5 Austin council members want limits on what federal agents can do in the city

Five council members send a memo to city manager

Five Austin City Council members sent a memo to City Manager T.C. Broadnax on March 13, 2026, laying out a five-point plan to protect residents’ civil rights during federal immigration enforcement.

Council Members Vanessa Fuentes, José Velásquez, Ryan Alter, Zohaib “Zo” Qadri, and Mayor Pro Tem José “Chito” Vela signed it. Broadnax has 30 days to evaluate what steps the city can legally take and report back.

Community frustration pushed the issue forward

The memo did not come out of nowhere. Earlier in 2026, Austin police handed over a Honduran woman and her 5-year-old child to Immigration and Customs Enforcement after finding an active administrative warrant during a routine call.

That incident, combined with reports of increased ICE activity, brought hundreds of residents to City Hall demanding less cooperation between local police and federal agents.

A community meeting with APD Chief Lisa Davis made the tensions even harder to ignore.

Two proposals focus on de-escalation

The first proposal calls on city public safety agencies to use de-escalation tactics during any federal enforcement operations, including an ICE surge, to protect peaceful protesters and keep the public safe.

The second directs APD and 911 to be ready to respond to reports of unlawful warrantless entry into private property, also using de-escalation.

The memo asks the city to update its online crime reporting system so residents can file trespassing reports tied to warrantless entry.

Council wants federal misconduct on the record

The third proposal directs APD to document all violence, property damage, and criminal conduct allegations against federal officials, in line with existing practice.

Those reports would then go to the District Attorney for review.

The memo also asks the city to publicly release body camera footage and other city-controlled surveillance video that captures federal agents causing damage or injury.

Austin looks at banning law enforcement face coverings

The fourth proposal asks Broadnax to explore banning law enforcement officers from wearing face coverings while making arrests, conducting interrogations, or detaining people in Austin.

The memo uses the word “explore,” so no ordinance is drafted and no vote is scheduled. The proposal would cover all officers operating in Austin, not just federal agents.

Denver City Council went further, passing a full ban on March 2, 2026, that applies to local, state, and federal officers and also requires visible identification.

A federal judge blocked California’s similar law

Denver built its ordinance to cover all law enforcement equally, and Austin’s memo appears to take the same approach.

That matters because in February 2026, a federal judge temporarily blocked California’s law banning federal agents from wearing face coverings.

The judge ruled it likely violated the Constitution by treating federal officers differently than state officers.

The same judge upheld a companion California law requiring federal officers to display their agency name and badge number.

Texas law puts Austin in a tight spot

Texas Senate Bill 4, signed in 2017, bans local governments from limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

The law carries fines up to $25,500 per day and allows officials who do not comply to be removed from office. It effectively banned sanctuary cities in Texas and requires local police to honor ICE detainer requests.

Fuentes told reporters it was unfortunate that state and federal lawmakers might retaliate rather than respect Austin’s authority as a home-rule city.

DHS says it will ignore local mask bans

The Department of Homeland Security has said publicly it will not follow local face covering bans.

DHS argues its agents wear masks to prevent doxing and protect against threats, pointing to what it describes as a large increase in assaults on federal officers.

Legal experts have noted that citations against federal officers would likely face court challenges, leaving enforceability an open question.

Denver’s mayor also signed a separate executive order banning federal immigration agents from operating on city property without a judicial warrant, and DHS responded by calling the city’s actions “legally illiterate.”

APD chief says department avoids ICE joint work

APD Chief Lisa Davis told the city’s Public Safety Commission on Feb. 2, 2026, that her department does not run joint operations with ICE and does not proactively enforce immigration law.

She called the current environment “new uncharted territory.”

The commission voted unanimously to recommend the city track all future interactions between APD and ICE.

In a January memo, APD said Texas SB 4 limits its ability to decline cooperation when federal immigration authorities ask for help.

Fifth proposal expands legal help for immigrants

The fifth and final proposal calls for expanding “Know Your Rights” education, training, and funding for immigrant legal defense. The memo does not name a dollar amount.

Fuentes said part of the evaluation will be figuring out the total cost and possibly folding it into the next budget cycle.

The City Manager’s office said it received the memo and will carefully review the recommendations to make sure any actions are legally sound and fit within the city’s responsibilities.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

Read more from this brand:

• Austin police can’t arrest someone on an ICE warrant alone
• Houston police announce policy changes affecting immigration-related arrests
• Quentin Tarantino built a fake version of this real Austin chili joint for Death Proof