Nation’s Mayors Urge U.S. Senators to Accompany Federal Immigration Enforcement Funding with Reforms

In a new letter, bipartisan U.S. Conference of Mayors warns that approving additional funding for ICE and CBP without commitment to reform their practices would be a tragic mistake

WASHINGTON, D.C. - As the U.S. Senate considers a second reconciliation bill that would provide additional funding for federal immigration enforcement through FY 2029, the bipartisan U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) is urging senators to ensure that any new funding for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is tied to meaningful procedural reforms.

In a letter sent to senators on Monday, USCM CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran expressed deep concern that Congress could again approve unprecedented levels of immigration enforcement funding without any requirements to reform their enforcement procedures.

The letter is based on an emergency resolution adopted by the Conference in March calling on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to require federal immigration agents to meet the same standards of professionalism and accountability expected of local law enforcement agencies. The resolution urges federal agencies to:

• Stop wearing face masks and military-style uniforms;
• Visibly display their agency, ID number and last name on their uniforms;
• Use body-worn and vehicle cameras when interacting with the public and require the storage and access of footage recorded;
• Reinstate ICE's sensitive locations policy to prohibit immigration actions at schools, hospitals, institutions of worship, courts, polling locations on election day, and other such locations;
• Stop conducting stops, questioning and searches based on an individual's presence at certain locations, their job, their spoken language and accent or their race and ethnicity; and
• Have a judicial warrant before entering publicly owned facilities or private property to pursue individuals, thus helping to end indiscriminate arrests.

In the letter, Cochran asserts:

"Most Americans have serious concerns with the way immigration enforcement is being conducted in this country, as do America's mayors and many state and local law enforcement leaders. As you consider providing even more money for immigration enforcement, we urge you to use this moment to find a way to require DHS to institute these badly needed reforms now."

The full letter appears below.

Dear Senator:

I write on behalf of the nation's mayors out of deep concern that ICE and CBP will again be funded at unprecedented levels to carry out mass arrests, detentions and deportations without any requirements to reform their procedures. Failing to secure such commitments would leave our residents and cities vulnerable to actions that threaten community safety and undermine public trust.

It is clear that the second reconciliation bill under consideration would provide additional funding for federal immigration enforcement through FY 2029 on top of what last year's reconciliation bill provided for the same purpose. Funding ICE and CBP at such high levels without accompanying commitments to reform their practices would be a tragic outcome.

In March, the U.S. Conference of Mayors adopted an emergency resolution urging all federal law enforcement agencies to model the professionalism and care that we expect from our local law enforcement agencies. Specifically, the resolution called on the Department of Homeland Security to immediately require ICE and other federal agents to:

• Stop wearing face masks and military-style uniforms;
• Visibly display their agency, ID number and last name on their uniforms;
• Use body-worn and vehicle cameras when interacting with the public and require the storage and access of footage recorded;
• Reinstate ICE's sensitive locations policy to prohibit immigration actions at schools, hospitals, institutions of worship, courts, polling locations on election day and other such locations;
• Stop conducting stops, questioning and searches based on an individual's presence at certain locations, their job, their spoken language and accent or their race and ethnicity; and
• Have a judicial warrant before entering publicly owned facilities or private property to pursue individuals, thus helping to end indiscriminate arrests.

Most Americans have serious concerns with the way immigration enforcement is being conducted in this country, as do America's mayors and many state and local law enforcement leaders. As you consider providing even more money for immigration enforcement, we urge you to use this moment to find a way to require DHS to institute these badly needed reforms now.

Sincerely,

Tom Cochran, CEO and Executive Director