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San Antonio-area lawmakers are calling on six Bexar County municipalities to end their partnerships with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying the agreements could undermine public trust and pull local police away from their primary duties.
The agreements, known as 287(g) partnerships, allow ICE to delegate certain immigration-enforcement authority to trained state and local law enforcement officers.
The six Bexar County municipalities participating in the program are Balcones Heights, China Grove, Hollywood Park, St. Hedwig, Sandy Oaks and Von Ormy.
The agreements have expanded in the San Antonio area this year. China Grove, St. Hedwig and Hollywood Park joined the program in the spring, following Balcones Heights. The six municipalities are participating under the program's Task Force Model, which gives trained officers authority to perform certain immigration enforcement functions during routine police work.
At a news conference Wednesday, U.S. Reps. Joaquin Castro and Greg Casar, along with state Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer and state Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins, urged the cities to reconsider.
Castro said federal money may be one reason local governments are participating.
“I believe that a big part of the reason that they're doing this is they're trying to balance their budgets with this money, because they receive money for each officer that is trained to carry out this partnership with ICE. Bear in mind that ICE has become a rogue, abusive organization under Donald Trump.”
ICE says the Task Force Model allows local officers to enforce limited immigration authority during routine police duties while under ICE supervision.
That authority is different from simply cooperating with federal immigration officials.
Under the Task Force Model, participating officers can question people about their immigration status and, in certain circumstances authorized by federal law and their agreements with ICE, make immigration-related arrests and serve immigration warrants. The officers must be trained and authorized by ICE before exercising those delegated powers.
That means an officer participating in the program could encounter a person during an otherwise routine police interaction — such as a traffic stop — and potentially take immigration-related enforcement action within the limits of the officer's delegated authority.
Officers without a 287(g) agreement do not have that delegated federal authority. They continue to enforce state and local laws and can contact ICE when federal immigration issues arise, but they do not become immigration officers through the 287(g) program.
Casar said that distinction is important because local officers could be diverted from regular police work.
“What's happening here with these 287(g) agreements is cities giving up their police officers from their police duties and giving them over for ICE. I have talked to virtually no one in town that thinks that's a good idea.” Casar added, “By taking this money, you are signing yourself up for those law enforcement officers that you need to be getting to the 911 call because there's a crime in progress or because there's a major car accident. Now they could be diverted by ICE for doing something that nobody here is asking for people to do, which is separate families, arrest innocent people.”
Supporters of the agreements have described them differently. In a March report by the San Antonio Report, local law enforcement officials said the partnerships formalize cooperation with federal agencies and provide specialized training and resources. Hollywood Park Police Chief Shad Prichard said his department did not intend to conduct immigration raids or business checks and would handle immigration-related situations only as they arose during normal police interactions.
China Grove Police Chief Ralph Sramek similarly said the agreement would make officers more proficient in immigration enforcement areas already covered by Texas law.
China Grove Mayor David Johnson confirmed in an email to TPR that his office receives $185,000, plus an additional $24,000 in reimbursements for participating in the 287(g) program.
TPR also contacted the mayors of Balcones Heights, Hollywood Park, St. Hedwig, Sandy Oaks and Von Ormy, seeking information about the city's agreement and financial arrangements. TPR had not receive responses by the time of publication.
The exact amount of total federal funding expected by the six Bexar County municipalities has not been publicly disclosed.
Texas State Representative Trey Martinez Fischer said the public should have had a greater role in deciding whether local agencies enter the federal program.
“Where was the discussion in all of this? Where was the community input? Where was the feedback? Where was the pro and con? And what would prevent a city leader, a city mayor, a city manager from putting this up for a public hearing and taking public comment?”
In a June article of the San Antonio Report, Bexar County Precinct 3 Constable Mark Vojvodich said opposition voiced during a County Commissioners Court meeting prompted his office to halt plans to pursue an expanded cooperation agreement with ICE.
Representative Barbara Gervin-Hawkins said immigration enforcement can also affect whether residents feel comfortable contacting police.
“It impacts our communities and it impacts our young people who are being terrorized. Most importantly, it erodes the community trust within our public safety,” said Gervin-Hawkins. “I know that there are budget shortages in different cities and municipalities. But here's the deal: Let's not sell out. Let's not sell out to wrong.”
The lawmakers have also raised questions about the financial arrangements behind the agreements. They want the six mayors to disclose how many officers will receive 287(g) authority, the costs of training and enforcement, and how much federal reimbursement their cities expect to receive.
ICE has said the program can provide participating agencies with specialized training and other resources. The San Antonio Report previously reported that ICE materials outlined potential financial support, including reimbursement for officer salaries and overtime and grants for equipment and vehicles.
The six local agreements are separate from the city of San Antonio. San Antonio Police Department officers are not participants in the 287(g) program, although state law requires local agencies to cooperate with federal immigration authorities in certain circumstances.
The Bexar County Sheriff's Office also has a 287(g) agreement, but under the more limited Warrant Service Officer model, which applies to people already in county custody.
The expansion of local participation comes as federal officials push to increase the use of 287(g) agreements nationwide. At the same time, San Antonio and Bexar County officials have opposed a separate federal effort to expand immigration detention capacity in the city.
The lawmakers are now asking the six mayors to reconsider their agreements and respond to questions about how the partnerships affect local police staffing, budgets and residents.
