Port Angeles council seeks list of city ties to ICE and CBP, asks federal delegation for updates after firefighter arrests

Port Angeles — Citing public concern after federal agents detained two firefighters during wildfire response operations, the Port Angeles City Council on Sept. 2 directed staff to compile a detailed list of the city's interactions with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The council also asked the mayor and city manager to send a letter to the city's federal delegation and the governor's office requesting updates on the outcomes of any federal or state investigations. The actions followed multiple public comments urging the council to push back on what speakers described as intimidation tactics by federal immigration agents operating locally. Public commenters said agents had used unmarked vehicles, concealed identification and detained people during emergency response. Tracy Abel, a Port Angeles resident, told the council, “We're experiencing full blown fascism, and to remain silent is to be complicit.” Kurt Baer and other speakers asked the council to require that federal agents working in Port Angeles wear visible identification and use marked vehicles. Councilmember Lindsay Navarro (and other councilmembers) proposed directing staff to detail the city's current points of contact and contractual or operational connections with federal immigration components. The council asked staff to clarify whether those interactions involve ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) or other ICE operational directorates and which CBP enforcement arm is involved (the Office of Border Patrol, the Office of Field Operations, or the Office of Air and Marine). Councilmembers said the report should be included in the next council packet to provide a basis for further action. Port Angeles Police Chief Smith told the council that local law enforcement does not have authority to enforce federal immigration law and described the state-level Keep Washington Working Act, which limits local participation in civil immigration enforcement absent a judicial warrant. Chief Smith said the department honors court-ordered warrants but otherwise does not inquire into immigration status; he told the council that routine policing should not deter crime reporting. The council's second motion asked the mayor and city manager to send a letter to the city's congressional delegation and the governor. Councilmembers asked the delegation to share findings from any federal investigations and to keep the city informed. The council agreed the letter should request transparency and updates but did not direct specific enforcement actions by local police. The motions passed in public session. Staff will report back with the requested inventory of city ties with federal immigration components, and the mayor and manager will draft the letter to the state and federal delegation.