Immigration and Customs Enforcement deployments to major U.S. cities have strained local police departments, increased overtime spending and disrupted city services, according to new report. The situation is taking place even in jurisdictions where local officers are not formally authorized to participate in federal immigration enforcement.
The most immediate effects have been financial and operational. In Los Angeles, police overtime spending rose to $41 million in June 2025, well above the department's typical monthly range of $18 million to $30 million, after immigration raids triggered weeks of protests, according to data cited by NPR.
In Minneapolis, police reported more than $6 million in overtime and standby pay in just over a month, more than double the city's annual overtime budget of $2.3 million, while in Portland, Police Chief Robert Day told NPR that the burden extended beyond budgets:
"Cops were working long days, long weeks, over an extended period of time. We are understaffed, under-resourced, and the rest of the city suffers because of that"
Day added that average response times for priority calls rose to 17 or 18 minutes, compared with a normal six to eight minutes, as officers were repeatedly assigned to the city's ICE facility.
Minneapolis officials described a similar strain to NPR. Police Chief Brian O'Hara said the federal surge overwhelmed the city, while Mayor Jacob Frey said the economic fallout exceeded $203 million in one month, citing business losses, job disruptions and public fear. O'Hara said officers began reporting symptoms of PTSD during the operation, which he compared in intensity to the unrest following George Floyd's killing in 2020.
The NPR report depicts one side of the relationship between local agencies and ICE: local departments absorbing costs tied to demonstrations, patrols and emergency responses without directly assisting in enforcement. Other recent reporting shows a different model taking shape elsewhere.
WIRED reported on Tuesday that Carroll, New Hampshire, a town of about 820 people, received a $122,515 payment from the Department of Homeland Security after joining ICE's 287(g) task force program. Under that arrangement, all four of the town's full-time officers signed up to assist federal immigration enforcement, with DHS offering salary coverage, overtime support, equipment funds and vehicle incentives.
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