Portland limits immigration enforcement assistance, going beyond other cities


By: Emma Davis-May 5, 2026
10:33 am
No Kings III demonstration in Monument Square in Portland on March 28, 2026. (Photo by Jim Neuger/ Maine Morning Star)

Portland further restricted local assistance with federal immigration enforcement, even more so than other Maine cities in response to President Donald Trump’s operation in the state this winter.
Similar to ordinances passed in Rockland and Lewiston, the Portland City Council amended its city code Monday night to ban employees and resources from being used to assist or cooperate with any federal agency in any immigration enforcement operation, except where legally required to do so by law or court order.
However, Portland’s ordinance goes a bit further by adding more restrictions for city employees that are only applicable to police under a new state law, such as preventing them from using immigration authorities as interpreters for local law enforcement.
Several cities in Maine have considered limiting cooperation with immigration enforcement in response to Trump’s mass deportation agenda, specifically since U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s large-scale operation in January resulted in the detention of Maine residents who were pursuing lawful immigration processes and had no criminal records. Bangor and Waterville are currently deliberating their own ordinances.
“The current administration has three more years. If we don’t have a very strong protection for our staff and our community, nobody can predict what they can do,” said Councilor At-large Pious Ali, who proposed the stricter limits along with District Three Councilor Regina Phillips.
The Portland City Council passed their version 7-1, with Mayor Mark Dion the sole opposing vote after his version was rejected.

“I don’t dispute this amendment at all. I think it does provide clarity around police conduct and the community’s expectation of that conduct,” Dion said of the amendment that ultimately passed. “Where I do have a fundamental disagreement is the nature of our employees.”
The mayor’s amendment would have made it so employees couldn’t be disciplined for violating the ordinance if they did so because of intimidation or coercion from federal agents, or if given an administrative warrant or other document that appeared to authorize federal access. Under Trump, ICE has been relying on these types of warrants, which the agency itself issues as opposed to a judge.
On the other hand, the amendment that passed clarifies that the only remedy for a violation is through city disciplinary procedures, which Rockland and Lewiston’s ordinances don’t specify.
“I want to maintain the trust and the respect of the people that work for us,” Dion said, “and we call them into hard places every single day.”
Dion’s version could be “read by these federal officials as an invitation to intimidate and to coerce and to harass city staff,” said Michael Kebede, policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine, which has helped draft and advocate for these local ordinances.
Lisa Parisio, policy director of Maine’s Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project, added, “Unfortunately, in this environment, intimidation and aggressive tactics are what ICE does.”
Before the language change Monday night, Portland’s city code had already banned Portland Police and employees from inquiring about a person’s immigration status. The new language will take effect in 30 days.
The applicability of these ordinances to all city employees is broader than the new state law, which restricts state and local law enforcement from working with immigration authorities. Other new state-level protections for immigrants include a ban on immigration agents entering public schools, state libraries and hospitals without a judicial warrant, and a measure to protect tenants against the disclosure of their personal information, among others.

Portland limits immigration enforcement assistance, going beyond other cities • Maine Morning Star