Enrollment in the 287(g) program, which deputizes local police to do federal immigration enforcement, has exploded in recent weeks—but the administration has been surprisingly silent.
Thanks for sharing this! In case it's helpful for anyone else, I plugged Austin's data into Google Looker to look at some of the patterns mentioned in the article, re: state-by-state comparison and shifts in the type of agreement signed.
Just realized I hadn't updated the share settings for the actual data in Looker. The report (and data) should now be viewable publicly via the link above!
"The Trump administration is building an army of deportation officers out of state and local law enforcement agencies at a scale that we have never seen before. "
I think "Army" is a good term to describe this radical increase in agencies/persons who can perform immigration activities. We have criminalized simply being a non-Anglo human being in the US. We have been "invaded" by a militaristic, narrow mindset that will not lead to peace and prosperity for anyone.
Thank you for this substack. I am very concerned about this explosion in 287g agreements and I am horrified what to expect if by any chance we elect a Republican governor in New Jersey.
I suspected as much. I was just saying to my husband the other day, after seeing men dressed in black hoodies and masked faces, strong-arming people off the streets and taking them away to god knows where, "I'll bet that Trump has called on the Proud Boys he let out of prison, and other militia groups, to do his dirty work." Truly horrifying. 🙁
I live on “the border” in the US - the Canadian border, that is. We have issues specific to our location - and many worries. I hope you write about our northern border states’ involvement, if any, with 287s. Thanks for this valuable article, Austin.
Thank you for this research. I live in Atlanta. There’s a street called Buford Highway that is almost 50 miles long that starts in Atlanta but ends in Buford, Georgia. This long street is filled with every ethnicity known to humans. One section is filled with Mexican restaurants, then there’s Chinese, then Caribbean, then Thai. This section of Atlanta is in the Buckhead area and I know it has been a target for ICE for decades.
Are you planning on (or know if anyone is already) systematically scraping and archiving the spreadsheets as they get posted?
The updates seem scattershot enough—sometimes multiple times a day and sometimes not at all, sometimes tweaking the filename templates, sometimes updating the "As of..." text without updating the spreadsheets and vice-versa—that the WBM isn't reliably catching every one, and ICE doesn't seem to be leaving the links live for more than one or two revisions in a row these days.
Well, it looks like Florida public universities are entering into these 287(g) agreements. I suspect that other universities in particular states will follow. I am concerned that with universities doing this, some other kinds of organizations whose mission is service rather than law enforcement, will follow. This is very bad news for the well-being of our nation.
This seems incredibly odd. Would you or someone else you know be able to maybe comment on that? I guess I'm getting increasingly worried that ICE is granting TFMs to pretty much anyone that applies.
Thank you for this important work. A small note: In footnote (9), you say, "I am not aware of any county commissioners adopting sanctuary policies." The Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco is such a county body. The City of San Francisco comprises the entirety of the county, and the City and County have an integrated form of government in which the Board of Supervisors (a county body) also performs the functions that would be performed by a city council. SF City and County Sanctuary Ordinance: https://www.sf.gov/information--sanctuary-city-ordinance
Thanks for sharing this! In case it's helpful for anyone else, I plugged Austin's data into Google Looker to look at some of the patterns mentioned in the article, re: state-by-state comparison and shifts in the type of agreement signed.
https://lookerstudio.google.com/reporting/1997f128-a8a7-4cfc-be1c-6d17a9afdcd0
Great recommendation!
Just realized I hadn't updated the share settings for the actual data in Looker. The report (and data) should now be viewable publicly via the link above!
This is fantastic. Ty for sharing
Sorry about that! I've just fixed the source data but please let me know if you still can't access!
https://lookerstudio.google.com/reporting/1997f128-a8a7-4cfc-be1c-6d17a9afdcd0
"The Trump administration is building an army of deportation officers out of state and local law enforcement agencies at a scale that we have never seen before. "
I think "Army" is a good term to describe this radical increase in agencies/persons who can perform immigration activities. We have criminalized simply being a non-Anglo human being in the US. We have been "invaded" by a militaristic, narrow mindset that will not lead to peace and prosperity for anyone.
Thank you for this substack. I am very concerned about this explosion in 287g agreements and I am horrified what to expect if by any chance we elect a Republican governor in New Jersey.
I suspected as much. I was just saying to my husband the other day, after seeing men dressed in black hoodies and masked faces, strong-arming people off the streets and taking them away to god knows where, "I'll bet that Trump has called on the Proud Boys he let out of prison, and other militia groups, to do his dirty work." Truly horrifying. 🙁
This is really interesting. Thank you for sharing and including the updated findings
I live on “the border” in the US - the Canadian border, that is. We have issues specific to our location - and many worries. I hope you write about our northern border states’ involvement, if any, with 287s. Thanks for this valuable article, Austin.
Thank you for this research. I live in Atlanta. There’s a street called Buford Highway that is almost 50 miles long that starts in Atlanta but ends in Buford, Georgia. This long street is filled with every ethnicity known to humans. One section is filled with Mexican restaurants, then there’s Chinese, then Caribbean, then Thai. This section of Atlanta is in the Buckhead area and I know it has been a target for ICE for decades.
I know Buford Highway well! Love that whole area.
Me too!!
Are you planning on (or know if anyone is already) systematically scraping and archiving the spreadsheets as they get posted?
The updates seem scattershot enough—sometimes multiple times a day and sometimes not at all, sometimes tweaking the filename templates, sometimes updating the "As of..." text without updating the spreadsheets and vice-versa—that the WBM isn't reliably catching every one, and ICE doesn't seem to be leaving the links live for more than one or two revisions in a row these days.
Well, it looks like Florida public universities are entering into these 287(g) agreements. I suspect that other universities in particular states will follow. I am concerned that with universities doing this, some other kinds of organizations whose mission is service rather than law enforcement, will follow. This is very bad news for the well-being of our nation.
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/government/state-policy/2025/04/16/least-10-florida-universities-have-signed-ice-agreements?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=7d0545f458-DNU_2021_COPY_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-7d0545f458-236993177&mc_cid=7d0545f458&mc_eid=d42b3fdc13
Austin, amazing write-up!
Upon looking at the current 287(g) Participating Agencies, I see there is a "Florida Department of Lottery Services" listed with a Support Type of Task Force Model. You can see their MOA here: https://www.ice.gov/doclib/287gMOA/Florida_Dept_of_Lottery_Division_of_Security_State_FL_TFM_04.23.25.pdf
This seems incredibly odd. Would you or someone else you know be able to maybe comment on that? I guess I'm getting increasingly worried that ICE is granting TFMs to pretty much anyone that applies.
Thank you for this important work. A small note: In footnote (9), you say, "I am not aware of any county commissioners adopting sanctuary policies." The Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco is such a county body. The City of San Francisco comprises the entirety of the county, and the City and County have an integrated form of government in which the Board of Supervisors (a county body) also performs the functions that would be performed by a city council. SF City and County Sanctuary Ordinance: https://www.sf.gov/information--sanctuary-city-ordinance
Rump needs to be removed and arrested