Montgomery County launches portal to report ICE activity on county property

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD. - Montgomery County officials have launched a new online reporting portal that allows residents to track and report federal immigration enforcement activity on county property.

What we know:

The online tool, announced by County Executive Marc Elrich and County Council President Natali Fani-González, lets users submit a form if they witness Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in county buildings, parking lots or garages.

County officials plan to use the data to monitor federal enforcement patterns and remind ICE agencies that they are restricted from operating in specific local facilities.

What they're saying:

The launch has drawn sharp criticism from immigration enforcement advocates and political opponents who argue the database acts as an obstacle to federal law enforcement and effectively functions as a "sanctuary county" policy.

Elrich strongly rejected that characterization during a media briefing, insisting the county is simply exercising its legal right to regulate its own public properties.

"We're not an immigration agency, so we don't enforce," Elrich said. "All we're doing is saying there are places you can't operate. We have a full right to do that."

Dig deeper:

The database is a direct result of two newly enacted local laws: Bill 5-26 (the Unmask ICE Act) and Bill 3-26 (the County Values Act). These two pieces of legislation prohibit law enforcement agencies in the county from wearing masks on duty without health exceptions and bar federal agents from using county facilities to stage community enforcement operations.

Reports submitted through the website will be routed to the County Attorney’s office, the local police department and the Department of Transportation to review for potential local citations, according to the announcement.

Officials noted that the tool is for tracking purposes only and will not provide real-time, public alerts of ICE locations or serve as an emergency response line.

According to U.S. Census data cited by the county, roughly one in three Montgomery County residents is foreign-born. Local officials emphasized that the portal aims to ensure the immigrant community can access public county services without fear.

What's next:

The portal is expected to remain a permanent fixture of county policy.

Democratic Councilmember Will Jawando, who voted for the legislation and is the frontrunner to succeed Elrich as County Executive at the end of the year, has expressed full support for the database.