Nebraska Town Bans Renting to Illegals

Residents of Fremont, Nebraska have voted for a law aimed at driving illegal immigrants out of town. The law, which bans hiring or renting property to illegal immigrants, passed a referendum of the town's 25,000 people 57% to 43%. The ACLU has promised an immediate challenge to the law, which it labels "un-American and unconstitutional," the Omaha World-Herald reports.

The law will require potential renters to apply for a license to rent, which will not be granted if officials determine that they are in the country illegally. Opponents of the law argued that the cost of enforcing it and defending it in court would force Fremont to either cut services or raise taxes. Backers of the law—which went to a public vote after a 2-year battle—complained that illegal immigrants were causing an increase in crime and taking jobs that would once have gone to legal residents.
(More Fremont stories.)