Portland’s mayor is standing behind the city’s sanctuary policies as President Donald Trump’s administration intensifies its crackdown on immigration.
The president signed two executive orders Monday aimed at increasing immigration enforcement, and the first takes aim at sanctuary cities and states such as Portland and Oregon.
Mayor Keith Wilson at a Portland City Council meeting on Feb. 5, 2025, Portland, Ore. Wilson is defending Portland's sanctuary status against renewed threats from President Donald Trump.
Anna Lueck for OPB
The order directs the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security to compile a list of jurisdictions that are not complying with federal immigration laws. It then instructs officials to identify federal money granted to those areas to suspend or terminate.
Portland has been a sanctuary city since 2017 and receives hundreds of millions in federal funds, including to support the Portland Police Bureau’s body camera and gun violence deterrence programs. The city has also been a source of the president’s ire, and he often describes it as an example of Democratic policies run amok.
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson said in a statement that city policy will not change.
“Portland stands unwavering in its commitment to sanctuary policies, rooted in the belief that every resident, including immigrants, deserves dignity, respect, and protection,” he said. “The city of Portland fully complies with all applicable federal and state laws and will not obstruct lawful federal enforcement operations. Importantly, our police officers will not be used as agents of ICE.”
According to the executive order, if sanctuary jurisdictions continue to push back against immigration enforcement, federal authorities “shall pursue all necessary legal remedies and enforcement measures to end these violations and bring such jurisdictions into compliance with the laws of the United States.”
Oregon is the oldest sanctuary state in the country and since 1987 has served as a model for others. State law blocks the use of local resources from assisting federal immigration officers unless there’s a signed judicial warrant.
After Trump was first elected in 2016, Oregonians voted to keep the law in place, and state lawmakers have since strengthened it. The state now blocks local jails from contracting with federal immigration enforcement to hold detainees. The state also funds programs that help immigrants access legal assistance, health care and housing.
In a statement sent to OPB Monday night, Gov. Tina Kotek said the state “will not be bullied to deport people or perform immigration enforcement.”
“Oregon will continue to follow state law,” she said. “Oregon state sanctuary laws do not obstruct the immigration efforts which are the responsibility of the federal government.”
In February, the city of Portland and nine other municipalities, including Seattle and San Francisco, sued the Trump administration over its threats to pull federal funding from jurisdictions with sanctuary laws. Last week, a California judge barred the administration from denying or conditioning federal funds and calling portions of Trump’s executive orders unconstitutional.
The new order issued Monday also directs federal authorities to develop processes to ensure immigrants here unlawfully don’t receive federal public benefits, and tasks the Justice Department with addressing state or local laws that “unlawfully prioritize aliens.”
The second executive order broadly targets local law enforcement. It tasks the Justice Department with creating a “mechanism to provide legal resources for officers and indemnification for officers facing unjust legal expenses from official duties” and would provide surplus military assets to local law enforcement.
The order also calls for a review of “Federal consent decrees, out-of-court agreements and post-judgment orders involving State or local law enforcement agencies” and other orders that would hinder law enforcement. The order does not detail what that would entail.
That review may involve a long-running settlement agreement between the U.S. Justice Department and the city of Portland over police techniques and policies. The Justice Department sued the city in 2012 after it found Portland police had a pattern of using excessive force against people with mental health challenges.
The settlement has given the Justice Department and the federal courts an official say in how the Portland Police Bureau makes changes to its policies. For example, the settlement led to the bureau’s decision to equip officers with body-worn cameras.
The agreement has been updated several times over the years. One recent change: the city and the justice department agreed in 2023 to let the courts appoint an outside consulting firm to act as an inspector and gauge how well the department’s changes are curbing uses of force.
While the new executive order tells the U.S. Attorney General to eventually “modify or rescind” settlements that “impede the performance of law enforcement functions,” it likely won’t be the Justice Department’s sole decision.
Legal experts close to the settlement believe that any decision that ends federal oversight would need backing from U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon, who oversees the settlement. They also expressed doubt that the federal government has the staffing to follow up on the executive order’s instructions after reports on Monday that more than 100 attorneys resigned from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights division.
There are some large aspects of the settlement that are yet to be resolved, including a call for the city to create a new board to investigate police misconduct. That board may still be months away from starting.
Alex Zielinski and Dirk VanderHart contributed to this report.
