Oakland's 'City of Refuge' law heads to council July 7

Oakland
Public Safety Committee
June 23, 2026

TL;DR

• Oakland's Public Safety Committee backed the "City of Refuge" sanctuary ordinance 3-0 and sent it to the full City Council, which votes July 7. Members first cut exceptions that would have let police honor some ICE requests.
• The committee approved a six-month pilot, 3-0, to close parts of 9th, 10th, and 11th Avenues off International Boulevard and disrupt sex trafficking. The City Council holds a public hearing July 7.
• Oakland's police chief search is down to four finalists, now with the mayor. The committee received the update; the finalists' names stay confidential.
• The committee pulled a proposed ordinance to raise penalties on sideshow participants and spectators, moving it to its pending list with no set date.

What happened

1. Oakland's "City of Refuge" sanctuary ordinance clears committee, heads to council
   1. Dozens of residents packed City Hall as Oakland moved to write its sanctuary protections into permanent city law. The Public Safety Committee voted 3-0 to back the "City of Refuge" ordinance. It now goes to the full City Council, which takes it up July 7.
   2. The ordinance would bar all city staff, not just police, from helping federal civil immigration enforcement or using city resources to check immigration status. It would also bar city agencies from collecting immigration status unless the law requires it. And it would keep ICE out of non-public city areas without a judicial warrant.
   3. Before the vote, the committee removed two exceptions from the police section. One would have let officers hold someone for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released, at ICE's request. The other would have let officers tell ICE before releasing certain people. Councilmember Charlene Wang, who wrote the ordinance with Councilmember Noel Gallo, said the change leaves no exceptions.
   4. District 7 Councilmember Ken Houston urged the committee to hold the ordinance until similar protections for Black residents could move with it. He briefly left the dais, which cost the committee its quorum, then returned and voted yes.
   5. What this means for you: If you have avoided city offices, clinics, or reporting a crime out of fear about immigration status, this ordinance is aimed at you. It would put the city's existing sanctuary practices into permanent law and extend them to every city department, not just police. It is not law yet. The full City Council still has to approve it on July 7.