This past month, three major cities in Texas came under fire from the Governor and the Attorney General over immigration enforcement. Governor Abbott and AG Paxton took coordinated action against Houston, Austin, and Dallas over local policies that restrict how municipal police cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
On Monday, April 13, Abbott’s office sent a letter to Houston threatening to pull about $110 million in public safety grants. On Thursday, April 16, the governor’s office sent similar letters to Austin and Dallas. Austin could lose about $2.5 million. Dallas could lose more than $32 million in grants, plus up to $55 million tied to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The total losses for all three cities are over $200 million.
In this same time period, Paxton filed a lawsuit against Houston in Fort Bend County, not in Houston’s home county of Harris, over the ordinance that restricts ICE activity. The suit names Mayor John Whitmire, every city council member, and Police Chief J. Noe Diaz. Paxton also opened an investigation into the Austin Police Department’s immigration policy. It is not known whether Dallas faces a similar investigation; Paxton’s office did not respond to the Texas Tribune’s request for comment…