Washington, DC, June 23, 2025 – On June 20, a coalition containing religious groups and two individuals filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Tennessee’s law that criminalizes integration that provides shelter to those who do not hide them.
The Georgetown Act, the U.S. Immigration Council, and the Tennessee Union of Immigrants and Refugees’ Rights (TIRRC) Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Conservation (ICAP) filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Central District of Tennessee. The main plaintiff is the Southeast Conference of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. They join local landlords and Tennessee residents to share a home with their son-in-law seeking asylum in the United States.
Signed into law May 9, Tennessee Senate Bill 392 creates intense criminal penalties for individuals or organizations who “hold” undocumented persons that define the bill as providing shelter for financial benefits. This sweeping bill could criminalize churches providing temporary shelters, landlords with rooms, or families to live with undocumented people.
Furthermore, the law is so widely written that it has never been documented, but can then be used to provide shelter to those who have acquired a protected condition, such as protection and protection against violence against women (VAWA).
“The law is not simply harmful, it is unconstitutional,” said Elizabeth Krrkshank, senior adviser at ICAP. “Immigration enforcement is the federal responsibility and it is not a state that can pick up weapons by choosing or choosing. When individual states begin to create their own immigration rules and penalties, it creates chaos, fear and confusion, not just immigrants, employers, and the entire nation’s community.
The lawsuit is SB 392:
By allowing the Tennessee government to regulate immigration, it violates the US Constitution. This is a power reserved for the federal government. Otherwise, if states create and enforce their own immigration laws, the results will be a chaotic patchwork of conflicting rules, making it nearly impossible for law enforcement, businesses and immigrants to cross state policies. It is vague for Tennessee, too vague to understand which conduct is criminalised, introducing felony charges and decades of prison conditions to introduce cases that could be inherently completely humane.
“The law is not about public safety, it’s about fear and xenophobia,” said Suchi Mathur, senior litigation lawyer for the American Council of Immigration. “It’s already de-safe for communities across the state, and if it’s implemented it will cause immeasurable harm. Sharing homes, welcoming churches, etc. will not make people safe.”
“SB 392 does nothing to improve life in Tennessee or protect public safety. Instead, they try to oppose their neighbors to each other,” said Spring Miller, senior director of TIRRC Legal Strategy. “The law forces religious groups to choose to pursue their values or line up, which forces family members, siblings and even parents to live under the same roof as their loved ones who have no legal status to land behind the bar.
The law is set to take effect on July 1st. The plaintiffs are seeking an immediate injunction to block the enforcement of SB 392 while the case is ongoing.
Read the complaints here.
