Aug. 20, 2006 – Farmers Branch City Council member Tim O'Hare unveils his ideas that would make it tougher for illegal immigrants to live and work in the city. They include prohibiting landlords from leasing to illegal immigrants, penalizing businesses that employ them, making English the city's official language and ceasing publication of any documents in Spanish, and eliminating subsidies for illegal immigrants in the city's youth programs. Civil-rights activists immediately threaten lawsuits.

Aug. 26, 2006 – More than 300 protesters at Farmers Branch City Hall criticize Mr. O'Hare's ideas.

Sept. 5, 2006 – City Council members choose not to go forward with ordinances that would have restricted illegal immigrants from living and working in the city. They vow to pursue the measures if Congress doesn't come up with a plan to enforce existing laws and reach an agreement on immigration reform by the end of the year.

Sept. 9, 2006 – Mr. O'Hare says the anti-immigration issue is not dead, and the city's attorneys are crafting an ordinance that is likely to go to the City Council before the end of the year.

Nov. 13, 2006 – The City Council, following a discussion in closed session, unanimously adopts strict measures against illegal immigrants, requiring apartment renters to provide proof of citizenship or residency and making English the city's official language. It also agrees to let police apply to participate in a federal program that would enable them to check the residency status of suspects in custody and initiate deportation proceedings in certain cases. Community leaders said they will sue the city over the decisions.

Nov. 30, 2006 – The volunteer organization Let the Voters Decide launches a petition drive for Farmers Branch residents seeking a citywide vote on the ordinance. The organization vows to get five percent of registered voters to sign a petition that mandates a public vote.

Dec. 4, 2006 – Farmers Branch resident Guillermo Ramos sues the city and City Council members, saying council members violated state open meetings laws by deliberating immigration-related ordinances and policies behind closed doors. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of Mr. Ramos by the Bickel & Brewer Storefront, the community service affiliate of the law firm of Bickel & Brewer.

Dec. 9, 2006 – Supporters of the controversial ordinances attack the petition drive. Among the more outrageous allegations against the petition gatherers is that they are threatening to deport Latinos who don’t sign the petition.

Dec. 13, 2006 – Petition organizers turn in petitions to the city secretary, saying they have more than the 721 signatures needed to force the City Council to repeal the ordinance banning apartment managers from leasing to illegal immigrants or to call a special election on the issue. In total, Let the Voters Decide gathered more than 1,700 signatures from community residents. More than 90 percent of the 1,246 signatures from registered voters come from non-Latinos.

Dec. 21, 2006 – The city announces that it has created a legal defense fund. As city legal fees rise to beyond $50,000, the fund reports it has collected $122.

Dec. 22, 2006 – Three Farmers Branch apartment complexes sue the city, asking that the new ordinance be declared unconstitutional. The lawsuit is filed by the Bickel & Brewer Storefront.

Dec. 26, 2006 – The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Texas, along with the ACLU's National Immigrants' Rights Project, file a lawsuit challenging the ordinance.

Dec. 27, 2006 – Farmers Branch certifies the petition seeking to force the City Council to repeal the apartment ordinance or force an election on it.

Jan. 4, 2007 – With the implementation of the ordinance a week away, there is still no clear plan for enforcing the ordinance. News reports declare, “Plan for FB apartment law sketchy.”

Jan. 8, 2007 – The City Council decides to hold an election May 12 on the ordinance banning apartment rentals to illegal immigrants. Council members decide to implement the ordinance on Jan. 12.

Jan. 11, 2007 – District Court Judge Bruce Priddy issues a temporary restraining order delaying enforcement of the ordinance in response to a request from Mr. Ramos, who sued the city over alleged Open Meetings Act violations. A group of merchants files the fourth lawsuit against the city, saying the ordinance and the resolution making English the city's official language have hurt their businesses.

Jan. 12, 2007 – One of the most successful grassroots efforts in state history enters a new phase, as business and community leaders from Let the Voters Decide announce a campaign to strike down Ordinance 2892 – the controversial immigration “landlord ordinance.”

Jan. 15, 2007 – The Dallas Bishop publicly criticizes the Farmers Branch ordinance, referring to the “siege mentality” adopted by many in the city.

