Cascade County Commissioners approved a contract with U.S. Customs and Border Protection during their Oct. 14 meeting.

The contract is with the U.S. Border Patrol, Havre Sector, a division of CBP, for up to $20,700 annually to house their detainees in the Cascade County Adult Detention Center.

County considering U.S. Border Patrol contract for county jail

The contract is retroactive to Sept. 30 through Sept. 29, 2026 with the option to extend three more years through Sept. 29, 2029.

The Cascade County jail has been housing CBP detainees under its contract with the U.S. Marshals Service, but that contract doesn’t have that agency’s box checked for other authorized agencies. The Marshals contract does include U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Cascade County Sheriff’s Office is currently negotiating with the Marshals to update that contract and intends to include CBP, but until then, county staff said during their Oct. 8 work session that the separate CBP contract was needed in the interim to ensure the county received payment for housing CBP detainees.

Mexican man illegally in the U.S. sentenced

Sheriff Jesse Slaughter said during the Oct. 14 meeting that he initially didn’t understand the need for the CBP contract but in talking to federal officials, he said they were trying to project their budget and he’ll check the CPB box as an authorized agency on the updated Marshals contract.

County Attorney Josh Racki said that the CBP contract was needed since the agency had to pay the county for housing their detainees separately from the Marshal contract until the box was checked authorizing CBP under that contract.

One member of the public spoke about the contract during the Oct. 14 meeting.

Donna Williams said she’s concerned federal immigration agencies were illegally detaining people in some cases and “it’s feeling dangerous.”

She said she wanted Cascade County to draw a line saying they’d go no further in detaining people without knowing if it was lawful.

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Commissioner Joe Briggs, a Republican, said “I don’t fund those to be unfounded concerns or statements.”

The statement of work attached to the draft contract for the Oct. 14 meeting states that CBP would house those “facing criminal charges and those awaiting transportation to ICE/ERO custody for immigration administrative actions,” in the county jail. “The absence of detention and transportation support from ICE/ERO within Havre sector significantly impacts U.S. Border Patrol operations, logistics, and resource allocation. Due to the lack of long-term detention capabilities at sector stations, reliance on external facilities such as Cascade County Detention Center has become essential. This dependency introduces logistical challenges, including extended transport times, increased operational costs, and potential strain on interagency coordination.”

According to the county agenda report for the Oct. 14 meeting, the county was previously paid by the federal government for housing CBP detainees using government convenience checks under a temporary waiver, but federal laws and regulations require formal contracts and payments to be issued electronically through the U.S. Department of Treasury.

In the contract, CBP has estimated 180 days a year, at $115 per day per detainee.

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The current contract ceiling is set at $20,700, annually, with the understanding that if the actual costs exceed the obligated amount, the funding will be increased as necessary, according to the draft contract.

The CBP contract follows all terms and conditions in the existing Marshals contract and the rate per detainee will be increased by formal modification if the Marshals contract is renegotiated, according to language in the proposed CBP contract.

Mexican man who was in U.S. illegally sentenced

During their Oct. 8 work session, Carey Ann Haight, chief civil deputy county attorney, said that there’s no substantive impact to the county’s current operations, but the contract is needed to ensure the county is paid for housing CBP detainees.

She said that “ICE is a different animal,” in response to Commissioner Joe Briggs asking how this contract related to negotiations with ICE.

She told commissioners that federal officials have explained to county officials that the distinction is that ICE goes out to get people while Border Patrol brings people to the jail they’ve detained.

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“I think we better be able to explain this a lot better come Tuesday,” Briggs said of the work session item and requested that the contract be on the regular agenda for the Oct. 14 meeting rather than the consent agenda, “given the amount of questions and concerns we’ve received on a contract that doesn’t exist.”

Undersheriff Scott Van Dyken, who was representing CCSO for the work session said Sheriff Jesse Slaughter would be at the Oct. 14 meeting to discuss the contract.

Locals ask county not to cooperate with ICE; county jail has existing contract for federal holds

As of Oct. 13, the county jail roster lists 97 federal inmates, but the roster doesn’t detail which federal agency is holding them or their charges, and 10 are listed as immigration inmates.

County officials continuing jail budget discussion, need for new model, possibility of ICE contract

Over the summer, locals attended a county commission meeting, that didn’t include an ICE or associated contract on the agenda, asking commissioners not to cooperate with federal immigration operations.

The sheriff’s office has been in discussions with ICE about a contract specific to that agency and county officials have been publicly discussing that since May.

County officials discussing CCSO budget, including absorbing DES and potential ICE contract

The county is also reviewing its current Marshals contract, which includes ICE has an authorized agency user.

That contract was signed in May 2021 by Cory Reeves, who was the undersheriff at the time, and commissioners ratified the contract in June 2021.