Olympia bans ICE from city property, calls for end to ‘dangerous’ activity
The Olympia City Council unanimously approved two actions at its Feb. 24 meeting that were aimed at restricting federal immigration agents in the city, effective immediately.
The first action was a resolution calling for an end to “dangerous immigration enforcement tactics by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection,” according to council documents. The resolution also called for the protection of Constitutional rights, and for “meaningful guardrails” to be set on Department of Homeland Security funding.
“A surge of immigration enforcement by ICE and CBP in the state of Minnesota has resulted in the homicides of two citizens of the United States,” according to council documents. “Since President Trump took office on January 20, 2025, an unprecedented 37 people have died in the custody of ICE, including several deaths that may have been preventable.”
The resolution specifically calls for an end to enforcement surges, guardrails on DHS funding, reductions in DHS spending, and a restructuring of the department entirely.
It also calls for judicial warrants for searches and an end to masked agent operations, as well as restricting deportations without judicial orders and an end to abuses in detention facilities.
The resolution was unanimously approved by the City Council under its consent calendar, and without discussion. Because it was approved, a copy of the resolution will be sent to the Washington state congressional delegation, according to council documents.
The resolution was spearheaded by council member Clark Gilman. He said Feb. 24 that the ordinance was coming at the same time as many other cities across the country are considering similar language.
“It’s to help bolster our members of Congress who are willing to call to put guardrails contingent on any additional funding for the Department of Homeland Security to stop the ridiculous, cruel, dangerous tactics and actions that immigration is taking right now,” Gilman said.
Gilman said King County Council member Teresa Mosqueda helped form the ordinance in Olympia, following discussions with staff in both King County and Olympia.
The Olympian has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
The second action the city unanimously approved was an ordinance prohibiting federal ICE agents from using city-owned or controlled property for enforcement activities. The ordinance declared the situation an emergency and was made effective immediately. The Olympian could not immediately reach a spokesperson with the city regarding whether federal ICE agents have stationed on city property in the past.
Mayor Dontae Payne said the ordinance followed a council discussion on Feb. 3 where the council voiced its support for following similar actions taken by the Mayor of Seattle.
Payne said the actions taken by the council are important because it states Olympia’s position on actions being taken by the federal government. He said the city is one of several across the county who disagree with the way federal agencies are handling the enforcement of immigration policies.
Payne said the ordinance regarding ICE stationing on city property gives the city a mechanism to update code and then enforce that code, and challenge the federal government should it become a problem in the future.
“And so I will just be transparent about the fact that this does not mean that it cannot occur, and I want to be clear about that, but it does give us some ability to push back against it and hopefully prevail if we need to do that and if it comes to that,” he said.
He said he understands that not everyone in the community will be happy about the city taking this action, but that the community is by majority a welcoming place.
“This is one of the very few ways that local governments have to try to have some kind of control of what’s happening across communities across the country, and so we are happy to take this up, to do all that we can, as we promised our community members that we would,” Payne said.
One person spoke about the actions during public comment at the meeting Feb. 24. Ribbon Beagle, a member of the Olympia chapter of Democratic Socialists of America, said that she wants the City Council to take another look at the resolution regarding ICE and CBP.
“ICE has blown open the door, quite literally, to the conversation around immigration, robbing due process and civil liberties from people, regardless if they are an American citizen or not,” she said. “Reforming ICE is a conservative position. Abolishing ice is the moderate position.”
Beagle said the city needs to stand up for its neighbors and the most marginalized. She said non-violent means should be possible, and the second-to-last line of defense should be the Olympia Police Department to uphold the city’s sanctuary policies and laws.
According to previous reporting from The Olympian, OPD’s Policy 413 states that the department does not assist with, or participate in, immigration enforcement activities. Officers will never ask for information about immigration status, and they will respond to 911 calls regarding enforcement activities “within staffing limits.” The policy makes it clear that they’re unable to interfere with any enforcement officer’s actions.
This story was originally published February 25, 2026 at 3:11 PM.
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