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The Bergen County Jail in Hackensack on Thursday was housing 97 detainees for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
A few miles away at the Hudson County jail in Kearny, there were 48 federal immigration detainees
The numbers are far fewer than the hundreds each jail housed during the height of the Trump administration, which took a hard-line approach on illegal immigration, leading to increased arrests and detentions and bringing millions into county coffers. On Thursday, officials in both counties said they are not accepting any more immigration detainees, raising questions about whether they will join Essex County in ending the long-standing practice of housing ICE detainees.
Bergen lawmaker s bill would bar new immigrant detention contracts with ICE
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A Bergen County lawmaker has introduced legislation to ban the state and counties from contracting with federal officials to hold immigrant detainees, though it would allow controversial deals at the Bergen, Essex and Hudson jails to continue.
Assemblyman Gordon Johnson s bill, introduced on Monday, would bar local governments from renewing those agreements when they expire and prevent public and private detention facilities in the state from signing new agreements.
The proposal follows years of protests at the North Jersey jails, where hundreds of immigrants are being held for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as part of the Trump administration s four-year crackdown. Tensions have escalated in recent weeks, with several detainees launching hunger strikes and police and protesters clashing outside the Bergen facility.