Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has refused to confirm whether he will sign a bill cracking down on illegal immigration across the state.
At a press conference on Friday, Stitt said that despite supporting measures to curb the invasion at the southern border, he was still undecided as to whether he would sign House Bill 4156 if it is approved by the Oklahoma Senate.
“I’m not going to make a decision right now whether I will sign it or not,” Stitt said during the press conference. “There’s too many variables on, you know, what’s in the bill. Our team will look at it, and we will review that.”
However, Stitt insisted that whatever he decides, Oklahoma will remain a “law and order state.”
Among the bill’s provisions include declaring a state of emergency at the southern border and creating a crime known as impermissible occupation, which would apply to all those who have entered the country illegally and have yet to be deported.
“The Legislature finds that the presence of persons who are unauthorized to be present within the State of Oklahoma is a matter of statewide concern,” the bill states.
“Any alien who has been denied admission, excluded, deported, or removed, or has departed the United States while an order of exclusion, deportation, or removal is outstanding, and thereafter enters, attempts to enter, or is at any time found in Oklahoma shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a felony and shall be punished.”
Those found guilty would face fines of up to $500, a year in prison, or both. They would also have 72 hours to leave the state of Oklahoma.
Similar bills have been passed in states such as Texas and Iowa, although both have been held up by multiple legal challenges filed by those advocating the opening of America’s borders.
