The 287(g) program which has been in effect in the county for about 5 years has been extended for another 3 years, according to BOCS chairman, Corey Stewart. The program was thought to be in jeopardy last fall when the Obama administration announced it was moving away from this type of enforcement of immigration law.
PWC applied to have the program extended and were granted the green light. The program features specially trained local officers to deal with the peculiarities of immigration. All arrests have immigration status checked while in custody. Those who do not have legal status are either reported or turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.)
This is a good thing. Prince William County has a great deal of money tied up in this program. Community safety is always a plus, regardless of issue. Not everyone appproves of 287(g). Prince William County is unique in that it screens every person arrested. This policy minimizes any implication of profiling.
Glad we agree on this! Glad it didn’t get sacrificed to politics, also.
“A report by the Brookings Institute found that Prince William County, Va., had to raise property taxes and take from its “rainy day” fund to implement its 287(g) program. The report found the program cost $6.4 million in its first year and would cost $26 million over five years. To cut costs, the county slashed $3.1 million from its budget—money that was intended to buy video cameras for police cars to protect against allegations of racial profiling.” – http://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/just-facts/287g-program-flawed-and-obsolete-method-immigration-enforcement
Is this true?
Probably. That’s one reason I didn’t want to see it go by the wayside. Too much investment. It began in 2007 I think.
Great ROI I’d say! Just ask Fairfax what those additional folks who exited PWC is costing them.
That is assuming they went o Fairfax. Now exactly what are you speaking of, SA? What cost? Do you mean ESOL classes? That really doesn’t amount to much.
That is Greg and Corey myth actually.
@Second Alamo
Do you think $26 million dollars is the right amount to spend? Do you feel you have gotten your money’s worth?
Why is it that people are howling over $750 for a logo and then they don’t even flinch at $26,000.000 to turn over a couple thousand people to ICE, many who have come right back to the area if they have friends or family?
Once ICE has a person, it is totally out of our control. They can slap them on the wrist and release them, that is, if they even pick them up. They aren’t going to pick up some folks like those who get caught driving without a license or some misdemeanors.
I think we spent far too much money on something we really don’t have total control of. However, since we spent the money, let’s continue so it isn’t a total waste.
But at what point do you stop throwing good money after bad? $26 million over 5 years is $5.2 million per year. That’s what it’s costing PWC to perform duties that are really the responsibility of ICE. The bigger question is, “should local government be involved in immigration and customs enforcement matters?” Questions of immigration and nationality are the purview of the federal government, not state or local. As such, the federal government (ICE specifically) is responsible for ensuring the program works. However …
“A January 2009 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that ICE has failed to articulate the 287(g) program’s objectives or how local partners are to use their 287(g) authority. While ICE officials have stated that the purpose of the program is to address serious crime, such as narcotics smuggling, ICE has never documented this objective or provided statistics to validate it. As a result, local police have used their 287(g) authority to detain immigrants for traffic violations and other minor crimes.” — http://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/just-facts/287g-program-flawed-and-obsolete-method-immigration-enforcement
I agree with you … we have, “spent far too much money on something we really don’t have total (I would say much) control of.” But I disagree that just because we spent some money already, we should continue what exhibits the behavior of an ineffective program just so, “it isn’t a total waste.”
The latest scandal in the county is that there was a $5 million ‘data entry error’ and now the county government has to find $5 million to cover what was already budgeted for. Well … this program costs in the neighborhood of … $5 million per year – amazing!
I’m not saying that those who are in this country illegally should have no repercussions for their actions, what I am saying is that the authorities with jurisdiction should perform the actions.
Since you brought it up, I do want to briefly address the “$750 for a logo” issue. I think it’s clear that much more than $750 was spent on the logo. I think it’s also clear that regardless of whether you believe it was $750 or much more, the issue in this case wasn’t the *amount* of money spent, it was the lack of transparency in the conduct of government. People just want good government, whether they are situated on the right or left of the American political spectrum. Good government breaks down when it is not honest with its constituents. When that happens, good government stands up, takes accountability for the mistake, explains what happens, and asks for the constituency to forgive them and works to reestablish trust. Good government does not try to cover poor judgment (whether committed by error or malice).
