Downing seeks HUD cuts for sanctuary cities

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With time running out for new bills to be heard in Congress, U.S. Rep. Troy Downing is taking a run at denying HUD funding for “sanctuary cities,” a move that shoots an unmistakable side-eye at several Montana communities that have limited local police cooperation with ICE agents.

The Eastern District representative’s bill would deny federal housing funding to communities that don’t share information about immigrants with federal officers, or that don’t detain people arrested by immigration agents.

“If a city refuses to cooperate with federal immigration law, it should not receive a dime in HUD funding,” Downing said on social media. 

The Republican lawmaker did not respond to questions from Montana Free Press about how the bill would have affected Helena, which passed a noncooperation resolution earlier this year, then rescinded the policy after Attorney General Austin Knudsen threatened to sue.

In April, Knudsen accused the Gallatin County Attorney’s Office of improperly withholding confidential criminal justice information from federal immigration authorities. He later took control of the office, a move currently under review by Montana’s Supreme Court.

Six in 10 Montanans support local police working with ICE, according to MTFP polling. Still, communities have rallied support around residents taken into custody.

Montana has a state law that prohibits cities from giving refuge to undocumented immigrants. Knudsen and Gov. Greg Gianforte emphasized at a press conference earlier this year that community policies opposing ICE violate state law.

Other Montana communities take the position that immigration enforcement isn’t the job of local police. Bozeman police focus on public safety and law enforcement, not immigration. Similarly, Missoula police don’t ask about immigration status during interactions with the public and don’t enforce immigration law.

However, a half dozen Montana counties have signed 287(g) assistance agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Flathead and Gallatin counties have “warrant service officer agreements” allowing trained state and local police to serve warrants on individuals already held in jail or prison. The Montana Department of Corrections also has a warrant service agreement with the feds. Carter, Garfield and Treasure counties have “task force model agreements” to question, detain and arrest people for immigration violations during routine policing.

The odds of Downing’s bill getting a vote before the end of the year are slim, with the House having only 30 scheduled days of work for the remainder of the year. 

Downing is up for reelection Nov. 3 in Montana’s Eastern Congressional District.