Vermont SR 21: Senate resolution relating to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Operation Metro Surge

Bill Text

VTLEG#387077 v.1
State of Vermont
Senate Chamber
Montpelier, Vermont
Senate Resolution
Offered by Senators Hashim, Beck, Ram Hinsdale, Baruth, Brock,
Chittenden, Clarkson, Cummings, Gulick, Hardy, Harrison, Lyons, Perchlik,
Plunkett, Vyhovsky, Watson, Weeks, Westman and White,
S.R. 21. Senate resolution relating to U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement's Operation Metro Surge.
Whereas, on January 5, 2026, approximately 3,000 federal agents, from
both U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP), were deployed to Minnesota’s Twin Cities area as
part of Operation Metro Surge, an ICE initiative to intensify the arrest and
deportation of individuals not legally residing in the United States, and
Whereas, on January 7, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, an ICE agent
fatally shot Renée Good, a U.S. citizen, while she was in her car at a location
where ICE agents were engaged in Operation Metro Surge, and
Whereas, on January 24, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, CBP agents
fatally shot Alex Pretti, also a U.S. citizen, at another location where
Operation Metro Surge activity was occurring, and
Whereas, these and multiple other events pertaining to the methods of
enforcing immigration law have triggered large protests both in and out of the
State of Minnesota, as well as in Vermont, and
Whereas, as Caledonian Record publisher, Todd Smith, perceptively wrote,
“A government that kills, then lies, and then threatens its citizens is not
protecting the nation. It is undermining the foundations that make it worth
protecting in the first place. And if those who claim to be the law are
permitted to kill without consequence, then the law no longer governs them —
and soon, it will no longer protect anyone,” and
Whereas, the current situation is intolerable and must be changed
immediately, now therefore be it
Resolved by the Senate:
That the President of the United States must immediately suspend
Operation Metro Surge, take urgent steps to de-escalate federal enforcement
actions, and reset the federal government’s immigration enforcement priorities
toward individuals who pose genuine threats to public safety, in full
compliance with constitutional limits and the rule of law, and in the absence of
such presidential action, Congress and the federal courts must fulfill their
constitutional responsibility to intervene and restore adherence to due process
and fundamental rights, and be it further
Resolved: That the Senate of the State of Vermont unequivocally condemns
the extrajudicial killings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti as grave violations of
human dignity, civil liberties, and the constitutional protections owed to all
persons, and be it further

VTLEG#387077 v.1
Resolved: That the Senate of the State of Vermont, based on initial and
substantial evidence, unequivocally condemns the extrajudicial killings of
Renée Good and Alex Pretti as grave violations of human dignity, civil
liberties, and the constitutional protections owed to all persons, and be it
further
Resolved: That the Senate of the State of Vermont affirms that individuals
possess inherent and inviolable rights under the First, Second, and Fourth
Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, including the rights to free expression,
the right to keep and bear arms, and protection against unreasonable searches
and seizures, and be it further
Resolved: That the Senate of the State of Vermont further declares that the
lawful exercise of these constitutional rights—peacefully, responsibly, and
within the bounds of the law—can never justify empowering federal agents to
act as judge, jury, and executioner, nor to employ lethal force outside
established legal process and accountability, and be it further
Resolved: That the Senate of the State of Vermont further declares that the
lawful exercise of these constitutional rights—peacefully, responsibly, and
within the bounds of the law—can never justify empowering federal agents to
act as judge, jury, and executioner, nor employing lethal forces outside
established legal process and accountability, and be it further
Resolved: That the Senate of the State of Vermont strongly urges the
Vermont Congressional Delegation to oppose any additional federal funding
for ICE or related agencies unless and until there is demonstrable, enforceable
reform that:
(1) restores immigration enforcement to its core mission of identifying,
prosecuting, and removing individuals who have committed serious criminal
offenses;
(2) ends indiscriminate, militarized enforcement tactics that undermine
public trust and constitutional governance; and
(3) reestablishes a lawful, functional immigration system—rooted in
due process, transparency, and humanity—that provides clear, genuine
pathways to legal status and citizenship for individuals, and be it further
Resolved: That the Secretary of the Senate be directed to send a copy of
this resolution to the President of the United States, the Secretary of the U.S.
Department