Austin, Dallas revise police policy allowing more ICE cooperation after Abbott funding cut threat
By Alex Nguyen and Ayden Runnels, The Texas Tribune
April 23, 2026
The City of Austin on Friday announced it is updating Austin Police orders to clarify when officers should contact Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents about people they detain. It is the third city in Texas to revise its policy on local law enforcement’s cooperation with federal immigration authorities this week, amid massive funding threats from Gov. Greg Abbott.
On April 16, the governor’s office warned Austin and Dallas that millions in grants — including more than $55 million in World Cup public safety funding for Dallas — could be at risk if city police failed to change their general orders limiting officers’ coordination with ICE. Austin risked $2.5 million in grants for sexual assault evidence testing, victims assistance programming and other public safety initiatives.
A press release about the new orders states that officers should contact ICE “when operationally feasible” if a person detained by an officer is found to have an administrative warrant issued by ICE. The orders also direct Austin police to “not take an unreasonable amount of time assisting” with the warrants.
The new orders come a day after Austin received a deadline extension to update their rules, which placed restrictions on when and how an officer could contact ICE. It is unclear what exact language was changed, as Austin officials did not immediately provide the text of the new general orders for city police, but said they would be available online next week.
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said in a statement that the updated general orders allow the city to properly allocate resources to maintain public safety.
“My focus — and the focus of every Austin Police officer — remains on public safety and community policing,” Davis said.
Andrew Mahaleris, Abbott’s spokesperson, said in a statement that the governor’s office had lifted the funding hold and “expects full contract compliance moving forward.”
“Governor Abbott has been clear: cities in Texas must fully comply with state law and cooperate with federal immigration authorities to keep dangerous criminals off our streets,” Mahaleris said.
Dallas on Thursday removed its ban on police officers prolonging a person’s detention during encounters like traffic stops to hold them for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents. Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux announced that the department had updated its general order to affirm that local officers will “cooperate with federal authorities when required” while still protecting the safety of all residents.
In particular, Dallas revised policy says it allows police officers to ask people for their immigration status when they are lawfully detained and share that information with federal authorities. It also does not ban Dallas police from supporting ICE agents as “reasonable or necessary,” including providing enforcement assistance.
More notably, the updated version left out language from the original general order that says officers “may not prolong the detention of an individual in order to further investigate the individual’s immigration status or to hold them for federal authorities.”
However, the policy still maintains that officers will not stop or contact people solely for the purpose of determining immigration status. Dallas police also may not ask victims, witnesses or people reporting crimes about their immigration status — unless it’s necessary for investigation or if there’s probable cause that they had engaged in a separate criminal offense.
“As Mayor of Dallas, public safety is my highest priority, and I agree with Governor Abbott that federal immigration enforcement plays a role in keeping our city safe,” Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson said in a statement to The Texas Tribune. “I appreciate Chief Comeaux’s ensuring the Dallas Police Department’s internal policies reflect its longstanding practice of cooperating with all of our state and federal law enforcement partners, including those that enforce our nation’s immigration laws.”
Mahaleris said in a statement on Thursday that the governor’s public safety office is currently reviewing Dallas’ updated policy.
“As the City has begun making changes to meet the Governor’s expectations that its policies require full cooperation with DHS, the Public Safety Office has extended the deadline for complying with the certification and will continue to engage with the City,” Mahaleris said. “Governor Abbott will continue to use every necessary tool to protect Texans.”
Prior to the updated policy, Democrats and community organizations in North Texas had released a joint letter on Wednesday pushing back against the governor’s threat to Dallas.
In addition, Houston has also updated its ICE ordinance and police department’s policy this week in response to a $114 million funding threat from the governor.
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.