Published July 28, 2026 at 9:30 PM ET · Updated July 28, 2026 at 10:28 PM ET
Maine enacts law limiting state police cooperation with federal immigration authorities
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Maine has enacted a law limiting state police cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
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⚖ The Constitutional Angle
Printz v. United States held the federal government may not compel state or local executive officers to enforce a federal regulatory program. Murphy v. NCAA extended this, holding there is no meaningful difference between Congress commanding a state to act and forbidding it from acting. Maine's law limiting state police cooperation with federal immigration authorities is exactly what this doctrine protects.
Printz v. United States 521 U.S. 898 (1997)
Vote: 5-4 · Opinion: Scalia
The federal government may not compel state or local executive officers to administer or enforce a federal regulatory program. The Brady Act's interim command that county sheriffs (CLEOs) conduct background checks on handgun purchasers — and the companion duty to accept Brady Forms from dealers — is unconstitutional, extending New York's anti-commandeering rule from state legislatures to state executive officers. Congress cannot circumvent the prohibition by conscripting the states' officers directly, regardless of how minimal the burden or how important the federal policy.
Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association 584 U.S. 453 (2018); 138 S. Ct. 1461
Vote: 6-3 on the judgment (7-2 that PASPA's anti-authorization provision is unconstitutional;… · Opinion: Alito
PASPA's provision barring states from 'authorizing' sports gambling violates the anti-commandeering rule, and the licensing bar falls with it; no remaining PASPA provision is severable, so the entire statute fell. Critically for sanctuary law, the Court held there is 'no meaningful difference' between Congress commanding a state legislature to enact a law and prohibiting it from enacting one — anti-commandeering covers federal prohibitions on state lawmaking, not just affirmative orders.
Precedent facts from the PW Law Library — primary-source verified & independently audited
