal agents in the name of immigration enforcement, such as imposing a mask ban or imposing identification requirements.
This change to the City’s advocacy platform, consistent with the Declaration, allow City to advocate on the topic.
4. Employee Training and Signage in City Spaces. The City was tasked with two discrete actions to ensure staff were provided with clear information and awareness of City and State sanctuary policies and laws, including protocols for employees to follow in the event federal immigration authorities appear at City facilities. The required training was made available to staff in December, with 76 percent of employees having completed the training to date. The other action was completed in December, when the City added signage to delineate non-public spaces within City-owned or occupied facilities. These spaces include areas that are not accessible to the general public, including offices and other restricted-entry areas.
As a reminder, federal immigration authorities do not have the right to enter private areas of public buildings for the purpose of enforcing federal immigration law unless they have a judicial warrant or other order signed by a judge. City staff are advised, consistent with Oregon and federal law, to not interfere with federal immigration authorities while also not granting permission to enter private areas and therefore not assisting enforcement.
BACKGROUND:
On November 24, 2025, City Council directed staff to prepare a declaration of a state of emergency in Salem related to the impacts of federal immigration enforcement. Enforcement of federal immigration law is the sole responsibility of the federal government. Oregon law prohibits the state and local government and their employees from assisting federal agencies with immigration enforcement. Federal law also prohibits the City from interfering with federal immigration enforcement. City Council adopted policy implementing Oregon sanctuary law by ensuring that no City employees or City funds are used to assist federal agencies in immigration enforcement and limiting the collection of personal information regarding citizenship, except as required by law.
Oregon’s sanctuary laws are codified under ORS 180.805, 180.810, and 181A.820 to 181A.829. On December 15, 1997, the Salem City Council adopted Council Policy A-9 declaring the City’s role relating to federal enforcement of immigration law. On February 27, 2017, the Salem City Council adopted Resolution No. 2017-22, identifying Salem as an Inclusive City.
Courtney Knox Busch
Assistant City Manager / Director for Strategy and Engagement
Attachments:
1. Resolution No. 2025-33
2. Family Resource Card, print-ready version.