About 70 organizations, including churches, nonprofits and advocacy groups, have signed a letter asking Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano to deny the Virginia governor's request for immigration enforcement authority for state police.

Last month, Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R) asked Napolitano to approve a partnership, known as 287(g), between U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Virginia State Police. The partnership would allow state police to enforce federal immigration laws.

"Our organizations are deeply concerned because enforcement-only approaches have not been effective in fixing our broken immigration system," reads the letter from the Virginia Coalition of Latino Organizations. Asian-American advocacy groups also signed on to the letter.

The groups' chief concern is the potential for racial profiling, because Virginia does not require police to record demographic data on those they stop for traffic violations.

"Without this vital information, it will not be possible to verify whether or not profiling is a key determinant in who is stopped/searched," the letter reads.