*This note was updated on October 2st with information from the four state agencies
The four North Carolina state agencies included in the SB 153 lawKnown as North Carolina Border Protection ActThey have already signed collaboration agreements with the federal program 287(g).
According to the Official website of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the North Carolina State Highway Patrol (NCSHP), the Department of Public Safety's Alcohol Law Enforcement Division (ALE), the Department of Adult Corrections, and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), They fulfilled with the deadline established by law, which expires on October 1.
State Highway Patrol
The state agency signed the memorandum of agreement (MOA) on September 27.
The model adopted by the NCSHP to implement the program 287(g) is the “Task Force“.
Under this model, local officials They collaborate in investigations and arrests in the communityoutside the prison environment. The details of the agreement have not yet been published.
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Department of Public Safety
The Department of Public Safety's Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) Division signed the MOA on September 28.
Like the NCSHP, the model it signed is the “Task Force", which allows collaboration in investigations and arrests in the community, outside the prison environment.
Its agents have jurisdiction throughout North Carolina and the power to investigate crimes, make arrests, and respond to violent incidents.
The ALE also works with police departments and other agencies to investigate drug trafficking, arms trafficking, gangs, money laundering, and violence linked to establishments that sell alcohol.
What does the agreement with ALE stipulate?
The agreement allows trained agents from the Alcohol Law Enforcement Division (ALE), under the supervision of ICE, to question anyone they believe to be a non-U.S. citizen about their immigration status.
Agents can detain people against whom ICE has already issued arrest warrants and, in some cases, make arrests without a warrant, for example, if they believe that someone is in the country without legal immigration status and there is a risk of flight.
They can also take sworn statements, collect evidence, take fingerprints, photograph people, and initiate deportation proceedings. In addition, they can request that jails hold people for ICE and transfer them to immigration detention centers.
Although the agreement grants broader powers to trained agents, the Department of Public Safety (DPS) also released an operational guidelines document.
According to an agency spokesperson, the document was signed and published on Wednesday and states that ALE agents will verify immigration status only after a person has been detained, not during traffic stops or business inspections. The document also establishes other limitations.
“The memorandum of understanding establishes the authority available to properly trained and designated ALE agents, while the ALE directive provides the operational guidelines that agents must follow when exercising that authority, including its limitations,” DPS spokesperson Jody Donaldson said in an email. News&Observer.
Department of Adult Corrections
The North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections signed the agreement on September 29.
The model that this state agency signed to implement the 287(g) program is the “Warrant Service Officer”.
This model authorizes local officers to execute ICE administrative arrest warrants (forms I-200 and I-205) against people in custody.
It is more limited than the Jail Enforcement Model (JEM), as it does not allow immigration interviews or street patrols.
This agency manages state prisons and supervises individuals serving sentences on parole, supervised release, or post-release supervision. It also offers rehabilitation and reintegration programs.
What does the agreement with the Department of Adult Corrections stipulate?
Keith Acree, a spokesperson for the DAC, shared a copy of the agreement signed with News&Observe r, which shows that the department secretary, Leslie Cooley Dismukes, signed it on Monday and that Hott signed it on behalf of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Tuesday, September 29.
“The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction is committed to the safety of all residents of the state, including those who have immigrated from other countries,” Acree said on behalf of the DAC.
“The department has a long history of sharing information and collaborating with various federal law enforcement agencies, including ICE,” he said.
Acree explained that the department already collaborates with ICE in several ways, such as sharing, through a database, information about incarcerated and paroled individuals, including the country they claim to be from; allowing ICE agents to meet with incarcerated individuals; and, when requested, giving ICE 48 hours' notice of a person's release.
The department also complies with ICE detainer requests, through which the agency asks to take custody of a person once they have completed their state sentence, he said.
The agreement allows trained prison staff to arrest people on behalf of ICE, using an arrest warrant issued by the agency, on the day they are scheduled to be released from a state prison.
Staff can also notify ICE deportation orders and, if requested by the agency, transfer individuals to an immigration detention center.
North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI)
The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) announced in a statement that it complied with the requirements of SB 153.
According to the agency, its director, Chip Hawley, and the legal team signed the documentation before the October 1, 2026 deadline set by the General Assembly and announced that they would submit the corresponding documents to the legislative authorities.
The model that this state agency signed to implement the 287(g) program is the “Task Force”.
The SBI investigates crimes and supports local law enforcement authorities.
Among its functions are investigating cases related to drugs, human trafficking, arson, crimes against minors and violations of electoral laws.
It also manages criminal record and fingerprint records.
What is the 287(g) program?
The 287(g) program, established in the Immigration and Nationality Act, authorizes the federal government to delegate certain immigration functions to local law enforcement agencies or marshals.
North Carolina has 31 active 287(g) program agreements, according to the most recent ICE record, updated as of September 29.
The agreements correspond to 28 state and local agencies, as some participate simultaneously in more than one migration collaboration model.
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