Staff Reports
Rensselaer County and Broome County have announced they will join a federal lawsuit to block New York’s new Local Cops, Local Crimes Act. The law bars most local police from working with federal immigration officers under 287(g). This legal fight pits county leaders and sheriffs against Governor Kathy Hochul and the state Attorney General, and it is about who controls local public safety.
Counties sue to preserve 287(g) ICE cooperation
Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin and Sheriff Kyle Bourgault say they will be plaintiffs in a federal challenge to stop the state from ending their 287(g) agreement with ICE. Broome County leaders have taken the same stance, and Nassau County has said it may join. The counties say 287(g) helps them remove dangerous criminals who are not citizens, and they plan to ask a judge to keep their agreements in place while the case moves.
What the Local Cops, Local Crimes Act does
The state law, pushed by Democrats in Albany and activated by Governor Kathy Hochul late this month, bars local law enforcement from entering into or keeping most 287(g) or similar pacts with ICE. The governor says the rule keeps local police focused on real crimes and protects immigrant communities from civil immigration enforcement by local officers. New York’s Attorney General has already begun pressing counties with subpoenas to confirm whether they will drop their agreements.
Why counties say ICE cooperation matters for public safety
County leaders argue this is not politics — it is safety. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman says cooperation with ICE helped remove thousands of people with criminal records without dramatic raids on churches or schools. Local sheriffs say they use 287(g) to identify offenders and keep neighborhoods safer. If the state forces counties to stop, those officials warn convicted criminals could remain in communities instead of being handed over to federal immigration authorities.
Bottom line: expect a long court fight over safety and power
This case will test whether New York can bar local agencies from helping federal immigration enforcement. Expect complaints, requests for emergency injunctions, and an appeal trail that could reach higher courts. For voters who care about public safety, the stakes are clear: this is a fight over who decides how to keep communities safe — county sheriffs and executives or Albany politicians. Courts will sort the law, but the politics already show which side wants a safer neighborhood and which side wants to rewrite the rules from the statehouse.
