Political leaders and advocacy groups across Houston and Texas are divided on the political fight between Gov. Greg Abbott and the Houston city government over a new ordinance intended to curtail coordination between city police and federal immigration enforcement officers.
Last week, the Houston City Council passed an ordinance in a 12-5 vote, prohibiting officers from detaining people or prolonging traffic stops due to civil immigration warrants.
On Monday, Abbott issued a letter to Mayor John Whitmire, threatening to terminate $110 million in public safety grants to Houston if the city did not reverse course. The move has divided public leaders along party lines and prompted Whitmire, who supported the ordinance, to call a special city council meeting for Friday in order to repeal it.
Critics of Abbott
Left-leaning organizations have called the move “bullying.” Caro Rivera Nelson, an attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, said Abbott is “turning his back on law enforcement” by threatening to withhold public safety money.
“Defunding public safety to punish local government for following the Constitution is not within the governor’s authority under state or federal law,” Nelson said. “Houston may be the first, but it won’t be the last. We urge Houston City Council to uphold the constitutional rights of every person in the city, including all those affected by these baseless attacks.”
FIEL Houston, an immigration advocacy group, condemned the move from Abbott “for trying to circumvent the will of the Houston City Council by using bullying tactics.”
“Immigrants deserve access to public safety, and this ordinance does just that. The city should respect the council and our population and should move forward with Prop A,” said FIEL Houston Executive Director Cesar Espinosa, citing the voter-approved policy allowing council members to place items of the council agenda.
Woori Juntos, an organization advocating for Asian and Latino immigrants, called the ordinance “legally sound and reaffirms our Houston community members protections [sic] under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.”
Critics of the city ordinance
Conservative leaders, in contrast, have said the Houston City Council is not prioritizing public safety. In an email sent to Harris County Republicans, Cindy Siegel, chair of the county GOP, said the ordinance “undermines how law enforcement works with federal immigration authorities.”
“This policy ties the hands of law enforcement, creates confusion for officers on the ground, and puts politics ahead of public safety,” she said. “At a time when our city is already dealing with serious challenges, this is a step in the wrong direction.”
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who is in the midst of a heated primary runoff election against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to keep his seat, called the ordinance “absurd” and “dangerous.”
“Immigration enforcement is a critical part of ensuring national security and public safety,” Cornyn said in a post on X. “There’s no logical reason [the Houston Police Department] shouldn’t be able to fully cooperate with [ICE] agents who are simply enforcing our nation’s immigration laws.”
Harris County commissioners are scheduled to hold their own county-level evaluation of immigration enforcement policies, following the city council’s actions. Orlando Sanchez, a Republican candidate for county judge, called on the court to “reject any effort to limit cooperation” with ICE.
“Public safety is not a partisan issue; it is a fundamental responsibility of county government, and I will always choose security over sanctuary-style policies,” he said.
What’s next?
Whitmire has called a special city council meeting, scheduled for Friday, to repeal the ordinance, citing Abbott’s threat.
Harris County commissioners will discuss their own guidelines on Thursday.
Houston Public Media’s Dominic Anthony Walsh and Sarah Grunau contributed to this report.
