A new Mississippi law, set to take effect Wednesday, authorizes the state’s top law enforcement agency to compile a list of all immigrants identified as illegally residing in the state, targeting a vulnerable segment of the working class for increased surveillance and potential deportation.
The law grants the state Department of Public Safety the power to “use all reasonable lawful investigative means available” to determine the number and identities of all “illegal aliens” within Mississippi’s borders. This includes the collection of individuals' names, addresses, country of origin, and whether they are adults or minors.
Further data collection includes any criminal history and the date, location, and status of deportation proceedings. The department is directed to share this compiled information on those suspected of violating laws with state and local authorities, though the measure neither requires nor prohibits its sharing with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The State's Enforcement Apparatus
Republican state Sen. Angela Hill, the law's sponsor, stated that states possess a right and obligation to assist the U.S. government in discouraging what she termed “illegal immigration,” which she linked to facilitating crimes such as human and drug trafficking. Hill characterized the new law as “commonsense,” asserting that understanding the “magnitude of the problem” through identifying the number and identity of “illegal aliens” is a “concrete way to better understand the problem.”
This Mississippi measure is part of a broader national trend, with states enacting over 100 immigration-related laws this year, according to an Associated Press tally. Republican-led states have generally aligned with the Trump administration’s agenda, requiring local sheriffs to sign cooperative agreements with ICE, reinforcing eligibility restrictions for public benefits, and directing election clerks to check voter rolls against federal systems to flag noncitizens.
Conversely, Democratic-led states have pushed back against the Trump agenda with new laws banning cooperative pacts with ICE, forbidding ICE tactics like mask-wearing, and restricting immigration enforcement actions in schools, hospitals, and other sensitive locations without judicial warrants. These actions by both political factions demonstrate the state's role in managing, rather than resolving, the contradictions of capital's demand for cheap labor and the political imperative to control it.
The Mississippi law bears resemblance to a 2021 executive order by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, which directed the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to “use all lawful investigative means available” to determine the number and identities of “illegal aliens” transported from the nation’s southwest border to Florida. The Florida agency has not disclosed information regarding the results of that executive order, now in its fifth year.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has intensified enforcement of a decades-old federal law mandating noncitizens to register with the U.S. government. The Mississippi law is not a one-time count but prescribes an ongoing effort to track immigrants for the next two years, a process that could become complicated as individuals overstay visas, apply for new legal statuses, and move across state lines.
The Cost to Labor
Efrén Olivares, vice president of litigation and legal strategy at the National Immigration Law Center, a nonprofit advocating for low-income immigrants, stated that the law is “practically unworkable” due to the fluid nature of immigration status, where individuals can gain, lose, and regain status over short periods. Olivares also expressed deep concern, noting it is “eerily reminiscent of other countries that have created lists of certain groups of people.”
Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, a nonprofit think tank that supports immigration restrictions, affirmed the law “makes a lot of sense,” adding that it “raises the likelihood that someone’s illegal presence is going to come to the attention of federal authorities.” This perspective highlights the law's function in increasing the precarity of undocumented workers.
Victoria Francis, deputy director of state and local initiatives for the American Immigration Council, a nonprofit advocating for immigrants, described the new law as “very concerning” due to its potential to redirect law enforcement resources away from protecting the public and towards investigating people who may be “contributing to the economy.” Francis warned that “A mandate like this invites profiling and turning entire communities into targets.”
Lydia Grizzell, policy and advocacy manager for the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi, stated the law could undermine trust between police and residents, increasing the likelihood of individuals not reaching out to law enforcement when needed, which she noted is “opposite of the mission.”
According to a report by the American Immigration Council, which utilized 2023 Census Bureau data, Mississippi has one of the country’s smallest percentages of immigrants illegally residing in the state, with fewer than 28,000 people, amounting to less than 1% of its population. This data, now in its third year, underscores the disproportionate allocation of state resources to surveil a marginal segment of the working population.