The Mandate
All 95 county sheriffs must sign ICE cooperation agreements by January 2027 or lose state funding
Governor Bill Lee signed HB2219 on May 10, making Tennessee the first state in the country to force every sheriff into a 287(g) agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The federal program was designed to be voluntary. Tennessee made it mandatory.
That means every county jail in the state now functions as an immigration screening checkpoint. If your sheriff does not comply, the state can withhold funding from your local law enforcement agency.
How Fast This Moved
The 287(g) mandate is the centerpiece, but it is not the whole picture. Tennessee’s “Immigration 2026” agenda was drafted in meetings between House Speaker Cameron Sexton and White House advisor Stephen Miller. More than a dozen bills passed this session.
| What changed | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Agencies with ICE agreements | 14 (June 2025) | 95 mandated by Jan. 2027 |
| Unlawful presence in TN | Federal matter only | State Class A misdemeanor |
| Driver’s license test language | Multiple languages | English only (3-year phase-in) |
| Sanctuary city votes by officials | Legal | Felony (struck down by settlement) |
| Public health screenings | No immigration check | Proof of status required |
The state offered $5 million in incentive funding to get sheriffs to sign up voluntarily. Only $160,000 was claimed. So they passed the mandate instead.
Who Gets Hurt
This is not just about people without documentation. Citizenship checks now attach to breast and cervical cancer screenings at local health departments, childcare assistance applications, and routine traffic stops.
“If the intention is to target immigrant communities, it’s literally targeting everybody else as well. Folks who are unhoused, kids that maybe don’t have a birth certificate, even though they were born here — this will also impact them.”
— Cesar Bautista, Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition
Immigrants make up 5% of Tennessee’s population but fill 17% of construction jobs and contribute $8.2 billion in consumer spending. International migration to Tennessee dropped from 47,976 to 17,990 in 2025. That is not enforcement success. That is a labor market crisis building in real time.
One Win Worth Knowing
The ACLU of Tennessee won a settlement striking down the 2025 law that made it a felony for elected officials to vote in favor of sanctuary policies. The state acknowledged the law violated legislative immunity. Courts still matter, and this fight is not over.
What You Can Do
- Find out whether your county sheriff has signed a 287(g) agreement and what type. ICE offers four models, from jail screening to active street-level enforcement. The type matters.
- Contact your Tennessee state legislators and tell them the 287(g) mandate removes local control from your elected sheriff.
- Support the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition with your time or money. They are leading the legal and organizing pushback.
- Share this with your neighbors. These laws touch cancer screenings, childcare, and traffic stops. Everyone in Tennessee should know.
Track this story on the Tennessee state page and the Immigration hub.
Primary Sources
- Tennessee Lookout: Sweeping “Immigration 2026” agenda
- Tennessee Lookout: Senate adopts new state immigration crimes
- Capture Cascade: HB2219 signed into law
- ACLU-TN: Settlement declares sanctuary vote law unconstitutional
- American Immigration Council: Immigrants in Tennessee
- Immigration Research Initiative: Economic impacts in Tennessee