What is 287(g) and how does it work in Arkansas?
State law now mandates that Arkansas county sheriffs apply for a 287(g) partnership, which deputizes local law enforcement agencies to act as federal immigration enforcement. These are all the agencies in Arkansas with active partnerships.
Editor's note: This resource will be updated weekly to reflect new 287(g) partnerships in Arkansas as reported by the federal government.
Under legislation signed by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders in April 2025 (Act 654), Arkansas county sheriffs and the state Division of Correction are required to apply to participate in the 287(g) program. The Arkansas law aligns with a broader federal push under the Trump administration to expand deportations.
Under the 287(g) program, local law enforcement officers can be deputized to carry out federal immigration enforcement under ICE supervision. 287(g) allows the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), to enter into cooperative agreements with state and local law enforcement agencies via signed Memoranda of Agreement (MOAs). Law enforcement agencies under a 287(g) agreement are not granted automatic authority. They must apply for and sign a formal MOA with ICE and receive formal training.
Though not required to, both the Arkansas State Police and the Arkansas National Guard have voluntarily applied to participate in 287(g) programs. The National Guard typically does not exercise law enforcement authority.
Types of Participation
There are three models for participation in 287(g): the Jail Enforcement Model, the Task Force Model, and the Warrant Service Officer. Each gives state and local law enforcement different levels of immigration enforcement authority under ICE supervision. Under Act 654, county sheriffs must apply to participate in the Warrant Service Officer model, but may instead choose to participate in the Jail Enforcement model.
The Jail Enforcement Model allows local officers to identify and process people for possible deportation after they have been arrested and booked into a local jail. This allows law enforcement to transfer people it has detained for local criminal offenses from local custody to federal immigration enforcement custody using an immigration detainer. It applies to people with criminal or pending cases.
Currently, 7 out of the 38 active 287(g) MOAs in the state of Arkansas use the Jail Enforcement Model.
A Warrant Service Officer is a trained and certified officer who can execute ICE-issued administrative warrants for people already held in their agency’s jail. They cannot ask people about their immigration status or make immigration arrests. This model requires significantly less training and resource investment from local law enforcement agencies — just 8 hours of officer training rather than a 4-week course.
Currently, 15 out of the 38 active 287(g) MOAs in the state of Arkansas use the Warrant Service Officer model.
The Task Force Model allows trained local law enforcement officers to carry out immigration enforcement during routine policing activities, such as traffic stops or patrols, under ICE supervision. Under the Task Force Model, officers can, according to the National Immigration Forum:
- Question individuals about their immigration status if they have reasonable suspicion that the person may be unlawfully present
- Access DHS databases to verify immigration status
- Place immigration detainers on individuals they determine to be removable
- Make arrests for civil immigration violations without requiring a separate criminal charge
- Process immigration paperwork to initiate removal proceedings.
The Task Force model was discontinued under former President Barack Obama because of criticism over civil rights abuses and racial profiling. The Trump administration revived this model in early 2025.
Currently, 16 out of the 38 active 287(g) MOAs in the state of Arkansas are under the Task Force Model.
287(g) in Arkansas
Of the 75 counties in Arkansas, 20 are currently participating in the 287(g) program, according to the most recent information from ICE. Additionally, 8 municipalities have a 287(g) agreement, and 5 state agencies. The data visualization below reflects current ICE information on 287(g) partnerships in the state of Arkansas. It will be updated weekly.
Some of these entities, such as the Benton County Sheriff's Department and the Craighead County Sheriff's Department, participated in the program for several years prior to the state’s new requirement.
In 2020, after significant community pressure, the Washington County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) suspended its 287(g) program, which it had participated in since 2007. In July 2025, following the new state law, WCSO signed a new 287(g) MOA.