County Fight Passed-Awaiting-Signature

Illinois Statewide — HB 5024 Federal Detention Location Ban

Statewide, IL FIPS 17000

Current status: PASSED THE LEGISLATURE. In the early hours of Monday, June 1, 2026, the Illinois Senate passed HB 5024 (party-line, Democrats for / Republicans against), completing legislative passage and sending the bill to Gov. Pritzker's desk. Senate sponsor: Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D), who represents parts of Broadview ('residents in the village of Broadview woke up to chaos at their doorstep'). The bill bans new federal immigration detention facilities within 1,500 feet of homes, apartment complexes, schools, daycare centers/homes, parks, forest preserves, cemeteries, public housing, or places of worship — 'regardless of address.' NOT retroactive — would not close Broadview. As of June 2, 2026, Pritzker had not yet signed; he is expected to. Federal preemption challenge considered likely by Republican opponents.

The Fight

Illinois is attempting to use land-use law to constrain where the federal government can site new immigration detention facilities. HB 5024, sponsored by House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch (D-Hillside) and carried in the Senate by Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D, who represents parts of Broadview), passed the House on April 8, 2026 on a largely partisan 72-35-2 roll call. On May 6, 2026 the Senate Executive Committee advanced it, and in the early hours of Monday, June 1, 2026 the full Illinois Senate passed it on a party-line vote — completing legislative passage and sending it to Gov. Pritzker’s desk (unsigned as of June 2). The bill prohibits new federal immigration detention centers from being located, constructed, or operated within 1,500 feet of any residential home, apartment complex, school, daycare center or daycare home, public park, forest preserve, cemetery, public housing, or place of worship — “regardless of address.”

Speaker Welch represents the Hillside/Broadview area — directly adjacent to the Broadview ICE Processing Center. The bill is a direct legislative response to the Broadview facility’s expansion and Operation Midway Blitz.

What the Bill Does

Bans new federal immigration detention facilities within 1,500 feet of protected community spaces
Does not affect currently operating facilities (the Broadview facility would not be closed by this law)
Creates a siting restriction that would make most suburban and urban Illinois locations off-limits for new detention construction
Applies to federal facilities operated under contract — targeting the GEO Group/CoreCivic model

Illinois Detention Policy Landscape

Illinois has built the most comprehensive state-level detention restriction framework in the Midwest:

Way Forward Act (2021): Bans local law enforcement from honoring ICE civil detainers; prohibits 287(g) jail agreements; limits cooperation with federal immigration enforcement
Private detention ban: Illinois prohibits private immigration detention contracts (predating current expansions)
HB 5024: The geographic siting restriction — the next layer of protection

HB 5024 would layer a physical location barrier on top of the existing cooperation bans, making it harder to site facilities near population centers even if contracted directly with the federal government.

Political Context

Speaker Welch (D-Hillside): Directly represents the Broadview area; has personal political stake in constraining the facility in his district
Gov. JB Pritzker: Expected to sign if the bill clears the Senate
Republican opposition: GOP lawmakers have argued the bill would draw federal legal challenges; critics cite potential Commerce Clause or Supremacy Clause preemption
Federal preemption risk: The core legal vulnerability — courts have sometimes held that states cannot use local land-use law to effectively nullify federal detention authority

Sources

This research is published at The RAMM — investigative reporting on the detention pipeline.

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