Federal Appeals Court Allows Texas to Enforce State Immigration Law
26th April 2026
A divided federal appeals court on April 24 allowed Texas to enforce a state law that permits the arrest and prosecution of individuals thought to have unlawfully crossed the U.S.-Mexico border.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit voted 10–7 to undo a 2024 injunction that had prevented enforcement of the law known as Senate Bill 4. Initially, the former Biden administration had challenged the statute, but the second Trump administration dropped the challenge in March 2025.
SB 4, which Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed in December 2023, would make it a state-level crime to illegally enter or re-enter Texas from a foreign country, give state judges authority to order that violators leave the United States, and allow prison sentences ?of up to 20 years for those refusing to comply.
The Fifth Circuit did not address the merits of the case because it found that the groups challenging the law—Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center and American Gateways—lacked legal standing to do so.
Hey, I’ve got an idea! Let’s kick the can down the road!
The groups had argued that SB 4 was preempted—or superseded—by the federal Immigration and Nationality Act.
Which is obviously is—but its enforcement relies on an Administration that actually enforces laws and all that other right-wing picky shit.