The Operation Stonegarden funds also come after ICE and Border Patrol agents kicked off roving immigration enforcement sweeps last June \u2013 unsettling large swaths of Orange County\u2019s immigrant communities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Local police officials say the money will reimburse overtime pay for officers who helped out in joint enforcement operations focused on drug trafficking as well as enhancing intelligence and information gathering between law enforcement agencies, not immigration enforcement.<\/p>\n
Newport Beach Police officials said the grant would help secure the coastline border.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe California coastline is a border-crime target for maritime drug and human smuggling that often results in other criminal activities such as kidnappings, assaults, murders, money laundering and cross-border weapons trafficking, and can involve a wider range of crimes,\u201d the Newport Beach staff report<\/a> reads.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sandra De Anda, director of policy for the Orange County Rapid Response Network, said the grants are concerning and local cities need to cut ties with the Department of Homeland Security, adding UC San Diego Police<\/a> left the grant program after concerns from students.<\/p>\n She also said Border Patrol has been part of the roving immigration patrols that have rocked OC and the grant doesn\u2019t foster trust with residents.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhy are cities working with with (Department of Homeland Security) when they just have such a poor reputation in the county?\u201d De Anda, who is running for Santa Ana City Council, said in a Monday phone interview.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just seems like really there is apathy and really negligence of our elected leaders understanding the implications of what a contract like that would lead to.\u201d<\/p>\n Spokespeople for the Governor\u2019s emergency response office known as CalOES and the state Attorney General\u2019s office did not respond to emailed questions.<\/p>\n At their Tuesday meetings, officials in Orange<\/a> are expected to accept roughly $87,000 in Operation Stonegarden funds while leaders in Newport Beach<\/a> are slated to accept $130,000 in the same grant dollars with both cities using the money towards overtime.\u00a0<\/p>\n On both meeting agendas, acceptance of the federal grant dollars is part of the consent calendar \u2013 a portion of the agenda where officials typically approve a block of items without debate unless pulled for discussion.<\/p>\n Orange City councilmembers Arianna Barrios and Ana Gutierrez \u2013 who unsuccessfully pushed to list immigration resources on the city website last year<\/a> \u2013 expressed deep concern for the grant.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe have been assured by our city manager and our police chief that this grant for the city of Orange will be in no way indicating that the city will be enforcing immigration law or will be directly coordinating with DHS or border patrol,\u201d said Barrios and Gutierrez in a joint statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis grant, as far as we have been told, is specifically for anti drug trafficking and drug prevention. Yet even with that, we both feel so strongly about some of the departments that we\u2019re talking about that are ostensibly funding this grant that we will still have some very pointed questions to ask our city management.\u201d<\/p>\n The rest of the Orange City Council did not respond for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Orange Police officials said the grant would reimburse overtime costs for specific multi-agency operations to interrupt the illegal drug trade.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThese operations will focus on disrupting organized narcotics trafficking, identifying and dismantling drug trafficking and money laundering organizations, and enhancing intelligence gathering and information sharing among local, state, and federal law enforcement partners,\u201d an Orange staff report<\/a> reads.<\/p>\n Orange Police Spokesperson Trevor Cullen wrote in an email he would not be able to provide additional information on the grant until Wednesday.<\/p>\n De Anda said the El Modena neighborhood in the City of Orange has been deeply impacted by the widespread deportation raids.<\/p>\n \u201cThis seems like a disservice to those in Orange that are suffering from what the Trump administration is doing and they\u2019re suffering that here at home,\u201d she said. \u201cThe city may feel beholden to DHS in terms of cooperating more and I think that\u2019s really dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n Newport Beach spokeswoman Georgia Rios said the grant would reimburse personal overtime and costs for equipment like safety cameras and \u201cnarcotics identification devices.