Kathy Hochul Seeks To Ban Local Police Agreements With ICE, Says She Must Act In ‘Moment Of Tyranny’
New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Friday unveiled a proposed law that would bar local police departments from entering into cooperation agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for immigration enforcement. The move comes amid rising tensions between state and federal authorities over immigration policy and recent clashes involving federal agents.
Hochul’s proposal, called the Local Cops, Local Crimes Act, would prohibit New York law enforcement from participating in the federal 287(g) program, which allows ICE to deputize local officers to enforce federal immigration laws and use local facilities for immigration operations. If passed, New York would become the seventh state to ban such agreements, joining California, Illinois, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington, and Connecticut.
“We are called to act in this moment of tyranny,” Hochul said at a press conference announcing the proposal. She framed the measure as a rebuke of federal immigration tactics and as protection for immigrant communities. “We won’t let ICE weaponize local police officers against their own communities. You will not use our police technology to track people who have done nothing wrong,” she said.
Hochul has sharply criticized ICE operations in recent weeks, particularly in light of highly publicized confrontations in Minneapolis, where federal agents were involved in shootings that killed anti?ICE demonstrators Alex Pretti and Renee Good earlier this month. Hochul cited those events as part of her rationale for the legislation, saying New Yorkers are “feeling traumatized and stunned as they watch federal agents carry out unspeakable acts of violence in a country they no longer recognize.”
At her press conference, Hochul was flanked by state officials including NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. She characterized her proposal as drawing a line on how local law enforcement should be used and defended New York’s long?standing policies aimed at limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
Republican critics swiftly condemned the initiative. New York GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman called Hochul’s plan dangerous and out of touch with public safety concerns. “By banning local law enforcement partnerships with ICE, Hochul is allowing dangerous criminals to return to our neighborhoods,” Blakeman said. “That ends when I’m governor.”
Hochul’s stance places her at odds not only with the Trump administration — which has been seeking greater cooperation from state and local leaders on immigration enforcement — but also with some law enforcement advocates who argue that joint operations can improve public safety by targeting criminal illegal aliens. The effort also aligns with resistance from progressive local leaders such as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has expressed strong opposition to granting federal immigration agents enforcement authority in the city.
As the debate over immigration enforcement continues to escalate nationally, Hochul’s proposed ban signals a widening rift between Democratic state leaders and federal priorities, and it is expected to face legal and political challenges if formally introduced in the state legislature.