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Montgomery County launches portal for residents to report immigration‑enforcement activity, council president says
Summary
Council President Natalie Fanny González described a new county portal where residents can report sightings of immigration agents, upload photos or video, and use an anonymous reporting option; she cited the county's Trust Act as a legal protection limiting local agency cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
Council President Natalie Fanny González said Montgomery County has launched an online portal for residents to report sightings of immigration enforcement and to upload photos or video as evidence.
"La data es poder, nos ayuda a ver... dónde se están organizando los agentes de inmigración," González said on the radio program En Sintonía, urging residents to use the tool to help the county document activity and protect immigrant communities. She said submissions can be made anonymously and that data is monitored by the county's local attorney's office.
González described the legal framework that underpins the county's approach: "la 1º legislación que pasamos este año protegiendo a nuestra comunidad migrante fue el Trust ... que fue la que yo, este, lideré," referring to the county’s Trust Act (acta de confianza) that limits local agencies from acting as immigration agents or coordinating with federal immigration enforcement unless required by a court order. She told listeners the county has also passed local rules restricting immigration‑enforcement presence in certain public buildings, schools and public parking lots.
To use the portal, González directed residents to the county website repeated on air (as read on the program): MontgomeryCountyMD.gov/protecting (site cited on air) and said there is also a hotline for immediate help in case of an enforcement action. The county encourages people who are concerned but fearful to report incidents anonymously through the portal or to call the county helpline as described during the broadcast.
The program host, Marcela Villagrán, framed the portal as a response to Montgomery County’s large immigrant population, noting Census figures cited on air (about 33.6% foreign‑born) as part of the rationale for the resource. The county representative emphasized privacy safeguards and directed listeners to county resources for legal help or citizenship assistance.
