Research Note Researched

Wyoming — Statewide ICE cooperation surge: 5 county 287(g) agreements, WHP deputized, county jails as overflow for Aurora, $120/day detainee rates

Wyoming has emerged as one of the most cooperative states in the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement expansion. In 2025, five county sheriffs signed 287(g) agreements with ICE, the Wyoming Highway Patrol was formally deputized for immigration enforcement by Gov. Mark Gordon, and multiple county jails began accepting ICE detainees as overflow from the Aurora, CO processing center. Wyoming has no sanctuary cities and passed legislation in 2025 to ensure none can form.

Key Statistics

287(g) counties: Campbell, Carbon, Laramie, Natrona, Sweetwater (5 total)
Wyoming Highway Patrol: 287(g) Task Force Model signed July 28, 2025
Laramie County: 25 deputies sworn in Oct 1, 2025; 257 ICE detainees housed Sept 2025-Jan 2026; $120/day rate; ~$75K invoiced
Natrona County: IGSA starting July 1, 2025; 44 detainees received from Aurora; $95/day rate; 476-bed facility
Sweetwater County: First WY agency to join 287(g) Task Force; beds expanded 15 to 30; $3M annual revenue projected; 205-bed facility
Uinta County: ICE holds since May 2025; up to 25 at a time; $120/day; $40-50K/month revenue
ICE arrests: Nearly tripled in WY since Jan 2025; most arrested lack criminal convictions
Estimated undocumented population: ~9,800 (2023 American Immigration Council)

Enforcement Profile

Wyoming’s enforcement model is distinctive: rather than ICE building dedicated facilities, the state is distributing detainees across multiple county jails. County jails function as overflow for the Aurora ICE Processing Center in Colorado when that 1,500-bed facility fills. Detainees are transferred from Aurora to Wyoming jails (Natrona, Uinta, Sweetwater) and from western Wyoming operations to Sweetwater for staging before Aurora transport.

The November 2025 trucker operation exemplified multi-agency coordination: Laramie County Sheriff, WHP, and ICE conducted a 3-day operation targeting commercial truckers bypassing the Colorado border port of entry, resulting in 40 deportations, 195 traffic stops, and 133 commercial vehicle inspections.

State-Level Cooperation

Governor Mark Gordon has been an active partner:

Formalized WHP-ICE 287(g) agreement (July 2025)
Directed National Guard to execute DHS agreements
No opposition to county-level ICE cooperation

2025 Legislation

Passed: Ban on sanctuary cities (Wyoming has none, but preemptive)
Passed: Law invalidating driver’s licenses issued by other states to undocumented immigrants
Rejected: SF0124 “Illegal immigration — identify, report, detain and deport” — would have made harboring immigrants a felony and required sheriffs to determine immigration status of all arrestees. Passed Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously but failed on floor.
Rejected: Sen. Steinmetz bill requiring immigration status questioning during routine police stops (defeated Feb 2025)
Passed: Anti-sanctuary bill from Rep. Guggenmos (R-Riverton)
Pending: English proficiency standards for commercial drivers (targeting immigrant truckers)

Community Response

ACLU of Wyoming (Antonio Serrano): Criticized 287(g) agreements signed without public comment, noted most arrested lack criminal histories
Wyoming Immigrant Advocacy Project (WIAP): Launched Teton Area Rapid Response Network and ICE watch hotline in Jackson (March 2026)
Teton County: Only county where sheriff (Matt Carr) has been noted as not proactively cooperating with ICE holds beyond 48 hours; ICE active weekly in Teton County jail

Why This Matters

Wyoming represents a model of total state-level cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. With five county 287(g)s, a statewide highway patrol agreement, multiple IGSA arrangements, supportive legislation, and no organized political opposition, the state functions as an extension of ICE’s Denver Field Office. The distributed county-jail model avoids the political visibility of a large dedicated facility while creating financial incentives ($95-$120/day) for rural counties to participate in the detention pipeline.

Sources

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