New York Attorney General Letitia James subpoenaed several counties Tuesday over their continued cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as a new state law barring local law enforcement agencies from participating in federal immigration enforcement took effect.
The subpoenas were sent to Nassau, Rensselaer, Broome and Steuben counties, according to James' office. Local agencies were required to terminate their agreements with ICE under Section 287(g), a federal program that allows trained local officers to perform certain immigration enforcement functions, Gothamist reports.
The law, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul in May, also prohibits local jails from holding people for ICE on civil immigration matters. "Starting today, ICE can no longer use locally funded police to carry out the Trump administration's aggressive immigration agenda," Hochul said Tuesday.
The dispute has become part of New York's gubernatorial race as Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the Republican nominee challenging Hochul, has defended his county's cooperation with ICE, arguing it helps remove immigrants with criminal convictions.
"We removed them from America, and we made safer communities by doing so," Blakeman said at a campaign event Tuesday. Nassau officials had previously projected that their partnership could result in roughly 3,000 people being detained for ICE by the end of 2026.
Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin has also said his county will not comply and plans to join a lawsuit challenging the restrictions. Officials in Broome and Steuben counties had previously indicated they would terminate their agreements.
The confrontation comes as the Trump administration has expanded 287(g) partnerships nationwide. ICE listed 2,365 agreements across 39 states and two U.S. territories as of Aug. 21, compared with roughly 135 in January 2025.
A federal judge this month allowed New York's prohibition on 287(g) agreements to take effect while blocking a separate provision that sought to prevent federal immigration agents from wearing masks. The judge found that New York had legitimate authority to determine how state and local resources are used.
