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The San Mateo County Supervisors last week codified an ordinance that bars deputy sheriffs and other county officials from using public funds to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
This includes providing agents with an incarcerated person's personal information, like their release date, or giving ICE access to county facilities unless the agency presents a warrant signed by a federal judge.
The ordinance passed 4-1, with Supervisor Ray Mueller dissenting.
County officials and employees could still work with federal immigration authorities in cases that do not concern immigration law enforcement, such as an investigation into human trafficking or other criminal investigations.
Supervisor David Canepa, who introduced the ordinance with fellow Supervisor Dave Pine, argued that collaborating with ICE is a public safety hazard and that federal immigration authorities often separate families who are otherwise upstanding members of their community.
"If not for where they were born, these community members would be allowed to return home to their families and communities," Canepa said.
Since 2018, state law has limited law enforcement involvement in deportations and immigration enforcement activities at public schools, hospitals, courthouses and libraries.
However, local jurisdictions can also enact their own statutes to avoid cooperating with federal immigration authorities. Neighboring Santa Clara and San Francisco Counties have already passed similar ordinances.
San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus expressed her support for the ordinance, arguing that she wants the Sheriff's Office to prioritize the safety and trust of all of the county's residents.
"I've personally seen the effect and trauma experienced by families who have had loved ones taken into ICE custody," Corpus said. "It is not something that I would like our office to be associated with."
Avoiding collaboration with ICE in immigration enforcement activities without a valid warrant has been part of the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office since November 2021, when former Sheriff Carlos Bolanos ran the department.
Mueller was the lone dissenting vote against the ordinance.
"This board is being asked to eliminate the exception that the county could cooperate with federal authorities when an individual has been convicted of a serious or violent felony … including, but not limited to, murder, rape and lewd and lascivious acts on children under the age of 14," Mueller said.
San Mateo County is one of the most immigrant-rich counties in California, but activists say in recent years it was the worst culprit in the Bay Area for its collusion with ICE. The Sheriff’s Office reported releasing 15 immigrants to ICE in 2020, accounting for 62% of all Bay Area transfers and more than any other individual county.
The board must vote on the ordinance a second time to officially adopt it and is expected to do so at a future meeting.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
