The U.S. House has passed a bill introduced by Rep. Barry Moore that would make undocumented immigrants who drive under the influence eligible for deportation. The legislation received support from Republicans and 37 Democrats.
The bill, titled The Jeremy and Angel Seay and Sergeant Brandon Mendoza Protect Our Communities from DUIs Act, honors a couple from Enterprise, Alabama, who were killed in a motorcycle crash by a migrant drunk driver.
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“Their lives were cut short by the senseless act,” said Moore, R-Enterprise, on the House floor. “Tragedies like this are not uncommon across this country.”
In 2023, 12,429 people died in alcohol-impaired crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. However, there’s no official data on how many involved noncitizens.
Alabama Rep. Terri Sewell, a Democrat from Birmingham, joined the state’s Republican House members in supporting the bill. Rep. Shomari Figures, D-Mobile, voted against it. Notably, Sewell had opposed the same bill last year.
The legislation would make undocumented immigrants ineligible for admission into the U.S. and subject to deportation if they’ve been convicted of or admitted to driving under the influence.
“It’s an honor to be here, it’s a privilege to be in this country,” Moore told Alabama Daily News. “Abide by the laws and the rule of law, and if you don’t, then we’ll get you out of here.”
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., the Judiciary Committee’s ranking Democrat, opposed the bill. Speaking on the House floor, Raskin acknowledged the personal toll of DUI crashes—having lost a cousin to a drunk driver—but argued the bill misses the mark.
“It’s obviously not a serious attempt to address the social problem of drunk driving,” Raskin said. “It does not increase criminal penalties for DUIs anywhere in the country.”
Migrants can already face deportation for certain offenses, including crimes of moral turpitude and human trafficking, as noted in a Congressional Research Service report.
Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed the Laken Riley Act, which requires ICE to detain undocumented immigrants convicted of crimes like burglary or shoplifting. That bill was led in the Senate by Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britt.
Following Thursday’s vote, Moore expressed gratitude to his colleagues for backing the measure and putting “the safety of the American people first.”
The bill now moves to the Senate. Although the House passed it last year with 59 Democrats joining Republicans, it never received a Senate vote.
