Divest Baltimore City from Companies Profiting from ICE Abductions

Introduction

Below is the text of a bill we introduced to Councilmember Odette Ramos in January, 2025. She tells us she's been working on adapting it for introduction to the City Council. We check in periodically, but so far it hasn't been introduced and we haven't been told of any specific amendment needs or concerns.

Since introducing it, we've expanded the goals of our campaign to include "exploitative, AI-powered" surveillance: Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) cameras and facial recognition software. Councilmember Ramos said she'd prefer not to complicate the scope of our bill and recommended we try to work with Councilmember Paris Gray instead, as he's been working on a package of bills concerning surveillance. So far, we haven't achieved contact with CM Gray, but have been organizing his constituents to contact him and share our campaign goals. As of October 29, 2026, has introduced one bill to create a new transparency taskforce on surveillance, which is currently in various committees, and held one informational hearing to address concerns about AI-powered and sketchy startup surveillance in particular, citing Axon (one of our ICE profiteer targets! See below) and MotionSafe as city contractors he is particularly concerned about.

Draft Bill Text

WHEREAS, the Constitution of the United States protects the 1st Amendment right to free speech, the 4th amendment right from arbitrary search and seizure, the 5th amendment right to due process, the 8th amendment right from cruel and unusual punishment, and the 14th amendment rights to birthright citizenship and equal protection under the law;

WHEREAS, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) has openly declared its intent to use the threat of deportation and detention to dissuade non-citizens from exercising their rights to free speech under the 1st amendment;

WHEREAS, the DHS currently practices the detention of individuals without the use of judicial warrants or probable cause;

WHEREAS, the DHS has widely engaged in the detention and arrest of individuals while attending court proceedings, interrupting, preventing, and discouraging their access to due process under the law;

WHEREAS, the DHS has openly carried out deportations in violation of court orders;

WHEREAS, the DHS has sent residents of the United States to foreign prisons credibly reported to be engaged in torture and forced labor, including admitting sending some individuals such as Kilmar Abrego Garcia to forced labor camps outside of the US due to admitted administrative error;

WHEREAS, the DHS has publicly argued in court for its widespread practice of racial profiling in the course of its detention operations;

WHEREAS, the threat of ICE enforcement is increasingly used by unscrupulous employers to intimidate immigrant workers from speaking up about exploitative and abusive working conditions;

WHEREAS, Baltimore City currently holds contracts with 14 companies that have been identified as having contracts with the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigrations and Customs Enforcement detention infrastructure;

RESOLVED, Baltimore City Council will cancel contracts with companies that hold contracts with the Department of Homeland Security unless those companies agree to cancel their DHS contracts;

RESOLVED, Baltimore City will boycott companies that hold contracts with the DHS or provide direct support for immigration enforcement in any way, in perpetuity;

RESOLVED, Baltimore City will cancel contracts with companies that hold contracts with the Department of Homeland Security, as discoverable in US federal reporting, including but not limited to: AECOM TECHNICAL SERVICES, INC.; AXON ENTERPRISE, INC.; DLT SOLUTIONS, LLC; ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH INSTITUTE, INC.; GUIDEHOUSE INC.; ICF INCORPORATED, L.L.C.; LEADSONLINE PARENT, LLC; MOI, INC.; LEXISNEXIS RISK SOLUTIONS FL INC.; MOTOROLA SOLUTIONS, INC.; MYSTAIRE INC; NAC MECHANICAL SERVICES, LLC; SP PLUS CORPORATION; VITAL RECORDS HOLDINGS, LLC; XEROX CORPORATION;

RESOLVED, Baltimore City Council will make a public announcement of the passage of this bill, the cancellation of the aforementioned contracts, and the boycotting of all DHS contractors and subcontractors;

RESOLVED, Baltimore City Council will amend Article 5, Subtitle 41 Prohibited Contracts to include:

§41-5 Contracts with companies involved in the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations

(a) Board of Estimates to maintain list.

The Board of Estimates shall establish and maintain a monthly list of all contracts currently held by the Department of Homeland Security related to Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the time of procurement as reported by the U.S. Treasury.

(b) Listed companies barred from contracting with City.

(1) The Board will consider any company whose name appears on this list to have violated this ordinance and shall upon a formal charge and hearing of the facts, inform that company of its inadmission to the procedure for awarding of public works, services, or supply contracts or subcontracts.

(2) Nor shall any contract or subcontract be let to a bidder whose bid includes supplies from the adjudged violator.

(c) Exceptions.

This restriction does not apply if the company is the sole source of supply for a necessary good or service.

RESOLVED, Baltimore City Council will amend investment system guidelines, such as those for the Employee’s Retirement System of the City of Baltimore and the Elected Officials Retirement System of the City of Baltimore, to prohibit investment in companies involved in the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.