Jan. 17, 2007 – The City Council, after deliberating in a closed session, directs the city attorney to draft an ordinance for consideration Monday that would repeal the apartment ordinance. Council members also ask that the ordinance to be put before them Monday include revised apartment licensing standards regarding the citizenship or immigration requirements. That ordinance would only go into effect if voters approve on May 12.

Jan. 22, 2007 – The City Council adopts Ordinance 2903 – a slightly different version of Ordinance 2982. The measure will go into effect May 22 if it is approved by voters in a citywide election May 12.

Jan. 27, 2007 – Let the Voters Decide launches an ambitious and far reaching voter registration drive. The group deputizes volunteers, begins community outreach and establishes a campaign headquarters operation. The effort immediately earns endorsements from a broad range of business, political and community organizations opposed to Ordinance 2903.

Feb. 23, 2007 – The Apartment Association of Greater Dallas endorses Let the Voters Decide and vows to help fight against Ordinance 2903. The association tells the Dallas Business Journal that the ordinance unfairly penalizes Farmers Branch apartment communities and could eventually cost the business community millions of dollars in lost economic gains.

Mar. 28, 2007 – A Texas House committee chairman kills dozens of immigration-related bills at the state level, saying he doesn’t want legislators to waste time debating proposals that are divisive, unconstitutional or have the potential to induce long court battles.

Apr. 2, 2007 – During a Dallas mayoral forum every candidate states that the city of Farmers Branch is wrong to battle illegal immigration by passing local ordinances. Candidate Gary Griffith is quoted in the Dallas Morning News as saying, “If there’s ever a model to not follow, it’s what we’ve got there.” Each candidate went on to express support for federal immigration reform.

Apr. 28, 2007 – A group of former Farmers Branch mayors, city council members and community leaders form a committee called ‘Taxpayers Against 2903.’ The group projects the legal costs to the city could be as much as $5 million over the next five years. Former Mayor Dave Blair says, “In the 25 years I’ve served Farmers Branch as an elected official and community volunteer, this is by far the worst thing I’ve ever seen in our community.”

May. 7, 2007 – The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board calls Farmers Branch vote a “pointless sideshow.” Board states that “enforcing this pointless law wouldn’t be cheap, if even possible.” Board also writes, “…rest assured that pretty close to every other local leader understands that immigration is a federal problem that should be resolved at the federal level, by an elected Congress.”

May. 8, 2007 – Mayor Bob Phelps, along with former Mayor David Blaire and former City Manager Richard Escalante, releases a letter stating he is in opposition to Ordinance 2903. The mayor writes, “We believe this is the worst ordinance ever considered by a Farmers Branch City Council. Continuing this course of action will create a financial and social crisis in our community that will take years to recover from.”

May 12, 2007 – Farmers Branch has a record voter turnout, with 5,999 people casting a ballot. Unofficial results show 4,058 voters voted for the ordinance, while 1,941 voted against the ordinance. The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board writes, “Voters in this inner-ring northern suburb delivered the biggest Election Day disappointment… The Farmers Branch measure is unworkable and probably unenforceable.”

May 16, 2007 – Attorneys for the ACLU and MALDEF file a motion in federal court, asking that a judge block the ordinance from going into effect on May 12.

May 17, 2007 – Attorneys at the Bickel & Brewer Storefront file a motion in federal court, also asking that a judge block the ordinance from going into effect. Attorneys say the ordinance is unconstitutional because it is so vague that it denies apartment owners and managers due process.

May 21, 2007 – A federal judge grants a temporary restraining order, blocking Ordinance 2903 from taking effect. Judge Sam Lindsay writes in his 20-page order, "The court recognizes that illegal immigration is a major problem in this country, and one who asserts otherwise ignores reality. The court also fully understands the frustration of cities attempting to address a national problem that the federal government should handle; however, such frustration, no matter how great, cannot serve as a basis to pass an ordinance that conflicts with federal law." A hearing will be held within 10 days. On this same day, Bickel & Brewer Storefront, on behalf of client Guillermo Ramos, files another state action alleging the City Council violated the Texas Open Meetings Act in conjunction with Ordinance 2903.

