BOISE, ID – The Idaho House of Representatives on Friday passed a bill that would require all local law enforcement to enter agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, in the federal 287(g) program.
The bill faced opposition from associations representing county sheriff’s offices and local police departments, who said the 287(g) program should be optional, mainly because of costs associated with forcing agencies to enter into them.
House members voted 41-27 to send House Bill 659 to the Senate, where it may come up for another public committee hearing.
Bill sponsor Rep. Dale Hawkins, R-Fernwood, stressed that immigration enforcement was a top issue.
“The people in Idaho want answers, and they want action,” Hawkins said.
Supporters of Idaho bill say police concerns about cost are unfounded
The debate on the bill lasted about half an hour, with opponents arguing that local law enforcement is already cooperating with ICE but not all departments can absorb the costs of backfilling for officers while they complete federal training with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency of ICE.
Supporters said that law enforcement wasn’t doing enough in this area, and countered the idea that local law enforcement couldn’t afford to enter the agreements because ICE would reimburse some costs and cover training.
Boise Democrat, Rep. Chris Mathias, said he thought the bill would compromise law enforcement’s trust in the Legislature. He said he’d support the requirement that agencies explain why they cannot participate if it were on its own.
“Because then we would be in a position to be able to address their pain points and incentivize cooperation, rather than forcing it,” Mathias said.
Reps. Kyle Harris, R-Lewiston, and Clint Hostetler, R-Twin Falls, supported the bill and both cited the costs to the state and counties for housing inmates who are undocumented. Harris said that ICE reimburses at a higher rate for detaining people who will be deported than the state pays counties for housing state inmates in county jails.
In most cases, if an unauthorized person is convicted of a crime in Idaho, that person must serve their sentence in the county jail or state prison before deportation proceedings may begin.
Rep. Lori McCann, R-Lewiston, called the bill an “unfunded mandate.”
She noted that other legislation has been rejected in the Idaho Legislature because it came with acceptance of federal money. The bill would also require local law enforcement to participate in “any future program or successor to an existing program.” McCann questioned why the Legislature would bind law enforcement to future federal programs without knowing what they may be.
Republican Reps. Erin Bingham of Idaho Falls; Rick Cheatum of Pocatello; Ben Fuhriman of Shelley; Dan Garner of Clifton; Grayson Stone (a substitute for Twin Falls Republican Don Hall); Dustin Manwaring of Pocatello; McCann; Stephanie Mickelsen of Idaho Falls, Steve Miller of Fairfield; Jack Nelsen of Jerome; James Petzke of Meridian; Mike Pohanka of Jerome; Britt Raybould of Rexburg; and Jerald Raymond of Menan joined all House Democrats to vote against the bill.
What are Idahoans’ perspective on immigration enforcement?
Hawkins in debate said repeatedly that immigration was a top issue among Idahoans statewide.
The group Secure Idaho, which has supported HB 659 and the rest of a slate of immigration bills brought by Hawkins and other legislators, has said on its “Idaho Immigration Watch” website that 81% of Americans want more action to stop illegal immigration. Secure Idaho cites a March 2024 poll from Rasmussen Reports that found 81% of likely U.S. voters said “it is important” that the government stop illegal immigration, and 55% found it “very important.”
In Idaho, the annual Boise State University Public Policy Survey only asked two questions about immigration in its 2026 survey — it found that 53% of respondents thought it would harm Idaho’s agriculture economy if ICE were to increase its presence in Idaho. Around 56% of Idaho respondents “strongly” supported, and 29% “somewhat” supported, a pathway to legal working status for dairy workers and their families who have lived in Idaho for over 10 years and have no criminal record.
A poll of Treasure Valley and Magic Valley residents commissioned by ACLU of Idaho in 2025 found that 44% of respondents favored local law enforcement cooperating with federal immigration authorities. The survey also found that 64% of respondents believe deportations “should apply only to serious crimes.”
The BSU public policy survey released in 2025 reported that 27% of respondents felt it was solely the federal government’s responsibility to enforce immigration in Idaho, around 30% said the state should be responsible, and nearly 28% sailed “all” levels of government.
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