NY requires anti-ICE compliance for grant
By: Emily Barnes
New York State Team
USA Today Network
..... A New York state grate program providing millions of dollars to help police departments and sheriffs; offices advance their technology and equipment now requires compliance with the state's immigration enforcement restrictions.
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Departments applying for the second round of the Law Enforcement Technology or LETech, grant Program, which will allocate $75 million to agencies outside New York City thorough the recently passed state budget, will need to adhere to the reconnect enacted Local Cops, Local Crimes Act to receive funding.
..... New York's law has drawn criticism, especially among police departments across the state, as it bans formal cooperation pacts, or 287(g) agreements, that local law enforcement agencies may sing with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. the group representing sheriff's departments around New York previously defended those agreements and said they are safety measures simply allowing jails to transfer an incarcerated person to the custody of federal agents in a safe setting.
..... The state law is also currently entwined in a legal case as both the Trump administration and New York stat4e have filed dueling lawsuits over its constitutionally.
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The grant program, which previously awarded nearly 300 agencies $127 million, is administered by the state Division of Criminal Justice services and is only available to departments outside of New York City, according to Governor Kathy Hochul's office.
..... when asked why this is now a requirement, a spokesperson for the governor's office said the Local Cops, Local Crimes Act wasn't law during the first round of the LETech program and referred back to a statement Huchul made during her State of the State address earlier this year. [2026]
..... "New York will not allow the use of State resources to assist in federal immigration raids on people who have not committed serious crimes," Hochul said. "Public safety will always come first, but it must be pursued lawfully and with humanity."
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Working on a tiered funding system, the maximum grant awards are based on the number of full-time, equivalent sworn offices hat each agency employs, ranging from $100,000 for departments with 10 or less officers up to 46 million for agencies with more than 1,001 officers.
..... Agencies can sue the money to fund technology and equipment from drones and body worn cameras to automated external defibrillators and communication platforms to engage with their communities.
..... According to Hochul's office, the request for applications "require agencies to comply with all applicable provisions of the recently enacted" law "to receive funding through the program."
..... More specifics about the new requirements are outlined in the application from, winch includes the following: "No applications will be considered should the applicant be determined to be operating a 287(g) agreement, or similar agreements, with the federal government which would support state and local resources being used for civil immigration enforcement purposes."