Ada County sheriff explains his opposition to ICE mandate | Opinion
As the elected sheriff of Ada County, my role is to keep my county citizens safe and perform my duties under Idaho law. That duty includes working with our federal partners in the Treasure Valley — with DHS and ICE among them.
To set the record straight, the idea that the Ada County sheriff does not cooperate with ICE or is somehow opposed to immigration enforcement is simply not true. For years — long before this became a national political issue — my office has provided ICE with a daily list of every arrest and the information we collect during booking. We have always allowed ICE agents into the jail to conduct interviews, and we have worked with them to honor lawful requests to hold individuals for deportation and transport them accordingly. These are the core components people point to when they talk about 287(g), and they are things any level-headed sheriff is already doing.
In addition, we regularly partner with the U.S. Marshals Service and ICE to locate and apprehend violent, wanted criminals in our community, because I support their mission.
The notion that sheriffs and chiefs who have stood up against being forced into 287(g) agreements are not interested in fighting illegal immigration is misleading, disingenuous and flat-out false. If you are a citizen of the state of Idaho and believe that, I would encourage you to get educated and ask questions of those who actually do this work every day — not those who think they know what we do.
The 287(g) program itself is not the devil, nor is it a savior. It has a legitimate place in law enforcement depending on factors such as the size of an agency, its location, and its resources. It is successfully used in many places, including here in Idaho. But it should be the choice of the sheriff or chief to enroll in that program — and just as importantly, the choice to step away from it.
That’s where my concern lies.
I find it difficult to come to grips with the idea that our Republican, conservative state would seek to force Idaho sheriffs into participating in a voluntary federal program — one that binds us not just today, but into the future under any administration. I see that as degrading to the constitutional position of the sheriff. When the public expects the highest form of law enforcement in our state to stand up to federal overreach, it is confusing and frankly appalling to see members of the Idaho Legislature pushing to mandate compliance with a federal program.
Would it be the state’s wish to force sheriffs and police departments to help the ATF enforce federal gun laws? Would it be the state’s wish to force sheriffs and police departments to help the IRS enforce federal tax laws? The answer to those questions is “no.”
Yet here we are.
The reality is, my office is already doing everything ICE needs to effectively carry out their mission to battle illegal immigration in Ada County. Entering into a 287(g) agreement would create redundancy and cost taxpayers money without providing additional benefit to public safety.
More importantly, it removes local discretion.
The program can shift during a change of federal administration and I cringe at the position Idaho will find itself in when it is codified that law enforcement “shall” participate in a program that can be changed overnight. In my role as sheriff, I have made decisions to end partnerships with federal agencies when their demands or direction were overreaching and no longer in the best interest of Ada County. A forced relationship with ICE under a mandated program gives me no such option when participation begins to erode what is best for our community.
As a Republican sheriff, I have the trust of the people who elected me to seek out the best solutions for this county. Idaho — and Ada County in particular — is not a place where ICE is told to stay out. In fact, we are the opposite. We work with our federal partners every day, and that partnership is working.
But partnership should remain a choice — not a mandate.
Matt Clifford is the Ada County Sheriff.
This story was originally published March 25, 2026 at 1:12 PM.