The Will County executive committee voted to postpone indefinitely a resolution that would have declared the county’s formal stance on federal immigration enforcement after an extended debate and months of public comment.

The motion to postpone was made by County Board Member James Butler and seconded by Chair Anthony Ortiz; the roll call vote carried. Committee members discussed both procedural and substantive concerns before voting to remove the item from near-term consideration.

Committee members and the legislative chair, County Board Chair Anthony Ortiz, described the measure as a formal opinion the board would send to state and federal lawmakers if adopted. Ortiz said the resolution “is telling our state and our federal legislators that we need to stand for our US constitution,” adding that the document was intended to “reaffirm our commitment” to due process protections in the Fifth Amendment.

Supporters of postponing the resolution argued the draft included statements some members said were factually incorrect and said the text needed reworking before the full board considered it. Member James Butler said he would oppose the draft as written because “most of the statements put in there were false” and that the sheriff’s office had told him some allegations in the draft did not happen. Member Jackie Tranier urged postponement rather than outright removal to allow revision and later reconsideration.

Members also raised process questions about where and how the public’s input would be received. Committee members were told staff had collected “in excess of 200 comments and actually probably closer to 300 comments” on the resolution; staff said those comments would be shared with the full county board and attached to the agenda when the item is resubmitted.

In debate, members from across the board expressed differing views about the value of adopting a resolution of this type. Some said a resolution would signal the county’s position to state and federal officials; others said the county lacked authority to change federal enforcement policy and expressed concern about factual accuracy in the draft.

The chair said he would remove the item from the upcoming board agenda and that the legislative and executive offices would continue discussions and revise the language, if appropriate, before bringing any new draft back to the board.

Votes at the meeting also included motions on other agenda items; the postponement of this resolution was recorded as a separate action and will be reflected on the full board agenda if and when a revised draft is submitted.

The executive committee meeting opened at approximately 10:45 a.m.; the resolution was discussed under the legislative portion of the agenda and the motion to postpone was taken near the end of the committee’s session.