East Central Reporter

Adam Niemerg, a representative for Illinois House District 102, has called for the repeal of the law that designates Illinois as a sanctuary state.

"We need to repeal the law that created "Sanctuary State" status in Illinois," said Adam M. Niemerg, State Representative for 109th District (R), according to Facebook.

According to Niemerg's Facebook post, he shared a link to a news release on his website and included a video of his May 7 floor speech. This speech was delivered following Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's visit. In it, Niemerg said he had the opportunity to honor "angel families" affected by what he described as the illegal immigration crisis in Illinois. He said that their stories were deeply moving and attributed their losses to Illinois being a sanctuary state and Chicago being a sanctuary city. "We must end these policies," Niemerg said. "I thank God that President Trump was elected, and I also thank God that Kristi Noem had the courage to come here today."

Screenshot of State Representative Adam NIemerg's May 7 Facebook post | State Representative Adam Niemerg's Facebook page.

Niemerg’s news release also mentioned House Bill 1217, which he filed on January 9. The bill aims to repeal the Illinois TRUST Act and amend the Illinois Identification Card Act to allow information sharing with immigration authorities. It would also modify the state vehicle code to remove restrictions on sharing information with immigration agents. The bill received its first reading on January 9 and was referred to the Rules Committee on the same day, with no further action reported.

The TRUST Act was signed into law by Governor Bruce Rauner on August 28, 2017. According to a news release from the State of Illinois, this law reinforces a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, which found immigration detainer orders from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) illegal. Under this act, police are prohibited from stopping, arresting, searching, or detaining individuals based solely on their immigration status unless there is a warrant signed by a judge.

Niemerg has been serving in the Illinois General Assembly since January 2021 and resides in Dieterich with his family. Outside of his legislative duties in Springfield, he works as a senior claims adjuster with Country Financial and is an active member of the Farm Bureau.