Research Note Researched

Montana — 287(g) expansion, state preemption of local resistance, revenue-dependent detention

Montana is a case study in state-level enforcement escalation vs. local resistance – and the state is winning. Attorney General Austin Knudsen has used Montana’s anti-sanctuary law, a statewide 287(g) agreement, and new legislation to systematically expand immigration enforcement while crushing city-level opposition in Helena, Missoula, and Gallatin County.

The 287(g) Architecture

Montana has four distinct 287(g) agreements as of early 2026:

Agency	Model	Since	Notes
Montana DOJ (Highway Patrol + DCI)	Task Force	Feb 2025	AG Knudsen signed; troopers can arrest, detain, process
Flathead County Sheriff	Warrant Service Officer	2020	Re-signed 2020; jail-only, Sheriff Brian Heino
Gallatin County Sheriff	Warrant Service Officer	~2021	5-year agreement; ICE reviews bookings
Garfield County Sheriff	Task Force	Aug 2025	Undersheriff Aaron Conner; 4,800 sq mi eastern MT county

Key distinction: The state-level DOJ agreement is a Task Force Model, meaning Highway Patrol troopers can conduct immigration enforcement during routine duties (e.g., traffic stops). This is far more aggressive than the Warrant Service Officer model used by Flathead and Gallatin.

Pending: Cascade County (Great Falls) was listed as pending for 287(g) in 2025 but has not appeared on ICE’s public list.

State Legislative Expansion

House Bill 278 (signed May 2025): Allows police to check a driver’s immigration status during a traffic stop if they have “reasonable suspicion” the person is in the U.S. illegally and is suspected of a crime. This effectively gives all Montana law enforcement immigration screening power at the point of a traffic stop.

Counter-legislation (proposed, 2027 session): Sen. Ellie Boldman (D-Missoula) announced a trio of bills — prompted by the Jan 7, 2026 ICE killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis — that would require federal officers including ICE to display identification, limit mask-wearing during operations, and protect “privileged places” (schools, daycares, health facilities, libraries, religious institutions, shelters, workplaces). Montana’s legislature is biennial; the next session does not start until January 2027, so these are pre-session proposals, not active bills. Republican lawmakers are skeptical they will advance.

The Preemption Playbook

AG Knudsen has established a clear pattern for crushing local resistance:

Helena (Jan-Mar 2026): City commission passes resolution restricting police/ICE cooperation -> AG opens investigation -> cease-and-desist with threat of $10K/5-day fines -> commission rescinds 4-1 after two months.
Gallatin County (Oct 2025-May 2026): County attorney Audrey Cromwell restricts ICE access to confidential criminal justice information -> AG demands rescission -> AG invokes “supervisory control” over the elected county attorney (Apr 30) -> Cromwell petitions the Montana Supreme Court (May 1, OP 26-0292) -> Supreme Court orders Knudsen to respond by May 14 (a procedural win for Cromwell) -> Knudsen files May 14 motion to dismiss as a “political question.” Case pending. This is the one Montana preemption fight the AG has not simply won; the high court is engaging the merits. See gallatin-county-mt-ice-records-fight.
Missoula (Jan-Mar 2026): Council member drafts ICE restriction resolution -> can’t find co-sponsors -> proposal dies. The Helena precedent already deterring action.

Montana’s anti-sanctuary law (MCA 7-32-4734) provides the enforcement mechanism: $10,000 fines every five days, loss of state grants, project de-prioritization.

Enforcement Operations

Bigfork worksite raid (Mar 2025): ICE HSI + Border Patrol detained 17 undocumented immigrants at a construction site in Flathead County. Local sheriff was not involved or notified.
Gallatin County gang arrests (early 2025): ICE arrested 6 alleged Tren de Aragua members.
Helena arrest (Jul 2025): Immigration arrest that residents and family called a “mistake”; helped catalyze grassroots movement.
Northwest Montana (2025): Border Patrol detained 135+ people in the region, with 11 having non-immigration criminal charges.
Regional trend: ICE arrests in the Salt Lake City area of responsibility (covering UT, NV, ID, MT) tripled from 250/month (Dec 2024) to 740/month (May 2025).

Community Resistance

Despite the state’s preemption success, Montana saw significant protest activity:

Jan 25-26, 2026: Thousands protested across Montana after ICE killing of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. 1,000+ in Missoula, hundreds in Bozeman.
Jan 29, 2026: Helena High School students planned anti-ICE protest, cancelled after a “fireworks-and-gasoline device” was found.
Jan 30, 2026: Montana businesses in Missoula, Helena, Livingston, Bozeman closed for national strike against ICE.
Mar 28, 2026: “No Kings” rallies – 1,500+ at Helena Capitol, 3,500+ in Missoula.

The Detention Bottleneck

Montana has only one facility that can hold ICE detainees long-term: the Cascade County Detention Center in Great Falls. This creates a structural chokepoint. The jail relies on federal detainee revenue for 70%+ of its $14M budget. Sheriff Slaughter is pushing for a direct ICE contract at $150/day (vs. $115/day CBP rate). See: cascade-county-detention-center-mt.

First Montana habeas win (May 14, 2026): U.S. District Court Chief Judge Brian Morris ordered the release of Froid diesel mechanic Roberto Orozco-Ramirez after 109 days at the Cascade jail, calling the administration’s interpretation of the underlying immigration statute “erroneous” and warning of “indifference from the executive branch to the Constitution’s guarantee of freedom from arbitrary confinement.” Reported as the first such ruling in Montana, mirroring decisions in NY, GA, and OH. A second long-term detainee, British citizen Dakota Wheeler (detained Nov 2025), remained at the Cascade jail in mid-May 2026 with his case in the federal appeals system. These cases show Cascade is now also the venue where Montana’s detention pipeline meets federal due-process litigation.

Heatmap Counties Without Direct Findings

The following heatmap-flagged counties had no specific 2025-2026 ICE activity found in web searches: Dawson (30021), Rosebud (30087), Toole (30101), Phillips (30071), Pondera (30073), Big Horn (30003). Their heatmap scores (42 each) appear driven by existing IGSA and 287(g) signals rather than active enforcement or facility activity.

Sources

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