The Houston City Council on Wednesday approved amendments to the city’s immigration ordinance in a decisive vote aimed at preserving state funding, while reigniting concerns among some officials and advocates about constitutional protections and local policing priorities.

The measure, advanced by Mayor John Whitmire, passed in a 13-4 vote after weeks of mounting pressure from state leadership, including Greg Abbott, who had threatened to withhold more than $100 million in public safety funding tied in part to upcoming international events such as the FIFA World Cup. The revised ordinance reshapes how the Houston Police Department interacts with federal immigration authorities, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Council Member Alejandra Salinas voted against the proposal, raising concerns that the amendments weaken explicit Fourth Amendment protections that had been central to earlier versions of the policy. During council deliberations, she sought clarification from the city attorney, confirming that despite the revisions, the ordinance would still eliminate the so-called 30-minute hold policy and would not allow HPD officers to detain individuals solely based on a civil administrative warrant.

CM Alejandra Salinas

 

Even with those assurances, Salinas and others expressed unease that key legal safeguards were no longer clearly codified in the ordinance’s language, leaving them dependent on interpretation rather than explicit policy. The changes, driven in part by state-level intervention, removed some of the language that advocates had pushed for over months of public input.

Despite the rollback concerns, the ordinance maintains provisions requiring transparency and reporting on HPD’s interactions with federal immigration authorities. Those measures are seen by supporters as a step forward in building public trust and ensuring accountability in how local resources are used.

The broader policy effort had drawn significant backing prior to the amendments, with more than 50 legal advocacy organizations, labor unions, faith leaders, and community groups supporting the original ordinance. Public comment sessions over recent weeks brought out large crowds of residents urging the city to adopt policies that protect immigrant families while keeping local law enforcement focused on crime prevention and public safety.

At council today, city leaders emphasized that the revised ordinance was necessary to avoid severe financial consequences from the state, framing the vote as a balance between maintaining local control and securing critical funding for public safety operations.

Opponents of the amendments signaled that the issue is far from settled. They indicated plans to continue working with community partners and legal advocates to strengthen protections and revisit the policy in the future, as tensions persist between local priorities and state mandates over immigration enforcement.