Last month, the General Assembly overrode several gubernatorial vetoes that had been sitting for over a year. Among those overrides was Senate Bill 153, which is now chaptered as Session Law 2026-19. Part of the law directs various state agencies to enter into 287(g) agreements with federal immigration authorities. This post provides some context on 287(g) agreements and details the requirements of the new law.
287(g) Agreements
Some law enforcement agencies choose to cooperate with ICE via the federal “287(g)” Program. The term 287(g) refers to Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which was added to the Act in 1996 and is now codified in the federal statutes as 8 U.S.C. § 1357(g). Under this program, state and local law enforcement agencies may enter into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to perform a function of an immigration officer in relation to the investigation, apprehension, or detention of noncitizens in the United States.
Pursuant to the agreement, officers who meet certain eligibility requirements and complete additional training are authorized to perform immigration law enforcement functions under the direction and supervision of ICE. The particular immigration enforcement functions that the officers are allowed to perform are typically spelled out in an appendix to the MOA and may include activities such as conducting interrogations, preparing charging documents, serving arrest warrants, and detaining or transporting suspects. Because there are significant complexities involved in enforcing federal immigration law (like determining whether a person is removable), the 287(g) agreements must contain written certification that officers have received adequate training to carry out the duties of an immigration officer. 8 USC § 1357(g)(2); see also Arizona v. United States, 567 U.S. 387 (2012) (citing Padilla v. Kentucky, 559 U.S. 356 (2010)).
Only ICE immigration officers and designated 287(g) officers are authorized to perform certain immigration officer functions, like issuing immigration detainers. Typically, immigration detainers are prepared by ICE officers and served on the local custodial agency, even if that agency does not have a formal 287(g) agreement. Even so, a North Carolina law enforcement officer who is cross designated to perform immigration enforcement functions under a 287(g) agreement could issue an immigration detainer directly.
Various Models
The 287(g) Program employs three models.
- The Jail Enforcement Model allows state officers to identify and process removable noncitizens currently in a jail or detention facility who have pending or active criminal charges while they are in state custody. An example agreement for this model can be found here.
- The Task Force Model allows state officers to enforce limited immigration authority while performing routine police duties, such as identifying noncitizens at a motor vehicle checkpoint and sharing information directly with ICE. An ICE supervisor determines next steps. These officers may also exercise limited immigration authority as active participants on ICE-led task forces. An example agreement for this model can be found here.
- Under the Warrant Service Officer Program, ICE trains, certifies and authorizes state officers to serve and execute administrative warrants on noncitizens who are in state custody. An example agreement for this model can be found here.
The New Law
The requirements set forth in Session Law 2026-19 took effect when the bill became law on June 24, 2026. The law compels action by the following state agencies:
- Department of Public Safety (through its Secretary),
- Department of Adult Correction (through its Secretary),
- State Highway Patrol (through its Commander), and
- State Bureau of Investigation (through its Director).
Each of these agencies is required to enter into a 287(g) agreement (by a MOA) with the Director of ICE to permit designated state law enforcement officers to perform immigration law enforcement functions. The designated state law enforcement officers must be required to receive appropriate training as provided by ICE and must function under the supervision of ICE officers when performing under the MOA.
The agencies are then required to adopt policies requiring each of the following:
- That its employees to attempt to determine if any person in the custody or under the supervision of the agency is a legal resident or citizen of the United States. This determination is to be made by inquiry of the person, by examination of any relevant documents, or both.
- When employees are unable to determine if a person is a legal resident or citizen of the United States or its territories, the employees must query ICE.
- When employees determine that a person in the custody or under the supervision of the agency is not a legal resident or citizen of the United States or its territories, the employees must provide requested information regarding the person to ICE.
The law further mandates that the agencies cooperate with ICE to the fullest extent allowed by law.
The law applies only to the specified state agencies and does not require any action on the part of local agencies like police departments and sheriffs’ offices. Still, those agencies may decide whether or not to enter into a 287(g) agreement. As of this writing, there are 28 North Carolina agencies participating in the 287(g) Program. Most are sheriffs’ offices, with a few municipal police departments. There are no state agencies that participate in the program.
Notwithstanding any decision regarding participation in the program, all agencies subject to the provisions of G.S. 162-62(b1) remain required to honor immigration detainers that are issued for arrestees confined in their facilities. You can read more about that existing statutory requirement here.