McBride, Quigley, Jayapal, Foushee Reintroduce PROTECT Immigration Act to Keep Local Police Focused on Public Safety

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Representative Sarah McBride (DE-At-Large) joined Representatives Mike Quigley (IL-05), Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), and Valerie Foushee (NC-04) in reintroducing the Protecting the Rights of Towns Against Federal Enforcement Contrary to Constitutional Tenets (PROTECT) Immigration Act, legislation to end the federal government's practice of deputizing state and local law enforcement officers to enforce immigration law. A livestream of the press conference is available here and Rep. McBride's full remarks can be found here.

The PROTECT Immigration Act would repeal the statutory authority for the Department of Homeland Security's 287(g) program, which allows DHS to enter into agreements with local police departments to carry out federal immigration enforcement. It would also clarify that state and local law enforcement do not have "inherent authority" to arrest individuals for suspected civil immigration violations. Advocates and law enforcement leaders have long warned that the program undermines public safety by eroding trust between police and the communities they serve.

"I'm proud to co-lead this legislation with Congressman Quigley to restore trust, safety, and integrity to our immigration system,"said Rep. McBride. "For too long, the 287(g) program has drained local resources, fueled racial profiling, and made communities less safe - and it's time we end it. The PROTECT Immigration Act makes clear that immigration enforcement belongs with trained federal authorities, guaranteeing that local law enforcement can focus exclusively on keeping our communities safe. This bill would take a step toward restoring trust between local communities and police departments so every family can live with dignity and without fear."

The Trump administration has rapidly expanded the 287(g) program, using it as a tool to advance a mass deportation agenda that has sown fear in immigrant communities and diverted local law enforcement away from core public safety responsibilities.

"The Trump administration just spent months terrorizing immigrants in the Chicagoland area. Their actions led to domestic violence victims fleeing a courthouse rather than receive restraining orders against their abusers, all out of fear that ICE or local law enforcement would detain and deport them," said Rep. Quigley. "I met with immigrants and their neighbors who are afraid to call for help or report crimes in their neighborhoods because of Trump's deliberate erosion of trust between communities and local police. And now the Trump administration is running ads targeting local police and offering $50,000 signing bonuses to pull critical law enforcement away from day-to-day policing in order to arrest and detain hardworking immigrants with no criminal records. We must bring an end to the 287(g) program and cut off one of the avenues this administration has exploited to intimidate immigrant communities."

"Allowing local law enforcement to be deputized to kidnap and disappear immigrants undercuts the trust that local police rely on to maintain public safety in our communities," said Rep. Jayapal. "Immigrants and their U.S. citizen loved ones stop reporting crimes out of fear of being kidnapped and deported. Local police are spread thin enforcing federal civil immigration law. We know that Trump is not targeting criminals, he is targeting our friends, neighbors, co-workers, and pillars of our community. This lawlessness must end immediately."

"The Trump Administration's attempt to expand the 287(g) Program is a direct assault on civil rights and the Constitution," said Rep. Foushee. "Having served in local law enforcement for more than 20 years, I know policing should protect and support our communities, not divide it, and deputizing local officers into immigration enforcers only erodes public trust, undermines public safety, and deepens fear. We need laws in place that restore fairness and uphold justice. That's why I'm proud to join my colleagues in introducing the PROTECT Immigration Act, which will reverse this harmful program and take an important step toward repairing the flaws in our broken immigration system."

Civil rights and immigration advocates also voiced strong support for the legislation.

"In just one year, the Trump administration has massively expanded the 287(g) program and distorted it in ways Congress never intended, exploiting local law enforcement resources for its dystopian mass deportation agenda," said Naureen Shah, Director of Policy and Government Affairs for the ACLU's Equality Division. "Enlisting local law enforcement for mass deportations isn't just a waste of taxpayer dollars - it terrorizes our communities, undermines public safety and fuels racial profiling. We thank Congressman Quigley for his leadership and urge our members of Congress to pass the PROTECT Immigration Act without delay."

"The rapid expansion of the 287(g) program under the Trump administration represents yet another way that mass deportation undermines public safety for all Americans," said Nayna Gupta, Policy Director at the American Immigration Council. "When local police serve as a force multiplier for ICE, people become more afraid to report crime and less trusting of local police officers. Local law enforcement agencies should prioritize real public safety concerns in their communities rather than waste limited manpower making traffic stops that turn into detention and deportation for long-standing community members who pose no threat. The PROTECT Act takes the overdue step of repealing a program that is unnecessary for effective enforcement of immigration laws, but continues to have a harmful track record for public safety."

A livestream of the press conference is available here and Rep. McBride's full remarks can be found here.

###