Trump administration applies pressure on 'sanctuary jurisdictions' with public listing

Stephen Miller discusses immigration policy

Outside the White House, Trump administration senior aide Stephen Miller discussed multiple topics beginning with immigration.

LOS ANGELES - The Department of Homeland Security has formally placed more than 500 communities on notice that the Trump administration considers them "sanctuary jurisdictions" obstructing immigration enforcement, escalating efforts to penalize states and cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

The list, published Thursday, comes as part of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on April 28. It directs DHS and the attorney general to regularly identify localities that, in the administration’s view, interfere with federal immigration law—and to cut off funding where possible.

What qualifies as a ‘sanctuary jurisdiction’?

The backstory:

There is no legal definition of a "sanctuary jurisdiction," but the term is typically used to describe communities that decline to honor certain federal immigration detainers or restrict local law enforcement from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

DHS said the list was compiled based on multiple factors, including whether a jurisdiction self-identifies as a sanctuary, limits data-sharing with ICE, or provides legal protections to undocumented immigrants.

"Sanctuary city politicians are endangering Americans and our law enforcement in order to protect violent criminal illegal aliens," DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a press release.

How will the federal government enforce this order?

What's next:

The executive order empowers DHS and the attorney general to recommend suspending or terminating federal grants or contracts with listed jurisdictions. It also allows for legal action if a community remains "in defiance" after formal notice.

Federal agencies, including the Office of Management and Budget, have been directed to identify funding streams that could be affected. The administration has also rapidly expanded 287(g) agreements, which authorize local law enforcement to perform certain immigration enforcement duties in partnership with ICE.

What are cities saying in response?

The other side:

Some cities and officials are already pushing back.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott posted on X that the city is "not a sanctuary city," citing its lack of control over local jails—a key component of ICE cooperation. Still, he defended the city’s stance: "We are better because of our immigrant neighbors, and are not about to sell them out to this administration."

United States President Donald Trump departs at the White House to U.S. Steel's Irvin Works in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania in Washington D.C May 30, 2025. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Las Vegas officials also expressed confusion, saying they were unsure why they were included on the list and hoped to "clear up this misunderstanding."

A coalition of officials and advocates, including the nonprofit Public Rights Project, called the DHS list a "fear tactic designed to bully local governments into cooperating with ICE." In a statement Thursday, they added: "Sanctuary policies are legal and make us all safer."

Big picture view:

The Trump administration has made mass deportation a key part of its immigration agenda. ICE’s workforce has remained relatively small, with around 6,000 law enforcement officers nationwide, so the agency relies heavily on local cooperation to expand its enforcement reach.

But many jurisdictions resist that cooperation, arguing that it discourages crime victims and witnesses in immigrant communities from coming forward and diverts local resources away from public safety.

Previous efforts to withhold federal funding from sanctuary cities have been challenged in court, and the new push could lead to further legal battles over state and local rights.