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Chair says ICE detention contract remains in place as county reports receiving payments
Summary
At the July 23 meeting the chair said the county's long-standing ICE contract remains active, commissioners confirmed the county has received payments (including interest on back payments) and noted a federal shutdown disrupted reimbursements.
Chair opened the public comment period and addressed questions about the county's contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), saying the agreement "has been a 20 year" arrangement and that "nothing's changed, in terms of our operation with ICE." The chair described the contract as operationally unchanged and framed it as long-standing county business.
A meeting participant identified later in the exchange as Susan asked whether the county was still taking ICE detainees and whether the population levels at the jail were similar to past patterns. Susan noted budget-time concerns and told commissioners that the county had received payments and "they even paid us interest on a couple of back payments." The chair confirmed reimbursement timing was affected by a recent federal government shutdown, saying the shutdown "messed up" reimbursements and that the county depends heavily on federal revenue to balance its budget.
The discussion at the meeting was informational; no changes to policy or the contract were announced and commissioners did not vote on the ICE contract at this session. The chair emphasized that earlier public attention and emotional reactions had subsided and that the county was continuing normal operations under the contract.
