PALMYRA, Wis. (CBS 58) — The Palmyra Police Department has decided not to move forward with the ICE 287(g) Task Force agreement. They would've been one of the 1,165 agreements that DHS and ICE have with state and local law enforcement agencies.

On Sept. 22, the Palmyra Police Department entered an agreement to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This would've made them the first municipality to partner with ICE and the first Task Force Model in Wisconsin. However, residents made their voices heard, and that agreement is no more.

The town, with a population of under 2,000 people, would have, under 287(g), essentially deputized law enforcement to enforce federal immigration law. Palmyra would've had the firmest of the three models under the federal program, called the Task Force Model. According to the ICE website, it is a "force multiplier for law enforcement agencies to enforce limited immigration authority with ICE oversight during their routine police duties."

Currently, 14 counties in Wisconsin have agreements with ICE.  Almost all are under the Jail Enforcement Model, which allows local officers to serve administrative warrants on undocumented immigrants in their jails.

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In an interview from September with CBS 58's Adam Rife, Interim Palmyra Police Chief Paul Blount explained that if an officer made an arrest of an undocumented immigrant, ICE would have funded one officer position for a year, plus 25% of overtime costs. He estimated that would've been around $100,000. "The financial piece of it just seemed like a win-win for the community," he shared. Currently, Palmyra relies on one patrol officer on duty and no overnight staffing. 

However, in a statement, the interim chief now says they've heard feedback from all sides, and said, "After careful consideration of those voices, along with additional research and review, we believe that at this time, the best course forward for Palmyra is to take no further action on the proposed agreement."

He clarified that his officers did not start the required education, and no work had been done with ICE or DHS yet.

A community group named "PACC," or "Palmyra Area Concerned Citizens," pushed for this decision, saying if the police department were to work with ICE, they'd "divert resources" from the community and erode community trust.

Blount went on to say they will continue working to find effective, community-centered strategies to prevent crime and uphold values that make Palmyra strong. He shared that without the potential $100,000 from ICE, the board has asked him to "consider any and every grant we can."