ICE Offers $2 Billion in Incentives to Local Police via 287(g) Program

DHS is distributing cash, vehicles, and equipment reimbursements to local agencies that join the 287(g) partnership, authorizing officers to detain undocumented immigrants. Florida CFO Blaise Ingoglia presented checks at a March press event.

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The program grew from 135 agreements at the start of Trump’s second term to over 1,700 by 2026, with Florida and Texas providing the majority of new partnerships and funding.

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Key actors include DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Florida CFO Blaise Ingoglia, ACLU’s Naureen Shah, FWD.us’s Felicity Rose, and local officials such as sheriffs Robert Bage, Randy Tifft, and Billy Woods.

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Florida agencies received roughly $100 k (Okaloosa), $1 M (Escambia), $280 k (Santa Rosa) and $50 k (Franklin). Texas’s Smith County got $340 k for a Silverado. ICE pledges $100 k per vehicle and equipment, a scheme projected to reach $2 billion nationally in 2026.

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DHS called the partnerships “critical to having the resources needed to carry out its immigration agenda.” Ingoglia said the checks reward sheriffs for keeping communities safe and deporting criminal illegal aliens.

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ACLU director Shah warned the incentive scheme never existed in 287(g) and exceeds congressional intent. Rose of FWD.us called the lack of transparency “very, very concerning.”

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• “Let's start giving the money away,” — Blaise Ingoglia, Florida CFO

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• “We've never seen this financial incentive scheme exist in any way with this program, and Congress never intended for ICE to be swooping in to these local jurisdictions and offering them money in exchange to participate,” — Naureen Shah, ACLU

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• “The normal government process in the United States is that we know where taxpayer money goes, because it's really important that it not be wasted," Rose says.” — Felicity Rose, FWD.us

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• “The 287g program now allows us to immediately take that person into custody and transfer them to the county jail where they get picked up by immigration.” — Robert Bage, Fort Walton Beach Police Chief

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The new funding could boost detentions during routine traffic stops, shift policing toward immigration priorities, and create fiscal dependence on federal grants, raising civil-rights concerns.

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DHS has not released a full payment tally, and many agencies declined NPR inquiries, leaving total allocations unclear.

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Secretary Mullin signaled plans to expand local collaborations. Upcoming budgets may increase the incentive pool, while watchdogs and Congress prepare to scrutinize spending and policing impacts.

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The infusion of federal money into local policing may reshape law-enforcement priorities, influence budget decisions, and affect public perception of safety and immigration policy across the involved states.

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