Religious leaders say that a bill passed by the West Virginia House of Delegates this week could criminalize faith-based groups that provide assistance to undocumented immigrants.

HB 5031 changes the definition of “human smuggling” in state code to transporting or harboring individuals who are known to be in the country “with actual knowledge” of their illegal status. 

The bill would penalize an individual or entity that helped an immigrant who entered “the United States legally…