The City of Elgin is exploring ways to improve access to city services for all residents, including members of the undocumented immigrant community. This page provides an overview of what is being considered, where the process stands, and how to stay informed.

City staff is currently conducting research on all the proposals and will be submitting its analyses to the City Council for consideration.

What Is Being Analyzed?

In December 2025, city council members introduced the first version of a draft ordinance covering five initiatives. Here is what each section will do, in plain terms:

  • Immigration Enforcement

    Limits how city employees interact with federal immigration enforcement. (The city cannot regulate the manner in which the federal government conducts immigration enforcement.)

  • Municipal ID

    Creates a city-issued ID card for Elgin residents, regardless of immigration status.

  • Economic Development

    Requires city economic programs to be more accessible to immigrant-owned businesses. Includes outreach to small and disadvantaged businesses on how to bid for city contracts.

  • Language Access

    Requires city departments to develop plans to serve residents with limited English. Includes translation of key documents and interpretation at public meetings.

  • Legal Defense Fund

    Establishes a fund to support Elgin residents facing immigration-related detention, eviction defense, housing discrimination and predatory lending that disproportionately impact immigrant and Black and Brown communities, providing access to legal defense through qualified nonprofit providers.

What Is the City Council Asking Staff to Examine?

Before any decisions are made, the City Council has directed staff to research the following:
  • Identify which initiatives are already being addressed by existing city policy or state law.
  • Determine whether these initiatives should take the form of an ordinance, administrative policy or a combination of both.
  • Provide cost estimates for implementation of each initiative and the proposal as a whole.
  • Describe the benefits of the municipal identification card and provide cost estimates for its implementation and administration. (Consider modeling the program on Chicago's “CityKey.”)
  • Provide information on the implementation and cost of the legal defense fund, and establish income levels to determine eligibility for legal assistance and fee waivers.
  • Identify federal funding the city currently receives or is planning to receive that could be reduced or withheld under current federal administration policies.
  • Define the term "resident" for purposes of eligibility.
  • Expand eligibility to include formerly incarcerated individuals, residents who have lost their documentation, unhoused individuals and survivors of domestic violence.
  • Costs and administration of a municipal identification card program.
  • Broaden the fund to include civil matters such as eviction defense, housing discrimination, and predatory lending that disproportionately impact immigrant and Black and Brown communities.
  • Require demographic reporting to track usage by race and immigration status.
  • Establish income levels to receive legal assistance and waiver of fees.
  • Expand the recognized purposes to expressly recognize racial disparities and inequities and the city's commitment to equitable treatment across race, national origin and immigration status.
  • Require a racial equity impact review for major policy changes.
  • Require annual equity reporting across race in city contracting and grants, legal defense fund usage, city workforce representation, policing statistics and program access metrics.
  • Expand the language access plan to include equity strategies that address racial disparities and physical access under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), not limited solely to English proficiency.
  • Conduct a disparity assessment of city contracting.
  • Require public reporting of contract awards to “Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individuals” (SEDI) on the city's transparency page.
  • Make targeted technical assistance available for SEDI businesses.
  • Set measurable participation goals.
  • Ensure any inclusive procurement plan includes outreach, capacity-building and technical assistance strategies specifically designed to address barriers faced by historically underrepresented racial and ethnic communities.
  • Write the proposal at a sixth grade reading level in both English and Spanish as a test of the language access component.
  • Include a requirement for public comment and outreach for a period of at least 30 days before any final action is taken.

Why Analysis Takes Time

City staff are responsible for providing the City Council with an accurate, complete picture before decisions are made. The analyses cover: alignment with Illinois state law (including the Trust Act and the VOICES Act); legal exposure and liability; estimated implementation costs such as staffing and training requirements, equipment and software purchases, and ultimately the manner in which each initiative will function in practice across the city organization.

Progress Updates

Staff will report progress biweekly and this page will be updated as milestones are reached.

This Engage Elgin page was developed to support transparency and provide ongoing updates regarding the inclusivity and diversity initiatives.