Everything You Need to Know About the Texas Immigration Law

A federal appeals court on Wednesday heard arguments on whether a new Texas immigration law should be allowed to go into effect—even while its constitutionality is still up for debate. The law, known as Senate Bill 4 (S.B. 4), would empower state and local authorities to arrest migrants who cross the border without authorization

“Everybody is concerned about the border, there’s a real crisis going on here,” Texas Solicitor General Aaron Nielson said before the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals three-judge panel, according to The New York Times. “We are on the front line, and we are going to do something about it.”

The arguments between Texas and the Justice Department came just hours after the appellate panel ruled 2-1 that S.B. 4—signed in December by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott—should be temporarily blocked while they hear the case. Earlier on Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for the law to be enforced while challenges to it work their way through the appeals court.

Read more at The Daily Beast.