TOPEKA — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent activity in Kansas City and across the United States inspired a Democratic state legislator to attempt to hijack a Republican’s bill to read ICE “shall have no jurisdiction or power within the state of Kansas or its political subdivisions.”

Rep. Susan Ruiz, a Democrat from Shawnee, proposed on the House floor Wednesday revising the text of Republican Rep. Rebecca Schmoe’s bill, which stated international organizations such as the United Nations and the World Health Organization have no power in Kansas.

In the place of international organizations, Ruiz inserted ICE.

“We need to stand up,” Ruiz said. “And we at least need to say — each community, each city council, each county’s commissioners need to make a statement to say that ICE is not welcome in their communities, and if they are there, they should be unmasked and well-identified, and they should carry body cameras.”

Ruiz rooted the explanation of her amendment in the recent death of former Kansas City resident Renee Good, who an ICE agent shot and killed at point blank range through Good’s windshield in Minneapolis.

“Tragedy always happens because people that get those kinds of jobs or go for those kinds of jobs don’t have a lot of training at all. And we saw,” Ruiz said. “We saw all the videos and you can see for yourself.”

Ruiz connected ICE activity across the country to Kansas City, describing the effects of an increased presence of immigration agents. Fewer people are going to work, the grocery store and schools, she said.

She mentioned news reports of a horde of ICE vehicles in Kansas City, Missouri, targeted ICE raids at gas stations and speculation of ICE using the Kansas City area as a staging ground, which has not been verified.

Schmoe, a Republican from Ottawa, proposed House Bill 2204 in 2025. It was the first piece of legislation debated on the House floor in the 2026 legislative session, which began Monday.

When Democrats pressed her to explain the motivation behind the bill, Schmoe said its purpose was to close “a loophole that can be exploited.”

“I had a group of my constituents come to me, and they were very concerned with global entities making decisions for Kansas, instead of Kansans,” she said.

During a March 2025 hearing for the bill, a senior legislative staff member called it “a statement bill as it is anything,” and called into question whether the international organizations targeted have any existing authority in the state.

Schmoe challenged Ruiz’s amendment, and a rules committee decided it was not germane, halting Ruiz’s effort.

The House voted Thursday to pass Schmoe’s bill along party lines, with 85 in favor and 35 against. It must pass the Senate before reaching the governor’s desk.