( CNN ) -- Alabama officials Monday asked the full 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to reinstate portions of a tough law targeting illegal immigrants after a three-judge panel blocked those provisions . `` We are filing this based on principle , '' Alabama Gov . Robert Bentley , a Republican , said in a statement announcing the move . `` As the governor of Alabama , I have a duty to uphold and defend Alabama law . Federal courts should not restrain state governments in a way that is contrary to the U.S . Constitution . '' The Obama administration took Alabama to court over the law , arguing that the legislation and a similar act in Georgia law encroached on federal authority . Undocumented immigrants face arrest as they proclaim , 'No papers , no fear ' The judges blocked parts of the Alabama law in August , including language that makes it a crime for undocumented immigrants to work or solicit work ; imposed criminal penalties to hide `` an alien '' or rent property to anyone in the United States illegally ; and required state officials to check the immigration status of children in public schools . The judges let stand one of the most controversial portions of the law , allowing local and state police check a person 's immigration status while enforcing other laws . The ruling followed a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that upheld a similar law in Arizona despite a federal challenge . Mary Bauer , the legal director for the Montgomery-based Southern Poverty Law Center , called the law `` illegal and immoral '' and said the center was confident the judges ' ruling would stand . `` We are disappointed that the state is continuing to stand behind this unjust and hateful law , which has brought so much shame and ridicule upon the state , '' Bauer said in a written statement . What 's next in Arizona immigration battle ? CNN 's Catherine Shoichet and Joe Sutton contributed to this report .
`` We are filing this based on principle , '' Alabama 's governor says . A three-judge panel struck down portions of the Alabama law in August . The Southern Poverty Law Center calls the law `` illegal and immoral ''