‘They are not helping’: Tucson council moves to block ICE from using city property

In a move that mirrors actions by councils in cities experiencing heavy immigration enforcement, the Tucson City Council directed staff to draft an ordinance barring Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from conducting operations on city-owned property. 

During Wednesday’s city council meeting, Mayor Regina Romero introduced the discussion item put forth by Vice Mayor Lane Santa Cruz so that the council could focus on taking action within the city’s jurisdiction to protect its residents.

“Our immigrant community and all of our residents deserve certainty that our city-owned properties and resources will be used to deliver specifically that — quality of life services to our residents no matter their immigration status,” Romero said as she opened up discussion on the topic, adding that all residents have a right to safely pay their bills at the Tucson Water building, go on a picnic to a local park with their family or make use of a recreation center.

Council members unanimously agreed to move forward with drafting a city-wide measure.

The action comes weeks after Tucson saw a large Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) operation in early December, in which over 40 people were detained in restaurants and homes across the city.

Reports of upcoming elevated ICE activity in Phoenix and surrounding areas have also begun to take form, prompting protests across the city and mobilizing local groups that provide training, accompaniment services and rapid response calls when ICE activity takes place.

As the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) allows its agents to use aggressive, deadly tactics during operations, Arizona leaders are urging caution and vigilance.

In an interview with 12 News earlier this week, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said she was expecting to see a surge in ICE presence in the Valley. She added that her office would do everything within its power to protect residents, sending a clear message to ICE agents: “If you violate an Arizona law, I will prosecute you.”

Other major Arizona cities where a large majority of Latinos live, like Phoenix, Mesa and Glendale, have yet to introduce similar actions since President Donald Trump’s return to office.

For months, Mesa residents have unsuccessfully demanded that the city end its 16-year 287(g) agreement with ICE. The Mesa Police Department is the only Arizona police agency under such a contract through Jail Enforcement and Warrant Service Officer models, restricting local agencies to only handing over individuals who’ve already been booked into their jails, or through the Task Force Model, in which local officers are tasked with immigration enforcement “during routine police duties,” according to ICE. Mesa Police operates under the Jail Enforcement model.

In Phoenix, a community-drafted resolution was rejected by the city council in June of 2025, in which residents demanded an end to Phoenix Police Department arrest quotas and transparency into how the local agency interacts with immigration officials.

While Phoenix Police has not entered into an official agreement with ICE, the federal agency can still issue immigration detainers so that people in local custody can be transferred over to ICE and placed in deportation proceedings.

Glendale hasn’t formally addressed immigration activity in the West Valley, nor the rumored local warehouse that, according to a Washington Post report, ICE is considering converting into a detention holding facility.

The Tucson ordinance would establish rules for how federal agencies use city property and require training for city employees.

Santa Cruz said her office has received messages from constituents fearful of the increased operations, demanding clarity about the city’s involvement.

“What we do have control over is our city-owned property,” Santa Cruz said. “The memo is requesting that we not allow these federal agencies… to use city-owned property for staging or processing of immigration enforcement actions. That includes parking lots, garages, vacant lots, parks, public facilities.”

“When I hear any part of an ICE doing an operation in Tucson, I actually feel less safe. They are not helping,” Ward 2 Council Member Paul Cunningham said during the discussion, before comparing ICE operations to the Gestapo.

Ward 3 representative Kevin Dahl called the enforcement “fascism in America,” while Council Member Selina Barajas said it was their responsibility at a local level “to protect the well-being and safety and dignity of all residents, despite immigration status.”