Salisbury to introduce legislation that would codify Pennsylvania State Police policy against assisting in ICE arrests
Rep. Abigail Salisbury September 3, 2025
HARRISBURG, Sept. 3 – With a growing number of law enforcement agencies around the country signing up to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement with immigration arrests, state Rep. Abigail Salisbury will soon introduce legislation that would codify an existing Pennsylvania State Police policy against working with ICE.
Salisbury said the legislation is needed because entry into a so-called 287(g) agreement would drain critical resources from PSP and impair its ability to assist the large number of local police departments that rely on the agency for everyday operations.
“It’s estimated that as many as two-thirds of Pennsylvania municipalities rely on full- or part-time PSP coverage, at increasing costs to the agency and taxpayers,” Salisbury said. “PSP joining a 287(g) agreement would only increase workloads, further burden taxpayers and decrease trust by the communities who rely on our state troopers.”
Salisbury emphasized that no such agreement is imminent and that current PSP policy does not support working with ICE.
“PSP has not expressed any plans to assist ICE, and in fact the agency has adopted internal policies that would prohibit such an agreement,” Salisbury said. “Policies don’t carry the force of law, however, and they can change over time. With so much at stake, it’s important for us to codify the existing policy, so troopers can focus on their responsibilities to our communities and precious state resources are not diverted to the federal government.”
Salisbury is currently seeking co-sponsors for the legislation.