Houston Mayor's Order Tells Police Not to Contact ICE Unless a Suspect Is Jailed; Texas Sanctuary Law Carries Daily Fines and Removal From Office

Houston Mayor John Whitmire signed an executive order on Friday that bars Houston Police Department officers from contacting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement about anyone who is not already headed to jail. The Digital Free Press compared the two-page order with the Texas law that bars cities from limiting immigration enforcement.

What the Order Says

Executive Order 1-74, effective Nov. 6, says HPD personnel "shall contact ICE regarding a person only if that person is already going to jail on new charges or other warrants and has a positive National Crime Information Center (NCIC) hit for an ICE administrative warrant." It adds: "If a person is not otherwise going to jail on new charges or other warrants, Department personnel shall not contact ICE regarding that person."

It defines "contact with ICE" to include notifying ICE of a person's "identity, custody status, or anticipated release," and tells Police Chief J. Noe Diaz to "ensure that individuals are not held in the field solely for ICE pickup."

The mayor's office wrote on X that the order directs HPD "to no longer contact ICE for nonviolent offences." The order itself does not use the word "nonviolent." Its test is whether a person is going to jail on a "jailable offense," rather than one for which "release on citation is required or customary."

"HPD will no longer contact ICE if they have an administrative warrant and they are not arrested," Diaz said Friday, according to the city's release.

What Texas's SB 4 Says

Texas Government Code section 752.053, enacted in 2017 as Senate Bill 4, says a local entity "may not adopt, enforce, or endorse a policy under which the entity or department prohibits or materially limits the enforcement of immigration laws." The law's definitions say a "policy" includes a written "order," and a "local entity" includes a "municipal police department."

The same section says a city may not "prohibit or materially limit" an officer from "sending the information to or requesting or receiving the information from" ICE about the immigration status of "any person under a lawful detention or under arrest." The law defines "lawful detention" as a detention "for the investigation of a criminal offense."

The order appears to anticipate that wording. Its statement of intent says it is meant "not to prohibit, materially limit, or discourage any officer" from using authority state and federal law reserve to them. Its operative section says officers "shall not contact ICE" about anyone not going to jail.

The statute sets the penalties. A local entity a court finds "intentionally violated" section 752.053 faces $1,000 to $1,500 for a first violation and $25,000 to $25,500 for each later one, with "each day of a continuing violation" counted separately. Under section 752.0565, an official who violates it commits an act that causes "the forfeiture of the person's office," and the attorney general "shall file" a removal petition when presented with evidence establishing probable grounds.

The order does not address ICE detainers, which Texas law requires the agency holding a person to honor. Whitmire said that once someone is jailed, those decisions fall to Harris County, Fox 26 Houston reported. Senate Bill 8, a 2025 law requiring jail-running sheriffs to seek 287(g) agreements with ICE, does not cover city police; Diaz said HPD has none.

Reactions and the April Fight

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told Texas Scorecard, "The Supremacy Clause makes it clear that sanctuary politicians do not control federal law enforcement." Houston Police Officers' Union President Doug Griffith told Fox 26 the union was "completely blindsided" and questioned whether it conflicts with SB 4. TDFP found no statement on the order on Gov. Greg Abbott's or Attorney General Ken Paxton's official news pages as of Saturday night.

In April, the City Council passed an ordinance barring officers from detaining people solely on civil ICE warrants. Paxton sued on April 16, calling it "an egregious affront to SB 4," and Abbott threatened roughly $110 million in state grants. The council then revised the ordinance. TDFP could not confirm the current status of Paxton's suit.

Whitmire tied the move to Tuesday's election, when Democrats won the governor and attorney general races; the winners take office in January. "I also do this knowing that elections matter," he said.

Sources: City of Houston Executive Order 1-74, Nov. 6, 2026 (https://www.houstontx.gov/policies/execorders/1-74.pdf); City of Houston news release, Nov. 6, 2026 (https://mailchi.mp/houstontx/mayor-john-whitmire-issues-executive-order-directing-hpd-to-alter-guidance-on-contact-with-ice); Houston Mayor's Office on X, Nov. 6, 2026 (https://x.com/houmayor/status/2118763594548703383); Texas Government Code sections 752.051, 752.053, 752.056 and 752.0565 (https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/GV/htm/GV.752.htm); Texas Code of Criminal Procedure article 2A.060; Senate Bill 8, 89th Legislature, enrolled text (https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/billtext/html/SB00008F.htm); Texas Attorney General news release, April 16, 2026 (https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/attorney-general-ken-paxton-sues-houston-officials-adopting-sanctuary-city-policies-designed-limit); Texas Tribune, Nov. 6, 2026 (https://www.texastribune.org/2026/11/06/ice-warrants-immigration-houston-texas-whitmire-police/); Fox 26 Houston, Nov. 6, 2026 (https://www.fox26houston.com/news/houston-police-ice-contact-limited); Texas Scorecard, Nov. 6, 2026 (https://texasscorecard.com/local/houston-mayor-signs-order-limiting-police-contact-with-ice/). Cover photo: Houston City Hall and Reflection Pool, by ExqBoredinNac, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).