Lewiston council debates emergency ordinance limiting ICE cooperation

The Lewiston City Council held a contentious public hearing on an emergency ordinance prohibiting city employees from assisting federal immigration enforcement. The council also approved a consent agenda and discussed a challenging FY27 budget that requires significant cuts.

Key points

• Council approved a five-item consent agenda by a 7-0 vote, including fund transfers for water infrastructure and a traffic schedule amendment.
• Mayor Sheline and Councilor Chittim defended the emergency ordinance as a necessary bridge until state law LD 1971 takes effect in the summer.
• Councilor Harriman and others raised concerns that changing the language from "legally required" to "legally authorized" weakens the ordinance's protections.
• Public comment was extensive and divided, with residents citing fear for immigrant families and others arguing the ordinance undermines public safety and wastes city resources.
• City Administrator Kaenrath reported that the FY27 budget process is challenging, with the city needing to find approximately $6.2 million in cuts to keep the increase under 5%.

Next steps

• Council to hold a first reading of a permanent ordinance with identical language at the next meeting.
• City to conduct a community-wide survey and hold listening sessions to develop a new marketing strategy for Lewiston.
• Council to present the FY27 budget at a workshop on March 10.

Read the full transcript