DENVER — Colorado Gov. Jared Polis continues to face criticism, including from members of his party, for a directive he issued to state employees in late May, ordering them to cooperate with an administrative subpoena from federal immigration authorities.
According to a lawsuit filed on behalf of Scott Moss, a high-ranking state labor official, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was looking for personal information about Coloradans who had sponsored and agreed to care for undocumented immigrant children.
Moss attended a press conference with dozens of immigrant advocates, workers, and elected leaders on Monday, but declined to speak publicly. His lawsuit accuses the governor of violating state laws that are meant to protect the privacy of undocumented immigrants.
“I want to thank Scott Moss for having the courage to stand up for what is right and file this suit,” said Diane Byrne, the president of Colorado WINS (Workers for Innovative and New Solutions).
- Watch our previous coverage of the lawsuit in the video player below
State Sen. Julie Gonzales sponsored the immigrant privacy bills, including Senate Bill 25-276, which Polis signed into law a couple of weeks ago. She said the governor had broken the trust of Colorado’s civil servants and the immigrant community.
“Little did I know that Governor Polis would apparently ignore his own advisers, his agency directors, and the very language he himself signed into law in order to bend the knee to a bunch of ICE goons who were too lazy to go and talk to a judge,” said Gonzales, referencing the subpoena, which was reportedly not signed by a judge. “I'll be honest. I didn't see that one coming.”
Gonzales said she didn’t know how Polis could continue to lead the state’s Democratic Party or the state itself. When asked if she was calling for the governor to resign, Gonzales said she’d let him answer that.
“I said what I said,” Gonzales said.
David Seligman, a state attorney general candidate and the executive director of Towards Justice, a nonprofit law firm that represents workers, announced his group is joining Moss’s lawsuit against the governor.
“Why is the governor going out of his way to help Donald Trump and ICE? Why is he bending over backward to do Donald Trump's bidding?” Seligman asked the crowd.
Byrne said Colorado WINS also plans to join Moss’ lawsuit.
- Read the full lawsuit below
Stephanie Felix-Sowy, the president of SIEU Local 105, said the lawsuit is a way to hold state leaders, including Polis, accountable.
“This lawsuit demands accountability,” Felix-Sowy said. “It demands answers, and it makes clear that this kind of unlawful anti-immigrant collaboration has no place in our state.”
Denver7 took advocates' concerns to the governor’s office. As they did on Friday, Polis’ office defended his directive, explaining the ICE subpoena was about a criminal investigation involving child exploitation.
“The Governor is committed to preventing the illegal exploitation and trafficking of children,” said Shelby Wieman, the governor’s press secretary. “The decision to respond to this federal subpoena due to concerns about potential crimes against vulnerable minors was carefully considered in accordance with Colorado law, which allows for sharing information to support timely criminal investigations. Keeping kids safe is a top priority, child exploitation is a deeply concerning issue, and has no place in our state. Complying with this federal subpoena meets the requirements laid out in state law and providing this information is in service of investigating and preventing any criminal activity, which Governor Polis is deeply committed to.”
But advocates for workers and immigrants pushed back on the governor’s response.
“There is nothing on the face of this subpoena to suggest this is related to a criminal investigation,” said Seligman. “It cites the civil code. It has not been through any sort of judicial process. It was not issued by a court or approved by a court. There’s nothing here to suggest that this is related to a criminal investigation.”
Lawyers for Polis said in court on Monday morning that he would not comply with the ICE subpoena until at least June 23, the date for the next court hearing.
"The state regrets this delay in response to the subpoena caused by this legal challenge, hopes it is resolved quickly, and views the delay in protecting these children as very unfortunate," said Wieman.
The lawsuit asks the judge to block Polis from forcing state employees to produce the information ICE requested.
