One of the hallmarks of the Democrat-led "sanctuary" jurisdictions is a general refusal or outright statutory prohibitions against state and local law enforcement agencies providing any active assistance or even passive cooperation with the enforcement of federal immigration laws.

The flip side of that, however, is a special program in which said state and local authorities partner with the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to help enforce immigration laws, of which there are now more than 1,000 such agreements, according to Breitbart.

That is a massive change under the current leadership of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem as compared to her predecessor, former Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, under whom there were only about 135 partnership agreements.

1,001 immigration enforcement partnership agreements

A Wednesday press release announced the news that DHS and ICE had now reached partnership agreements with at least 1,001 state and local law enforcement agencies nationwide under what is known as the 287(g) program.

"ICE is not only supercharging our hiring, we are also multiplying partnerships with state and local law enforcement to remove the worst of the worst including murderers, gang members, rapists, terrorists, and pedophiles from our country," ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan said.

"Thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill, ICE launched a new reimbursement program for state and local law enforcement who partner with DHS to make America safe again," she continued.

"We encourage all state and local law enforcement agencies to sign a 287(g) agreement now," Sheahan added. "By joining forces with ICE, you’re not just gaining access to these unprecedented reimbursement opportunities -- you’re becoming part of a national effort to ensure the safety of every American family."

The release noted that, beginning next month, partner agencies can receive full reimbursement for salary and benefits for each trained and eligible officer, including overtime pay, up to 25% of an individual's annual salary, as well as "quarterly monetary performance awards" that range from an extra $500-1,000 per eligible officer.

The 287(g) program

According to DHS, participation in the 287(g) program authorizes state and local law enforcement agencies to "identify and process removable aliens" facing active or pending criminal charges, provide limited enforcement of federal immigration laws as part of their routine duties -- with ICE oversight -- as well as to serve and execute administrative warrants against incarcerated removable aliens.

While federal authorities certainly benefit from the assistance and cooperation of state and local authorities, those state and local agencies also gain the benefits of safer communities, access to ICE resources, and additional training for officers that is fully covered by federal taxpayers.

There are also three varying models within the 287(g) program that partner agencies can pick and choose from, including jail enforcement, task force participation, and warrant service.

Program authorized by Congress decades ago

Per DHS, the 287(g) program was added to the Immigration and Nationality Act in 1996, and authorizes ICE to delegate limited immigration enforcement authorities to certain state and local law enforcement agencies, with proper additional training, oversight, and reimbursement.

There are now at least 1,001 partnership agreements covering 40 states, with at least 33 more applications for partnerships that are currently pending.

Of the existing agreements, that includes 129 agencies providing jail enforcement in 27 states, 371 agencies providing warrant services in 35 states, and 501 agencies participating in task forces in 33 states.