Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks throughout a press convention in entrance of posters of those that legislation enforcement arrested, held on the ICE Enforcement and Removing Operations workplace on Might 1, 2025 in Miramar, Fla. Florida has issued its personal monetary incentives to encourage extra native police cooperation with ICE.
Joe Raedle/Getty Pictures North America
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Joe Raedle/Getty Pictures North America
At a press convention in March, Florida Chief Monetary Officer Blaise Ingoglia, flanked by American flags, had a group of huge checks to offer out. The cash was a part of a pool of $250 million from the state, and one after the other, 4 sheriffs posed with outsized novelty checks.
“Let’s begin giving the cash away,” Ingoglia informed the room. “I’m proud to offer out these checks to those sheriffs standing in entrance of me for all of the exhausting work that they have been doing, conserving our communities secure and serving to to deport prison unlawful aliens.”
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Workplace acquired round $100,000; the Escambia County Sheriff’s Workplace: practically $1 million; the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Workplace: greater than $280,000; and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Workplace: practically $50,000.
The counties obtained the cash after becoming a member of a federal program referred to as 287(g), which supplies native police the authority to arrest undocumented immigrants, usually the work of federal immigration officers. And the sheriffs had been celebratory: They’re getting some huge cash for cooperating, from each the state and federal authorities.
How a lot cash ICE has promised native police
Nationwide, the Division of Homeland Safety is promising $100,000 for brand new automobiles and probably tens of 1000’s extra in tools to legislation enforcement companies who signal on.
It additionally says it’s going to reimburse the salaries and advantages of officers in this system – and touts the potential for bonuses based mostly on an officer’s success find undocumented folks, just like a bounty hunter system.
A current report from FWD.us, a corporation advocating for prison justice and immigration reform, estimated that if each police company receives what DHS promised, the overall might quantity to as a lot as $2 billion in 2026 alone.
The 287(g) program has existed for many years. However Naureen Shah, director of presidency affairs for immigration on the ACLU, says the cash is unprecedented.
“We have by no means seen this monetary incentive scheme exist in any method with this program, and Congress by no means meant for ICE to be swooping in to those native jurisdictions and providing them cash in alternate to take part,” Shah says. “Police departments which are strapped for money, this might be a lifeline for them that seems to be fairly straightforward.”
On the company’s web site, ICE refers back to the program as a drive multiplier, and by its personal description, the Trump administration has “supercharged” it. When Trump started his second time period, there have been 135 of those partnerships. Now, there are greater than 1,700.
At his affirmation listening to in March, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin signaled he needs to see an excellent better shift to working carefully with native police, after the company’s violent method in cities like Minneapolis left two U.S. residents useless. Polls confirmed most Individuals thought the administration had gone too far.
What we find out about the place the cash goes
Like Florida, Texas started providing its personal grants this yr. The 2 states have probably the most agreements within the nation. Each have required all sheriffs working jails to hitch 287(g), and collectively they’ve awarded tens of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} thus far to native departments.
In Florida, state data present native police reported their plans to make use of the cash for tools like physique armor and license plate readers.
In a press release, DHS referred to as these partnerships “essential to having the sources” wanted to hold out its immigration agenda, however declined to offer NPR specifics on how a lot cash it has awarded.
There are snapshots into the place a number of the cash went. ICE introduced in September, as an example, that it gave police companies in Florida practically $40 million for automobiles and tools.
Felicity Rose, vp of prison justice analysis and coverage at FWD.us, famous the cash from this program might find yourself dwarfing the scale of the 2 largest federal grant applications awarded to native police, COPS and JAG-Byrne funds.
“The traditional authorities course of in america is that we all know the place taxpayer cash goes, as a result of it is actually essential that it not be wasted,” Rose says. “It is very, very regarding that there is so little transparency on this cash.”
What legislation enforcement says in regards to the cash
NPR reached out to dozens of police and sheriff’s departments to achieve a deeper understanding of their participation within the 287(g) program and what cash they’ve obtained. Most didn’t reply. Two sheriffs directed questions on federal funds again to ICE.
However legislation enforcement leaders at six companies did present data of funds or gave interviews.
In Texas, the Smith County Sheriff’s Workplace obtained greater than $340,000 from DHS for brand new tools and a Chevy Silverado, in keeping with data the division despatched.
Robert Bage, police chief for Fort Walton Seaside within the Florida panhandle, says his division obtained about $150,000 from ICE for a brand new car and tools. The state has accepted practically $300,000 for officer bonuses and an AI software program platform.
“In Florida, we’re required to cooperate with immigration officers. So if we are able to leverage our cooperation and get a better profit out of it, we’re going to take the better profit from leveraging our cooperation,” Bage says.
The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Workplace in Florida was awarded practically half one million {dollars} collectively from the state and federal authorities. Chief Deputy Randy Tifft informed NPR the funds will go towards a brand new car and tools, together with a fingerprint scanner and Apple AirPods that translate Spanish in actual time.
“It could be very tough for us to do what we do with out getting reimbursed,” Tifft says.
In Marion County, Fla., Sheriff Billy Woods says if he wasn’t utilizing federal cash, he must use native taxpayer cash to take part in this system.
“The federal authorities has funding for that. So what they’re doing, in essence, is fiscally accountable,” Woods says.
Bage, the Fort Walton Seaside police chief, says his officers in this system usually are not going out of their strategy to search for undocumented folks.
“A whole lot of them are on site visitors stops,” Bage says. “The 287g program now permits us to right away take that particular person into custody and switch them to the county jail the place they get picked up by immigration.”
However immigrant advocates say the site visitors cease itself is worrisome. The ACLU has documented instances it describes as “dragnet” immigration enforcement in some cities and counties with federal agreements.
There’s proof of that previously as effectively. A part of the 287(g) program had been discontinued in 2012, after the Justice Division discovered some collaborating police companies had engaged in what gave the impression to be racial profiling.
Now that President Trump has introduced it again, immigrant advocates say including cash to the equation will enhance the chance of these ways getting used.
Jaclyn Diaz contributed reporting.