Those are some good questions clueless. I don’t think we can make blanket statements about 287g because each community used the program differently. Most of the cost was start up cost and training. I am also not sure that entire amount was related to 287g because we had several programs going at once. For the life of me, I couldn’t begin to differentiate.
Until I see otherwise, I am going to support it because a better mousetrap hasn’t been built. I think it is important to be able to get criminals off the street. Now, should ICE be used for traffic violations? NO, of course not. However, if someone is caught on a routine traffic infraction and after running them through the system, we find out they are wanted for armed robbery or rape, than we sure do want to notify ICE.
As for the logo, it sounds like you have been the victim of several local blogs dis-information campaign. Don’t you think we are better served waiting to get the facts on July 16 rather than listen to gossip? I can’t help but think of hysteria over an Easter Egg hunt and an armed encampment over an azurite bathroom that hadn’t been remodeled in 30 years.
It pays to look at motive. What would be the blog motives? Could it be to tarnish county employees who might be associated with the chairman and challengers for the chair in a few years? What would the county employees possibly have to gain by deceiving the citizens over a logo? Seriously. Let’s just get the facts rather than building a story around someone’s political agenda.
I have grown weary over the war on county employees and a couple of supervisors.
I fall victim to no one’s disinformation campaigns – I listen to and read all sides – bloggers (left and right), news, and government meetings – and I make up my own mind. Honestly, I don’t care if it cost $750 or $750,000 for the new logo. I don’t see the need to change what we already have – our tax money is better spent elsewhere.
I agree that we should stay open minded about ALL things, but I also demand that our government (at all levels) conduct itself in a fiscally responsible manner with our money. I do know that it will cost a lot more than $750 to “rebrand” PWC – all the signs will have to change, etc. This is more than just waiting to run out of stationery and buying new stuff. PWC’s “problems” extend further than just a logo. We have the lowest commercial tax base in the region because we are unable to attract business other than retail and restaurants (which are valuable in their own right). We must, as a county, be able to attract businesses with higher tax bases in order to remain competitive.
I throw stones at nobody. I think everyone who reads the county blogs knows which are motivated by personal gain and which are just trying to understand what’s happening.
Sorry to “hijack” the 287(g) thread with talk “LOGOgate” talk – thanks for indulging me.
Back to 287(g) – should law enforcement run ICE checks on those who are booked for a crime? Sure – I don’t see any violation of privacy or human rights in that regard. But should we spend $5.2 million a year for it? In order to answer that question, I think we must ask another. Is the “illegal alien” issue in PWC costing us more than $5.2 million per year? If so, let’s discuss the facts and show how it really is so we can justify the 287(g) program.
I don’t think we are spending $5 million on it now. Let me see what I can find out.
I don’t think all the information is in on the logo. The logo replaced nothing. IN fairness to those involved, the Board of Supervisors directed them to rebrand PWC. Who knows who told who what. I am going to wait until July 16 to make up my mind. Frankly, it is a mountain out of a mole hill in my mind. It certainly isn’t a reason to vilify individuals.
There are huge issues in this county. The tri county parkway, the 5 year land use plan, the condition of Silver Lake which is squandering resources, the high crime rate in certain areas of the county, storm water drainage issues, continuing traffic and congestion, overworked and understaffed county employees both regular and school board personnel. Focusing on a logo to play gotcha just gets lost in the grand scheme of things.
I would say we don’t really know the real story…none of us do. July 16 hasn’t happened. Right now, I am pretty much going to rely on what Mr. Grant says rather on water cooler gossip and leaks.
I’ll be eager to see what you find out.
Agreed – we have some large issues facing our county. I’m willing to wait to see how things shake out, but I’m also beginning to think that it’s time for us, the voters, to replace some of the supervisors we currently have. Perhaps a new, fresh perspective would do this county good.
I will poke around and see what I can find out.
I am not sure new is better. I have seen no indications that replacement is to our benefit. I just see more dissention,