Legislative Updates: Immigration (February 20, 2026)

Gabriela Ramirez-Perez // February 20, 2026 // Updated: February 20, 2026
Immigration // Legislative Updates // OK Policy Articles & Research

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Welcome to this week’s immigration-focused newsletter, where we recap the latest developments on this legislative session’s slate of immigration related bills. As always, for more details on the bills discussed, visit OK Policy’s Immigration Bill Tracker.

State Developments

House

Yesterday was the deadline for House bills to move out of their Policy/Subcommittees. Any bill that failed to pass policy committee is technically ineligible to move forward. The bills that did pass committee have until March 5 to pass out of the Oversight committee.

Bills that remain moving

  • HB 4423 by Kyle Hilbert – passed its Public Health policy committee on Wednesday 4-1.
    • The bill mandates the use of SAVE to verify the eligibility and legal status of applicants before receiving state health care benefits. If an applicant’s status can’t be confirmed, the Attorney General will notify ICE.
    • You can watch the committee meeting here.
    • It is not yet scheduled for oversight committee.

Senate

Bills in the Senate have until March 5 to pass out of committee. Senate bills that have passed their committee are eligible to be heard on the Senate floor.

Upcoming Bills Next Week

  • SB 1470 by Michael Brooks – scheduled to be heard in its Public Health committee on Tuesday, February 24, 2026 at 9am in Senate Room 230.
    • It would allow any elected official or religious leader to enter any jail in the state for informal inspections provided they prove their credentials and give three days advance notice of their intended visit.
    • This bill would create transparency and insight into what is happening in federal and private detention centers that are open or may open in Oklahoma.
    • You can watch the committee meeting online here.

Bills Heard Last Week

  • SB 1633 by Brenda Stanley – passed its Education committee on Tuesday 8-2.
    • The bill removes a provision that allowed students who graduated from Oklahoma high schools and resided in the state with their legal guardian to be eligible for in-state tuition, even if they couldn’t provide documentation of U.S. citizenship or immigration status.
    • You can watch the committee meeting here.

Next Steps

HB 3551 has passed its oversight committee, meaning it is eligible to be heard on the House floor, likely starting March 9. HB 4422 and HB 4423 are yet to be heard in oversight committee, but if they pass they will also be eligible to be heard on the House floor. Senate bills have until March 5 to pass committee.

Ways to get involved

Please contact your Senate Public Safety Committee Members now and ask them to VOTE YES ON SB 1470.

Senate Bill 1470 by Senator Brooks would create much needed transparency into what is occurring in federal and private detention centers around Oklahoma. Our elected and religious leaders should be able to inspect the conditions of detention facilities in our state to ensure they are not holding people in poor and miserable conditions. SB 1470 would ensure that our directly elected legislators and spiritual leaders can visit both publicly and privately owned facilities to conduct informal inspections.

WHY THIS MATTERS

  • Religious leaders can serve as bridges between detainees and our communities, making sure detainees remain connected to their faith.
  • State officials are our directly elected representatives; they need to ensure conditions in detention centers don’t go against the will of Oklahomans.
  • Reduced federal oversight over detention centers leaves people being held in detention centers at risk of being subject to poor conditions and negative physical and mental health outcomes.

Please contact your Senate Public Safety Committee Members now and ask them to VOTE YES ON SB 1470.

Other notable immigration news

The news stories included in this section may be distressing to readers. While it is important to stay informed on the changes to immigration policy that affects our friends, family, and neighbors, it is also important to take care of yourself. We advise being intentional about engaging with news media and taking breaks as needed. Now more than ever it is important to practice resilience and stay rooted in community.

State Level

  • More Than 30 Oklahoma Agencies Sign Immigration Enforcement Agreements [ Oklahoma Watch ]
  • Oklahoma governor celebrates suspension of 122 students for Mustang walkout [ Oklahoma Voice ]
  • OK Senate Bill 1554 would make helping undocumented migrant a felony [ The Oklahoman ]
  • Citing biblical principles, clergy call for immigration reform [ The Oklahoman ]

Federal Level

  • Judges decry treatment of nursing and pregnant detainees in ICE custody [ POLITICO ]
  • New DHS memo outlines plan to detain refugees for further vetting [ The Washington Post ]
  • Courts have ruled 4,400 times that ICE jailed people illegally. It hasn’t stopped. [ Reuters ]
  • Judge throws out ruling backing Trump mass detention policy [ The Hill ]
  • ICE contracts fuel revenue surge at for-profit immigration detention centers [ Scripps News ]
  • Trump administration moves to end housing assistance for mixed immigration families [ Reuters ]
  • Trump’s immigration agenda worsening childcare crisis, lawmakers warn [ The Guardian ]
  • The immigration crackdown is impacting health care across the nation, doctors warn [ CNN ]
  • Communities fight ICE detention centers, but have few tools to stop them [ Stateline ]
  • U.S. Reportedly Sends Asylum Seekers to Cameroon in Secret [ TIME ]
  • Trump Is Still Deporting People Wherever He Wants [ The New Yorker ]
  • Little-used ICE agreements with local police have exploded under Trump [ NPR ]
  • How Legal Immigration Became a Deportation Trap [ The New Yorker ]

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gabriela Ramirez-Perez // gramirez-perez@okpolicy.org

Gabriela joined OK Policy as an Immigration Policy Analyst in August 2021. Raised in Oklahoma City, she graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies with minors in German, Arabic, and International Security Studies. During college Gabriela had internships at the Council on American-Islamic Relations Oklahoma, the Office of former Congresswoman Kendra Horn, and she took part in events to help educate first-generation Latinx students on how to attend college. Gabriela looks forward to using her skills at OK Policy to work towards a more equitable future for all Oklahomans.