On Tuesday, March 24, 2026, at the City of South Lake Tahoe City Council’s 5:30 p.m. meeting, the councilmembers will consider an official resolution declaring our City a “Sanctuary City.” This appears as Item #15 on the meeting agenda. I am opposed to this City Council involving our City in taking an official stance, in the form of a resolution, on the illegal immigration issue. As it was stated by Councilmember Robbins at the last Council meeting, this Council is bogged down and cannot get through the ESSENTIAL business of the City as it is, requiring the scheduling of special (additional) meetings in order to catch up.
Our police department is doing a fine job of managing things, even though they are already stretched, and they do not need more pressure, especially unnecessary pressure. The same few community members with very loud voices have been verbally assaulting the councilmembers, as well as City staff, with their demands. One such community member, representing the organization Indivisible, was even permitted to speak a full two minutes past the four-minute time limit (six minutes total) at the lectern during public communications. The folks who are demanding this policy cannot show proof that this issue warrants the time and attention of our already bogged-down City Council. They cite incidents in other, much larger urban cities. Frankly, these demands are quite divisive in our small, tight-knit community, and appear to be an effort to fix what isn’t broken.
Resolutions are significant in that they give lasting impressions and shape the public opinion and expectations of businesses, residents, and visitors, while also shaping the direction of future policy. We certainly should not give the impression that criminals can come here and be sheltered.
South Lake Tahoe is not a large urban city, and we do not need this kind of complexity and ambiguity with our law enforcement. We are better served by law enforcement agencies that are flexible in their duties and not restricted. I understand that proponents of sanctuary city policies believe these policies enable more trust between immigrants and local law enforcement. I do not think it is worth the trade-off in what we stand to lose by pursuing these policies.
Please, if you are opposed to this resolution, let your community and councilmembers hear your voices.
Robyn Johnson
Full-time Resident and Registered Voter, City of South Lake Tahoe