Respect Our Communities Act

The Respect Our Communities Act restricts the Department of Homeland Security from building or operating new immigration detention centers without first obtaining written permission from local elected officials and state governors. Before any construction begins, federal agencies must publish a detailed public notice inviting at least 30 days of community feedback and submit a report to Congress that includes an economic impact analysis and an engineering review of resource usage. This legislation directly affects the federal agencies responsible for immigration enforcement and the local governments where new facilities might be located by mandating a collaborative approval process.