In response to President Donald Trump and his aggressive stance on immigration, California Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat, promised in his State of the State speech this week to protect the state’s immigrants.
“I recognize that under the Constitution, federal law is supreme and that Washington determines immigration policy,” he said, according to a transcript. “But as a state we can and have had a role to play. California has enacted several protective measures for the undocumented: the Trust Act, lawful driver’s licenses, basic employment rights and non-discriminatory access to higher education. We may be called upon to defend those laws and defend them we will. And let me be clear: we will defend everybody - every man, woman and child - who has come here for a better life and has contributed to the well-being of our state.”
Several California school districts have pledged to protect the status of its undocumented students and the state overwhelmingly last November voted to end nearly 20-year-old restrictions on bilingual education programs in public schools.
Brown also emphasized in his speech that he has added “tens of billions” more dollars to the state’s education budget.
Earlier this month, Brown proposed to increase his education budget by more than $1 billion in fiscal year 2018 despite an expected state revenue shortfall.