Clinton signs a sweeping immigration overhaul that expands deportation powers and creates state-federal enforcement partnerships

President Bill Clinton signed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA), dramatically expanding federal immigration enforcement mechanisms. The law introduced expedited removal proceedings, created three- and ten-year bars for unlawfully present immigrants who leave and try to return, broadened the definition of aggravated felony to include crimes with one-year sentences, and authorized 5,000 additional Border Patrol agents. IIRIRA also created the 287(g) program allowing state and local law enforcement to assist in federal immigration enforcement, but only under direct federal supervision and formal agreement -- a structure that later courts cited when evaluating Texas SB4.