Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

Elizabeth Villafranca (center) and other volunteers put signs together before going around Farmers Branch to spread awareness and gain support for this May's election.

The U.S. Justice Department is looking into complaints that supporters of a crackdown on illegal immigrants in Farmers Branch are bullying Hispanic residents and asking about their legal status in a door-to-door campaign that appears to be heating up.

Some residents said that they were told crackdowns were coming and that they were strong-armed into putting up campaign yard signs supporting an ordinance to ban renting apartments to most illegal immigrants.

Ordinance supporters denied that Hispanic residents are being harassed. And they countered that their yard signs were yanked by anti-ordinance factions and that police were called Sunday to investigate.

Rick Johnson, a Farmers Branch resident and activist in support of the ordinance, denied that his group was harassing residents.

"We're about following the law, and none of our individuals have broken the law or would break the law," he said. "We welcome anyone who has a visa."

Mr. Johnson said some residents disclosed that they were not citizens, but that no one was threatened with a coming "crackdown."

Some were told that "the rules are going to change in the near future and they might want to seek to become legal residents," he said. But "our side did not threaten anyone."

Andrew Ames, spokesman for the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., said: "We are aware of these allegations, and we are reviewing information related to the allegations."

He declined to give any more detail.

The Justice Department has requested a videotape of last week's Farmers Branch City Council meeting, said Elizabeth Villafranca, a co-owner of a Cuquita's restaurant in Farmers Branch and the local leader for the League of United Latin American Citizens.

"They are intimidating people," including first-time voters who registered during the anti-ordinance faction's registration campaign, Ms. Villafranca said.

Farmers Branch, a suburb of 27,500 residents, is the first Texas city to attempt a renters ordinance that cracks down on illegal immigrants.

Across Texas, many mayors and political activists are waiting to see how the Farmers Branch ordinance fares and wondering what the outcome could mean for their cities.

Frustrated with the broken immigration system, some cities and states are taking matters into their own hands, even as Congress prepares to once again overhaul immigration policy. Most notably, a bipartisan House bill recently emerged that would provide tough enforcement, a path to legalization and a guest worker program.

Debate over the Farmers Branch ordinance has inspired lawsuits, a successful effort to place it on the May 12 ballot and voter-registration drives.

Both sides have marshaled forces and created Web sites and are campaigning at night and on weekends. Those who back the ordinance call themselves Support Farmers Branch. Those against it call themselves Let the Voters Decide.

In Farmers Branch, Annel Guerrero said she was asked her legal status when she told campaigners that she didn't vote.

"I said, 'Listen, the elections don't interest me because I can't vote,' " said Ms. Guerrero, in Spanish. "He asked if I had papers and how was I here."

Another Farmers Branch resident, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, said he had a similar experience.

"I had a problem with this campaign member who came and asked me impolite questions, uncouth questions, such as are you illegally here," he said. "He said, 'I don't know where you are from or if you are a U.S. citizen or not, but I just want you to know that the law is going to be enforced and they are going to kick you out.' "

Ana Reyes, who lives in Farmers Branch and has been fighting the ordinance, said: "They are taking advantage of these Hispanic families with limited English."

On Tuesday, Farmers Branch City Council member Tim O'Hare denied that the pro-ordinance camp threatened people.

"I have not asked any Hispanic if they are here legally," he said. "I haven't heard of intimidation of anyone"

And Mr. Johnson complained that Support Farmers Branch has had "droves" of yard signs disappear. A substantial number of the 500 printed are gone, he said. The group called police Sunday about the problem, he said.

Farmers Branch spokesman Tom Bryson called the dispute a "misunderstanding." No charges were made or offenses committed, Mr. Bryson said.

Under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, employers may ask about people's legal status. But at least one campaign expert said Tuesday that the protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 do not extend to those who aren't citizens.

Amendments to the Voting Rights Act have addressed gerrymandering and at-large districts in Texas that impeded blacks and Latinos from acquiring political representation. There are now voting protections for language minorities, such as those within the Asian and Latino communities.

But the act covers voters, and illegal immigrants and legal permanent residents can't vote, said Toni Pippins-Poole, Dallas County assistant elections administrator. "The Voting Rights Act protects our voters and is only for those who are registered to vote," Ms. Pippins-Poole said.

Generally, immigrant rights activists advise illegal immigrants that they can refuse to answer questions about their legal status when not related to a job matter covered by the Immigration Reform and Control Act.

Know-your-rights campaigns are increasing in the U.S. as federal immigration raids have picked up steam.

Staff writer Katherine Leal Unmuth contributed to this report.

The fight over a proposed anti-illegal immigrant measure in Farmers Branch is dividing the city. Ordinance 2903 would ban apartment complexes from renting to most illegal immigrants.

PRO ORDINANCE:

• Supporters say they just want the city to uphold federal laws by making it harder for illegal immigrants to live in Farmers Branch.

• They want their actions to spread to other cities.

Members of Support Farmers Branch say the fight has become one of us vs. them, but not one of Anglos vs. Hispanics.

ANTI-ORDINANCE:

• Opposed residents say the ordinance is mean-spirited, discriminatory and bad for business.

• They say it is wrong to ask people to work, but not live, in the city.

The measure has sparked a counterattack from a platoon of political activists, many of them from outside the suburb.