By Jonathan Eberle |

Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed a Republican-sponsored immigration enforcement bill, drawing sharp criticism from Senator John Kavanagh and other GOP lawmakers who say the legislation was a necessary step toward protecting public safety.

SB 1610, introduced by Kavanagh, would have required county detention facilities to cooperate with federal immigration authorities by providing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with access to information about non-citizen individuals arrested for certain serious crimes, including aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, burglary, and offenses resulting in serious bodily injury or death.

Governor Hobbs vetoed the bill, saying it would have undermined trust between immigrant communities and law enforcement and could have led to racial profiling. Hobbs has previously said that Arizona should not be in the business of enforcing federal immigration law — a view aligned with many Democrats who argue that local entanglement in immigration enforcement can have unintended legal and social consequences.

Senator Kavanagh sharply disagreed, framing the veto as a dereliction of duty.

“Hobbs continues to give her veto stamp more attention than the citizens she’s required to protect,” Kavanagh said in a statement. “People are fed up with the massive tsunami of dangerous criminals who have entered this country illegally.”

He added that the bill was a way to align Arizona with federal deportation efforts and referenced the recent Laken Riley Act, a congressional proposal with bipartisan support that also centers on deportation of illegal immigrants convicted of violent crimes.

The bill comes at a time when immigration remains a political issue in Arizona, a border state that has long wrestled with foreign nationals attempting to enter illegally into the U.S. Republican lawmakers have increasingly advocated for state-level legislation to fill what they see as gaps in federal immigration enforcement. Democrats, however, claim that such bills often cast too wide a net and risk violating constitutional protections.

Governor Hobbs has issued more than 100 vetoes since taking office in 2023 — a record-setting pace that reflects the divided government in Arizona, where Republicans control the Legislature and Democrats hold the governor’s office.

With the latest veto, the clash between state lawmakers and the governor over immigration policy is likely to continue into the next legislative session and could become a focal point in upcoming elections.

Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.