Local officials in Wyandotte County will soon discuss whether they can pass a rule banning any potential future plans for nonmunicipal jails, like a federal immigration detention center, from moving forward in Kansas City, Kansas.

That resolution, proposed by Third District Commissioner Christian Ramirez last month, would put a moratorium on applications for permits to establish a correctional facility if approved. The item will go before the county’s Planning Commission during a Monday evening meeting.

It comes at a time when the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is rapidly expanding its enforcement across the country and people across the Kansas City metro are feeling the effects of that uptick.

Across the river, leadership in Kansas City, Missouri, passed a similar, five-year ban, and Jackson County officials are considering a similar one. County leaders are also weighing a call on all officers, including ICE, to police unmasked. The security of those rules aren’t entirely clear, given the federal government may still be able to challenge them.

KCK rule

Ramirez announced in a Jan. 21 statement that he planned to introduce an ordinance limiting those permits through 2031. A revised version of that ordinance, which will go before planning next week, limits applications for two years instead of five.

From there, officials would be able to extend that moratorium if needed later on.

If the Planning Commission approves the resolution, the item would go up for final approval by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and KCK’s governing board during a later public meeting.

No one has formally asked to set up a detention center in Wyandotte County yet, Ramirez told The Star on Friday. However, the government wants to pass the policy proactively and is discussing the topic out of concern over how a detention center would affect the schema of local neighborhoods and affect the local economy.

About 30 miles northwest in neighboring Leavenworth, Kansas, private prison company Core Civic’s plans for an immigration detention center advanced during a Monday public meeting. The Leavenworth Planning Commission voted to recommend granting the company a zoning application that would allow the facility to operate for about three years.

Correctional facilities that want to build in Wyandotte County must first apply for a special use permit that would have to go up for approval by the Unified Government Board of Commissioners, according to board documents. This ordinance would delay the government’s receipt of those applications for two years.

ICE uptick in metro, country

Over the course of a year, the number of people being held in ICE custody on a given day across the country has increased more than 75%, and as of last month, about 73,000 people were held daily in detention centers, according to the American Immigration Council.

“These changes in arrest practices have led to a 2,450% increase in the number of people with no criminal record being held in ICE detention on any given day,” according to the American Immigration Council.

At the start of 2026, DHS announced that it hired 12,000 more officers, reflecting a 120% increase in the number of ICE officers in the U.S. Those hires bring the department’s number of officers to 22,000.

The uptick in immigration enforcement and staffing comes in light of increased funding for the agency.

Agency funding that was about $10 billion in 2024 grew exponentially in 2025. Under a 2025 law, ICE has $75 billion that it can spend over the course of four years in addition to its $10 billion base budget — essentially tripling the agency’s budget for coming years if distributed evenly throughout that time.

ICE in KCK

During 2025, the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term, ICE deported more than 675,000 people across the country, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The Kansas City metro is no exception to increased immigration enforcement activities.

Federal immigration authorities arrested at least two people in Kansas City, Kansas, on Wednesday morning, according to community organizers.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers detained two people near Parallel Parkway and 57th Street at about 7 a.m. Organizers on the ground confirmed that those arrests were related to immigration enforcement activity.

The area surrounding 57th and Parallel Parkway is largely residential. Family homes and an apartment complex stand along Parallel Parkway, a city through-line that runs east to west. A high school and the local public school district’s central office also stand nearby.

The Chase County Detention Center, a facility ICE has often used to detain people arrested in the Kansas City metro, said on Thursday that it could not confirm whether it was holding people who were transported from KCK on Wednesday morning.

KCK police officers did not respond to any calls or assists in that area around that time, a Kansas City Kansas Police Department spokesperson told The Star.

As of publication time, The Star was unable to identify the two people who were detained or determine whether they remained in federal custody.

Residents’ rights

People living in the U.S. have specific rights when they are approached by ICE — regardless of their documentation status.

If ICE officers want to enter someone’s home, they should have a federal search or arrest warrant with them that has been signed by a judge, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. People do not have to open the door to ICE officers if those officers do not have that signed warrant.

“If police have an arrest warrant, they are legally allowed to enter the home of the person on the warrant if they believe that person is inside,” according to the ACLU. “But a warrant of removal/deportation (Form I-205) does not allow officers to enter a home without consent.”

People who are not U.S. citizens should carry their immigration documents with them at all times if they are older than 18, according to the ACLU. If ICE pulls someone over in their vehicle, and an agent requests to see documentation, that person must show their papers if they have them. “If you do not have immigration papers, say you want to remain silent,” according to the ACLU. People have the right to remain silent, even if an ICE agent has a warrant.

If an immigration officer asks to search someone’s car, that person can refuse. However, police may search your car without your consent if they believe it contains crime evidence. “Any arrest or prolonged stop by Border Patrol requires probable cause,” according to the ACLU. “You may ask the agents about the basis for probable cause and they should tell you.”

People who are arrested by police have the right to a government-appointed lawyer. People detained by ICE have the right to meet with a lawyer, although the government doesn’t have to provide one for them.

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