The State - News from Sept. 24, 1986

Two California cities have been threatened with reduced federal aid because of their ordinances which provide sanctuaries for Salvadoran and Guatemalan refugees, church and local government officials said. Sacramento and Chico were warned by the U.S. Justice Department that their ordinances were irreconcilable with continued federally financed assistance, the officials said. The warnings were contained in letters signed by Peter Nowinski, U.S. attorney for Eastern California, and implied that assistance for law enforcement programs might be cut, they said. Mark van der Haut of the National Lawyers Guild said the letters asked the city councils of Sacramento and Chico to consider rescinding the ordinances. The sanctuary declarations say city officials will not assist federal officials in enforcing immigration laws. About 20 American cities, including San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley, have passed sanctuary ordinances.