In response to increased federal immigration activity in Salem, city councilors declared a state of emergency on Monday, after dozens of community members described the threats federal agents pose to families, students and businesses. The declaration directs city leaders to consider starting prog rams to protect the community “in the face of the harm and terror caused by (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) actions.”   Councilor Vanessa Nordyke proposed the declaration during a Nov. 24 meeting.  She acted after hours of passionate testimony urging the city to address the “reality of lawlessness” that has come to Salem at the hands of ICE activity in the community.  “The unnecessary and likely unlawful tactics being used by many federal immigration enforcement authorities have generated widespread fear in the community, which cause our residents to be fearful of leaving their homes to go to work, school, access city services, take public transportation, attend medical appointments and other necessary daily activities,” the declaration said. Salem joins other cities in Oregon, including Hillsboro and Woodburn, which have declared emergencies in recent weeks. The declaration offers a stark condemnation of federal immigration enforcement actions in Salem. But it also prescribes a few actions for the city to take. Here are five key things to know about Salem’s emergency declaration:  Coordination, communication and training underway   City leaders will work to train employees on the state’s sanctuary policies and laws by the end of January. Those laws generally prohibit local law enforcement from cooperating with federal law enforcement in the enforcement of federal immigration law. The declaration also requires training for staff on how to respond if federal immigration authorities show up on city property.  Courtney Knox Busch, the city’s strategic initiatives manager, told Salem Reporter that training materials are still being developed and should be finished by the end of December. Much of the practical work will be done by the city’s Human Rights Commission. The group met Wednesday to discuss next steps. Joaquín Lara Midkiff, the commission chair, said at the meeting that the commission is working on a “Know Your Rights” forum that would be recorded and broadcast to community partners and shared on the city’s website in both English and Spanish.  Lara Midkiff said the body had already identified a qualified trainer who is willing and able to provide training on the matter as soon as the week of Dec. 15.  “I encouraged them, ‘Do everything you can to get something going on this right away,’ because people are being taken today. So, this needs to happen before January,” Nordyke told Salem Reporter. Councilors were split on declaring a state of emergency Salem city councilors were split on declaring a state of emergency in a 6-3 vote.  Councilors Paul Tigan, Irvin Brown, Mai Vang, and Micki Varney joined Nordyke and Council President Linda Nishioka in supporting the declaration, and discussed the possibility of doing more to support the community prior to voting.  Councilors Shane Matthews and Deanna Gwyn joined Salem Mayor Julie Hoy in voting against the declaration.  Hoy said she voted against it because “it just doesn’t do enough” but also did not propose any amendments to the motion or mention what she wants future action to look like. Her two colleagues, Matthews and Gwyn, both said they don’t believe the declaration takes concrete action to protect people in Salem.  Matthews said he believed the declaration could draw further ICE scrutiny to Salem.  There’s no plan to attach money to the declaration  Other cities that have declared a state of emergency over immigration enforcement have allocated money to support businesses and families affected by ICE activity.  Salem leaders have no plans to do so. During the council meeting on Monday, there were repeated calls from people in the audience for the council to allocate $300,000 in city funds to support people affected by ICE arrests and deportations. The demand came from Latinos Unidos Siempre, a local youth-led grassroots organization.  While councilors voiced their concern and said they wanted to do more for the community by continuing to find more services to provide to those affected, several councilors also felt that the city budget does not have room for such allocations.  City Manager Krishna Namburi reiterated that the city’s budget does not have funds for social services, which is where other communities have drawn money to provide resources.  Nordyke told Salem Reporter she doesn’t think there is much appetite to draw from city funds at this time.  “It was obvious that there was not enough support on council to have a majority vote in favor of getting a nickel towards families affected by ICE,” Nordyke said. Signage should prevent ICE from entering city buildings without warrants  New signs have been installed in city-owned buildings indicating facilities that are not accessible to the general public, including offices and other restricted areas.  The signs are meant to convey to immigration agents that they are not permitted to enter non-public areas of city buildings without a judicial warrant, Knox Busch said. Knox Busch said the city is preparing a written policy similar to the one used by the Salem-Keizer School District, which restricts immigration agents from entering schools other than the front office.  Salem police won’t enforce traffic law violations by federal agents Aggressive driving and traffic violations by federal immigration officers were among the concerns advocates raised to the council. Ira Cuello-Martinez, policy director for farmworker union PCUN, said their group has encouraged local jurisdictions to enforce traffic law violations by ICE agents. “ICE continues to be pretty aggressive with their enforcement actions,” he said in an interview. “It’s definitely posing a public safety concern.” But Salem police can’t intervene in federal actions or charge local agents with traffic violations, according to a memo from City Attorney Dan Atchison. The memo said that ICE agents performing their official duties are protected from local prosecution.   These protections would also likely apply to traffic violations, Atchison said, rendering Salem police ineffective in enforcing any violations by ICE agents.  Atchison also said that there is no state or federal law that authorizes local law enforcement to intervene in federal immigration enforcement activities.  “Should a Salem Police officer intervene, there is little preventing the officer from being arrested and charged with a federal crime,” Atchison said. It would also be “nearly impossible” for the Salem Police Department to investigate, gather evidence, and assemble a case against a federal agent if it chose to respond to allegations of wrongdoing, Atchison said. Managing Editor Rachel Alexander contributed reporting. Contact reporter Joe Siess: [email protected] or 503-335-7790. 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