New York, NY—Today, the New York City Mayor’s Office released an audit examining how city agencies are complying with the city’s sanctuary laws in response to escalating federal immigration enforcement under the second Trump administration. The report revealed a dramatic increase in immigration enforcement activity in New York City, including targeting of city shelters, a sharp rise in detainer requests, and aggressive enforcement tactics.
Murad Awawdeh, President and CEO, New York Immigration Coalition:
“New York City’s sanctuary protections are only as strong as their implementation, and transparency is key for public trust. We commend Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA) and the Interagency Response Committee (IRC) for conducting this necessary audit and releasing it to the public. At a time when immigrant New Yorkers are under attack from the federal government – and over 5,000 ICE arrests of New Yorkers since Trump came back into office – it is critical to enact stronger protections, oversight, and monitoring to prevent inappropriate, unauthorized or illegal involvement by ICE. We must close all loopholes in our sanctuary protections, including any role the NYPD plays in crowd control for ICE abductions. The City must routinely review and update its agency protocols to protect immigrant New Yorkers from the increasingly brazen and unlawful attacks from the federal government. We call on the City Council to pass legislation that strengthens our sanctuary protections and creates real accountability when those protections are violated. We look forward to working together to protect and support every single person who calls New York home.”
Context
Data from the audit give numbers that demonstrate the rapid escalation in ICE activity felt in communities around New York, as well as ICE’s increasing tactics to circumvent our City’s sanctuary protections. ICE made 5,567 arrests from January 2025 through March 2026 – up 71% from the same period under the previous administration. Over half of those arrests occurred at immigration courts at 26 Federal Plaza, 290 Broadway and 201 Varick Street. The Department of Corrections (DOC) saw a 120% increase in detainer requests in 2025 compared to 2024, and the report revealed that it also sent daily reports to ICE on noncitizens in custody. And ICE’s detainer requests to the NYPD skyrocketed, from 99 requests in FY24 to 3,627 requests in FY25. In other words, ICE sent the NYPD detainer requests at a rate 36 times higher than the previous year.