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOperation Stonegarden funds are used for allowable grant activities such as overtime, equipment and other approved public safety costs. For the City of Newport Beach, the funding would directly support staff overtime and the purchase of new equipment,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Councilmember Robyn Grant said the grant will be used to protect the coastline.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is an opportunity to leverage federal grant funding to enhance our Police Department and strengthen public safety in our community, specifically adding officer hours to protect our coastline, harbor, residents, and visitors,\u201d Grant said in a Friday email.\u00a0<\/p>\n The rest of the Newport City Council members did not respond for comment.<\/p>\n Tuesday\u2019s meetings come more than a year since widespread deportation sweeps ramped up in OC, leading officials in a handful of cities to launch aid and legal funds for impacted residents and promising local law enforcement would follow the state sanctuary law.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: Many Orange County Cities Stay Silent on ICE Raids<\/a>]<\/p>\n SB 54<\/a>, also known as the California Values Act or the state sanctuary law, prevents law enforcement agencies from working with immigration officials, specifically with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents through immigration detainers unless that person has been convicted of a violent felony.<\/p>\n According to the agreement for the funds<\/a>, recipient cities will still abide by state law while increasing police presence to support border patrol agencies to improve border security in the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPARTIES will enforce local and state laws within their designated jurisdiction subject to the California Values Act (SB 54; Chapter 495) and shall not enforce or aid in the enforcement of immigration laws on behalf of U. S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U. S. Border Patrol (BP). This Agreement does not provide Federal authority to PARTIES to enforce immigration laws,\u201d the agreement<\/a> reads.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s not the first time local officials have coordinated with federal immigration agencies.\u00a0<\/p>\n At the beginning of the year, San Clemente officials entered a 20-year-lease agreement with the Department of Homeland Security to allow them to install cameras on a ridge above the town to monitor the shoreline to watch for panga boats.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: Border Patrol Cameras Coming to an Iconic Coastal OC Town<\/a>]<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Newport Beach and Orange are not the only cities in Orange County receiving money from the grant.<\/p>\n Regionally, the Riverside Sheriff Department, helmed by MAGA Republican Sheriff Chad Bianco who had a failed bid for governor, applied for the grant and was awarded $2.7 million which they are doling out to 11 partner agencies \u2013 most of which are in OC.<\/p>\n Seal Beach, Laguna Beach and La Habra are also receiving Operation Stonegarden funds along with Huntington Beach \u2013 where officials firmly supported immigration enforcement, declaring the city a \u201cnon-sanctuary city\u201d and saying they will help ICE if they come to town.<\/p>\n At the same time, officials in Costa Mesa \u2013 who have launched both an aid fund and legal defense fund for residents impacted by the federal immigration crackdown last year \u2013 are also accepting money from the grant.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n A Costa Mesa staff report from last year about accepting Operation Stonegarden dollars never mentioned border patrol once and stated there was a need to stop drug trafficking cartels.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThese organizations have become increasingly sophisticated and use counter surveillance, diversionary tactics, night vision devices, and secure communications while conducting operations,\u201d the report<\/a> reads.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThese narcotics are plaguing the streets of Costa Mesa, causing addiction and death to members of our community.\u201d<\/p>\n Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lauren Contreras is a Voice of OC intern. You can reach her at laurencontreras615@gmail.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ICE-Raids-Leopo-2025-14-1.jpg\")
A Customs and Border Patrol Black Hawk helicopter flies over the Old Orange County Courthouse as a press conference was happening on June 11, 2025. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ORANGE-CITY-COUNCIL-2025-LEOPO-1154.jpg\")
Councilmembers Arianna Barrios,left, and Ana Gutierrez, right, talk to supporters of their resolution after it failed to pass at the Orange City Council meeting on Tuesday, July 22, 2025. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PIERS-OC-2025-MENDOZA-53.jpg\")
A bird sits on Balboa Pier in Newport Beach, Calif., on May 1, 2025. CREDIT: JOSIAH MENDOZA, Voice of OC<\/p>\n