EL PASO, Texas – (KFOX14/CBS4) — El Paso city leaders unanimously approved updated guidelines aimed at clarifying how the city coordinates with federal immigration agencies, including policies tied to detention facilities, permitting and city protocols.

The City Council action followed direction given earlier this year, with city staff returning with three recommendations addressing Immigration and Customs Enforcement coordination, detention facilities and city procedures.

Deputy City Manager Mario D’Agostino said the city is limited in what it can do, but described the changes as a process meant to create accountability.

“The recommendations we made was to continue cooperating with ICE to make some ordinance adjustments for our permitting policy so that we can get better notification as far as when they are gonna build those facilities here in El Paso,” D’Agostino said.

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He added, “If we can make those code ordinance changes, it’ll allow us to at least make sure that we’re accounting for safe facilities.”

The first recommendation focused on how El Paso police work with ICE and the Department of Homeland Security.

City staff found that state and federal laws prevent local officers from enforcing immigration laws.

However, staff said officers must notify ICE if they find out someone is in the country illegally.

The second recommendation called for changes to ordinances and permitting to provide the city better notification when a new facility is planned.

The third recommendation reaffirmed a policy that does not allow ICE operations in city-owned private areas.

D’Agostino said that policy remains in place, and the updated approach is designed to speed internal notifications.

“That still remains, we just came up with the policy that we recommended for them,” he said.

“It’s to come back and have our employees make the notifications so that not only the city manager’s office, but also the city attorney’s office is notified quickly so we can see what type of enforcement they are doing.”

The city said it will finalize notifications for city employees in the coming weeks.

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