June 6, 2007 – Federal Judge Sam Lindsay extends the temporary restraining order for an additional two weeks, after a three-hour preliminary injunction hearing. During the hearing, lawyers for the city of Farmers Branch stated that there were “drafting issues” with the ordinance.

June 19, 2007 – Federal Judge Sam Lindsay grants a preliminary injunction – prohibiting the city’s enforcement of the ordinance until trial. In his order, Judge Lindsay wrote, "All in all, the court concludes that only the federal government may determine whether an individual is legally in the United States. Farmers Branch, rather than deferring to the federal government's determination of immigration status, has created its own classification scheme for determining which non-citizens may rent an apartment in that city.” Attorneys for the city of Farmers Branch say they plan to appeal the ruling, while the Bickel & Brewer Storefront vows to prepare for trial and pursue damages on behalf of its clients, apartment owners and managers.

October 12, 2007 – The Texas 5th District Court of Appeals in Dallas rejects the city’s appeal to dismiss a lawsuit that claims the Farmers Branch City Council violated the state’s open meetings law. “If a governmental body illegally deliberates and decides an issue in a closed session, repealing the action so that it can be retaken in a later setting does not vindicate the very right protected” by the Texas Open Meetings Act, Judge Molly Francis wrote.

Jan. 22, 2008 – The City Council passes Ordinance 2952, the third ordinance relating to the issue of illegal immigration.

May 28, 2008 – U.S. District Court Judge Sam Lindsay issues a permanent injunction against Ordinance 2903, declaring that the ordinance is unconstitutional. In his 35-page decision, Lindsay states that, “The court concludes that only the federal government may determine whether an individual is legally in the United States.”

August 29, 2008 – U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay issues a final judgment, permanently stopping the city of Farmers Branch from enforcing Ordinance 2903. Farmers Branch city officials declare that they will begin enforcing a similar, but different ordinance in 15 days. Ordinance 2952 would require prospective tenants to get a rental license from the city. The city would attempt to verify the applicant’s legal status before approving the license.

September 3, 2008 – The Bickel & Brewer Storefront, on behalf of Farmers Branch apartment complex owners and a former city councilor, file a lawsuit in federal court in an attempt to stop the city from implementing Ordinance 2952. The lawsuit claims that, among other things, the city is violating federal housing laws by denying housing based on ethnicity and national origin.

September 12, 2008 – U.S. District Court Judge Jane Boyle issues a temporary restraining order, banning the city of Farmers Branch from implementing Ordinance 2952. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that Judge Boyle ruled, “that those who sued the city are likely to prevail at trial with their argument that the city is overstepping its bounds by enforcing areas of immigration law that are reserved only for the federal government.”

December 4, 2008 – District Court Judge Bruce Priddy finds that the city of Farmers Branch has not turned over officials' e-mails and other records regarding Ordinance 2903, despite a court order demanding that the city do so. The judge appoints himself to oversee production of the materials, and sanctions the city of Farmers Branch by deciding to hire a firm that specializes in retrieving electronic information and requiring the city to pay for the costs. The information was requested as part of a lawsuit alleging city officials violated the Texas Open Meetings Act when they drafted and approved the ordinance.

December 16, 2008 – Farmers Branch resident and former city council member Carol Dingman files suit against the City of Farmers Branch. She claims the city is not producing legal bills that would show how much money is being spent on the immigration ordinances – despite multiple rulings from Texas Attorney General’s Office stating the city must turn over the documents.

April 8, 2009 – The Farmers Branch City Council agrees to pay $250,000 to apartment operators and $220,000 to advocacy organizations who sued over Ordinance 2903. The decision comes after a federal judge found the ordinance unconstitutional and ruled that the city would be responsible for paying attorney’s fees from the suit. The Associated Press reports that the city has now paid more than $2 million in legal fees defending the various immigration ordinances.

May 27, 2009 – Briefing on motions for summary judgment completed in connection with the federal case.

March 24, 2010 – United States District Judge Jane J. Boyle issues a permanent injunction against Farmers Branch Ordinance 2952, prohibiting the city from enforcing the ordinance. In her ruling Judge Boyle wrote, "Ordinance 2952 is a regulation of immigration and preempted by the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution because the authority to regulate immigration is exclusively a federal power.”

* From public reports