Blog budget, Congress, Domestic Militarization, Domestic Militarization Watch, ICE, Immigration, militarization, military spending Amy Snyder February 18, 2026 0 Comments

Weekly Brief Feb. 17: Domestic Militarization Watch

February 17, 2026

🛑Partial Government Shutdown over DHS Funding to Continue

A partial government shutdown began Saturday, with Congress scheduled to be out of Washington until Feb. 23, as Democrats and the White House failed to reach a deal on DHS funding through the remainder of fiscal year 2026 (CBS News, 14 Feb. 2026).
The shutdown impacts all agencies under the Department of Homeland Security umbrella, including ICE and Customs and Border Protection, as well as the TSA, Coast Guard, and FEMA (CBS News, 14 Feb. 2026).
On Monday, Democrats sent a counteroffer, but details weren’t immediately clear. However, Democrats had vowed to oppose funding without reforms to ICE and CBP following two deadly shootings by federal agents in Minneapolis last month (CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026).
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer reiterated Democrats’ opposition, stating on Sunday that Democrats have “three basic objectives to rein in ICE and end the violence,” including the end of roving patrols and barring ICE agents from entering certain places; a use-of-force code for immigration enforcement agents; and requiring agents not to wear masks and to don body cameras (CNN, 16 Feb. 2026).
In the meantime, funding for DHS remains in limbo. However, more than 90% of DHS’ 272,000 total employees and 93% of ICE and CBP workers will continue working during the shutdown, most without pay (CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026).
Regardless of the shutdown, the work of ICE and CBP will continue unabated, thanks to Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which redirected billions of dollars to deportation operations (AP News, 17 Feb. 2026).

🏢Trump Plans Mass Expansion of Detention Centers Across the U.S.

ICE plans to spend $38.3 billion to acquire warehouse properties nationwide and convert them into detention centers capable of holding tens of thousands of immigrants, according to a newly released DHS document (AP News, 13 Feb. 2026).
The document, “ICE Detention Reengineering Initiative” outlines a plan for a “new detention model” to be fully implemented by the end of September 2026 and will focus on “non-traditional facilities” built specifically to accommodate the agency’s recent hiring surge and the anticipated increase in arrests (AP News, 13 Feb. 2026).
The massive expansion plan, financed by Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, includes the acquisition and renovation of eight large-scale detention centers and 16 processing sites, as well as the acquisition of 10 existing “turnkey” facilities where ICE ERO already operates (Newsweek, 17 Feb. 2026).
The release of the document comes after ICE has been quietly purchasing at least seven warehouses in the past few weeks in Arizona, Georgia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Texas (AP News, 13 Feb. 2026).
However, ICE has encountered pushback on proposed sites in other areas of the U.S., from local officials, community members and advocacy groups, amid growing scrutiny over its treatment of migrants in detention and concerns of the potential strain on local infrastructure and economy.
Owners in several communities have declined to sell or proceed with proposed deals, including sites in Hutchins, TX, Kansas City, MO, and Oklahoma City, OK (Newsweek, 17 Feb. 2026).

🚔ICE Partnerships with Local Police Surge Under Trump

The use of a federal ICE program that deputizes local police for immigration enforcement has dramatically increased under President Donald Trump’s second term in office (ABC News St. Louis, 16 Feb. 2026).
The 287(g) program, established in 1996, allows state and local law enforcement officers to act as immigration enforcement agents and provides $7,000 of equipment funds for each officer that completes the training (ABC News St. Louis, 16 Feb. 2026).
Participation in the program began to rapidly expand after January 2025, when Trump signed an executive order calling for DHS to “maximize the use of 287(g) agreements”, marking one of the most visible shifts in the administration’s anti-immigration agenda (NPR, 17 Feb. 2026).
Although the program has existed for nearly 30 years under both Democratic and Republican administrations, experts say it has never been to the extent that the Trump administration is using it now (NPR, 17 Feb. 2026).
In fact, since January 2025, over 1,160 agencies have participated in the program, and federal arrests have increased by 950% (NBC News, 16 Feb. 2026).
The states with the highest participation from law enforcement agencies are Alabama, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Florida and Texas (ABC News St. Louis, 16 Feb. 2026).