States accuse FEMA of ignoring court order by conditioning aid on ICE cooperation
A coalition of states says FEMA is still tying disaster-relief funds to immigration-enforcement requirements despite a permanent injunction issued by Judge William Smith.
Despite a permanent injunction from U.S. District Judge William Smith, a group of states claims FEMA continues to attach immigration-enforcement conditions to federal disaster aid. In a new filing, the states seek court enforcement of the order, asserting that the agency is applying the same restrictions to several 2026 grant programs that Smith blocked in 2025. The disputed clauses require local law enforcement to share information with ICE, grant ICE unrestricted access to detained individuals, and forbid officials from disclosing immigration operations.
The states contend that these measures force them to choose between emergency preparedness and compliance with federal immigration policy. They also argue that FEMA should not be allowed to reissue substantively identical conditions annually, forcing fresh lawsuits each time. The Department of Homeland Security has not responded to requests for comment.
Why it matters
It highlights a federal-state clash over the use of emergency funds to push immigration policy, raising questions about executive overreach.
How this story developed
- Aug 13 San Antonio immigrants live in constant fear as ICE arrests surge
- Sep 1 ICE carried out a raid in Memphis that arrested more than 100 people, the largest raid in the city’s history.
- Sep 11 A judge dismissed the deportation case against the Andhra Pradesh woman, yet ICE continued to require her reporting.
- Sep 17 ICE agent Christian Castro turned himself in to Minnesota authorities on a warrant for assault after shooting a Venezuelan man, and faces both state and federal charges.
- Sep 18 Castro entered a not‑guilty plea to the federal false‑statement charges.
- Sep 20 A man was wounded after being shot by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in North Austin, Texas, and taken to a local hospital.
- Sep 27 A federal judge scheduled a personal appearance for the man on September 30 and issued a temporary order halting his deportation.
- Sep 29 The U.S. Supreme Court granted the Justice Department’s emergency request, letting the Trump administration continue deporting migrants to third countries while the policy’s legality is examined.
- Sep 30 Supreme Court issued an emergency order allowing third‑country deportations to continue.
- Sep 30 An immigration judge ruled that Salah Sarsour, head of Wisconsin’s largest mosque, can be deported on national-security grounds despite his claim that the case targets his Palestinian-rights advocacy.
- Sep 30 The Justice Department lodged complaints with the 8th Circuit alleging that Minnesota federal judges made partisan statements about a Trump-era deportation surge.
- Oct 1 A federal indictment charging Garces Perez with assault was filed.
- Oct 3 The filing requests that the judges be barred from hearing Department of Homeland Security cases.
- Oct 3 A Chicago immigration judge allowed a possible deportation of Salah Sarsour.
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