Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) signed an executive directive Wednesday to terminate all standing 287(g) agreements within the Commonwealth — partnerships between local officials and U.S. Immigrations and Custom Enforcement to perform specified immigration officer functions. In a press release, Spanberger explained that state and local law enforcement should be committed to building trust within communities, rather than the enforcement of federal civil immigration law.
“Today, Virginia is taking important steps to both reaffirm the core responsibilities of our officers and help build public trust in Virginians who wear the badge,” Spanberger said.
This executive directive follows Executive Order 10, signed by Spanberger Jan. 17, which rescinded former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s (R) order in February 2025 to establish 287(g) agreements in Virginia. Spanberger’s Executive Order 10, however, did not terminate existing agreements — it only outlawed the formation of future partnerships between Commonwealth officials and ICE.
According to 29News, Virginia has some of the highest number of ICE-partnered law enforcement nationally, with at least 32 current 287(g) agreements. Further, in fiscal year 2025, ICE made 615 arrests in the Washington, D.C. area — which includes the Commonwealth — and detained 596 of those individuals.
Spanberger noted in Wednesday’s directive that Stanley Meador, the Commonwealth’s secretary of public safety and homeland security, and David Bulova, Virginia secretary of natural and historic resources, performed an investigation of the agreements and found that the language of the existing 287(g) agreements grants federal ICE agencies, rather than the Virginia state government, the power to supervise Virginia law enforcement.
“Our review found that these Section 287(g) Agreements … improperly cede accountability and discretion over Virginia law enforcement to the federal government by requiring that Virginia law enforcement agents work ‘under the supervision or direction of’ the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”),” Spanberger wrote.
This follows a resolution passed by the Charlottesville City Council Monday which expressed disapproval of federal ICE practices in Charlottesville, and noted that ICE enforcement can affect the “willingness” of residents to engage with and put trust into the local government.
Spanberger additionally signed Executive Order 12 Wednesday which outlines key principles state law enforcement officials should follow to prioritize the safety of Virginians. She highlighted the need for state officials to gain trust within residents of their communities rather than enforcing ICE policy.
“Virginia law enforcement efforts focus on upholding the rule of law, investigating and stopping criminal conduct, and protecting public safety, not the administrative enforcement of civil status,” Spanberger wrote in Executive Order 12.
Further principles outlined by Spanberger in Executive Order 12 include that “effective policing” can only come as a result of public trust and that Virginia law enforcement should not engage in “fear-based policing” or actions that create a barrier between citizens and officials in times of need.
Rep. John McGuire (R-05) condemned Spanberger’s Executive Order 12 in a press release Wednesday, emphasizing his belief that terminating agreements between ICE and Commonwealth agencies puts Virginians in danger.
“This action creates a dangerous situation where liberal paid protestors can interfere with federal officers who are working hard to get dangerous criminals off our streets,” McGuire said. “Law enforcement cooperation with local, state and federal agencies is vital to the safety of our Commonwealth.”
Beyond Charlottesville’s resolution and Spanberger’s executive orders to bar future 287(g) agreements and terminate existing ones, multiple student groups at the University have been calling for ICE to leave the community as well. Some students banded together Friday to join the nationwide protest against ICE — the groups said, “We stand with Minnesota — ICE out of our communities.”
The groups included Sunrise at U.Va., Jewish Voice for Peace at U.Va., National Lawyers Guild at U.Va. Law, U.Va. Rise Up, Undoc U.Va. and Students for Justice in Palestine at U.Va. The protest was in response to instances of violence from ICE agents, including individuals fatally shot by ICE officials — Renee Good and Alex Pretti were both killed in January by ICE officials in Minneapolis.
Spanberger emphasized in Wednesday’s executive order that her priorities for state officials were not meant to undermine their ability to enforce law. In a statement posted on X, she upheld these sentiments and her decision to sign the executive order.
“When state and local law enforcement are pulled away from upholding our Virginia laws to do the job of federal agents, it weakens their ability to deepen trust — contributing to a culture of fear and distrust that makes it harder for officers to do their jobs,” Spanberger wrote on X.
Both the executive directive and order signed by Spanberger Wednesday will go into effect immediately, severing all active 287(g) agreements in the Commonwealth and asserting priorities for state officials.
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