Immigration Actions

How the Oregon Department of Justice is fighting to keep Oregon communities safe and standing up against unlawful immigration enforcement actions

The Oregon Department of Justice is working every day to keep Oregon communities safe, uphold Oregon’s laws and values, and protect Oregonians from federal overreach – including unlawful immigration enforcement.

We recognize the fear and uncertainty that increased immigration enforcement activity has created in communities in our state and across the country. For that reason, we are doing everything we can—in partnership with state and local officials and community groups—to ensure that federal agents operating in Oregon respect the law and the rights of the people who live here.

To date, we have taken dozens of legal actions to protect Oregonians from unlawful federal overreach with regards to immigration enforcement – including over 10 lawsuits and over two dozen briefs and letters – and we’ve been successful in those efforts. We’ve also created toolkits and resources based on community needs and feedback, and a portal for Oregonians to report federal overreach so on-the-ground facts inform our legal work.

Below, you’ll find a summary of our work, including:

We know there is always more that can be done, and we encourage you to reach out to us anytime at AttorneyGeneral@doj.oregon.gov. We will continue to fight for Oregon’s laws, values, and people every single day.

Oregon DOJ has filed several lawsuits to stop the federal government’s illegal efforts to share sensitive data and to coerce us to assist ICE, and we’ve had success getting immediate relief from the federal courts.  For example:

  • We blocked federal efforts to hold up Oregon’s highway funding unless we assist ICE.  Complaint »; court order »
  • We stopped federal efforts to hold up Oregon’s emergency disaster funding unless we assist ICE.  Complaint »; court order »
  • We blocked federal health agencies from sharing Oregonians’ personal health data with ICE.  Complaint »; court order »
  • We stopped attempts by the federal government to access sensitive user data from food assistance programs. Complaint »; court order »
  • We blocked federal efforts to hold up funding for victims and survivors of crime in Oregon unless we assist ICE. (Complaint »; after we filed our lawsuit the federal government backed down)
  • We sued the Department of Homeland Security to stop the unlawful construction of a mass federal detention center for ICE activities on the Oregon Coast.
  • Even when we lack standing to sue directly, we’ve found other ways to join the fight. For example, we supported a lawsuit filed by people who were racially profiled by ICE in Los Angeles.  (Amicus brief)

COMMITMENT TO INVESTIGATE

In November 2025, Attorney General Rayfield – along with the District Attorneys of Multnomah County, Washington County, and Clackamas County – sent a letter to Attorney General Bondi and Department of Homeland Security Noem demanding that their agencies immediately halt unlawful and reckless actions by federal officers operating in Oregon. The letter served as formal notice that the Oregon Department of Justice and the three District Attorney’s Offices are actively monitoring federal conduct and will investigate cases where federal authorities may be acting unconstitutionally and in violation of Oregon law.

Just six weeks later, on January 8, 2026, Oregon DOJ opened a formal investigation into an incident in Portland in which two people were shot and injured during an encounter with federal agents.

FEDERAL ACCOUNTABILITY REPORTING FORM

Oregon DOJ created a Federal Oversight and Accountability Reporting Form for Oregonians to report information or concerns about possible violations of individual rights or actions that raise legal or constitutional issues. These reports helps our office document concerns, identify patterns, and better understand emerging issues.

Find the form here: Report Concerns Related to Federal Actions

TOOLKITS, GUIDANCE, AND RESOURCES

Oregon DOJ has created several toolkits, guidance documents, and resources that can help Oregonians navigate today’s challenges while complying with Oregon law. These resources include:

Law Enforcement Toolkit
This toolkit provides best practices and general guidance to assist law enforcement agencies in complying with Oregon’s Sanctuary Promise Act and navigating interactions with federal immigration authorities.

Immigration Services and Support Resources Toolkit

This toolkit was built to help connect community members to trusted organizations across Oregon. It also addresses frequently asked questions about ICE and your legal rights, and provides links to services for immigrant and refugee community members throughout our state. It is available in English, Spanish, Arabic, and Tagalog.

Sanctuary Promise Community Toolkit
This resource is designed for community members and local leaders to better understand sanctuary protections, reporting mechanisms, and available supports.

Sanctuary Promise Act Violations Hotline
A confidential reporting option for residents to report potential violations of the Sanctuary Promise Act, helping ensure accountability and to protect civil rights statewide.

LAWSUITS

Oregon DOJ is part of more than 10 lawsuits fighting back against efforts by the federal government to unlawfully target immigrant communities; illegally share sensitive data; or unlawfully coerce our state into assisting with federal immigration-enforcement efforts. These lawsuits include:

Birthright citizenship (Washington v. Trump, W.D. Wash.).  Challenges the President’s executive order revoking birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants.

DHS terms and conditions (Illinois v. FEMA, D.R.I.).  Lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies, challenging new terms and conditions for grants.  Those conditions attempt to illegally coerce states into performing federal immigration enforcement functions by threatening essential emergency services funding.

DOT terms and conditions (California v. U.S. Department of Transportation, D.R.I.).  Lawsuit against the Department of Transportation, challenging new terms and conditions for grants.  Those conditions attempt to illegally coerce states into performing federal immigration enforcement functions by threatening essential highway and infrastructure funding.

Improper Sharing of Medicaid Data with ICE (California v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, N.D. Cal.).  Lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ sharing of state Medicaid data with ICE to facilitate immigration enforcement.

Efforts to restrict public benefits (New York v. U.S. Dept. of Justice, D.R.I.).  Lawsuit against several federal agencies, seeking to prevent the Trump administration from unlawfully reinterpreting the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act to restrict the provision of critical federal public benefits (such as Head Start, Title X family planning, adult education and mental health care) to undocumented immigrants.

SNAP data demand (California v. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, N.D. Cal.).  Lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture, challenging the agency’s unlawful demand that states share sensitive SNAP user data with the federal government.

Funding cuts to services for victims and survivors of crime (New Jersey v. U.S. Dept. of Justice, D.R.I.).  Lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice, challenging new conditions for Victims of Crime Act grants.  Those conditions attempt to illegally coerce states into performing federal immigration enforcement functions by threatening over $1 billion in funding for victims and survivors of crimes.

Use restrictions on grants for victims and survivors of crime (New York v. U.S. Dept. of Justice, D.R.I.).  Lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice, challenging a notice that unlawfully disallows Victims of Crime Act victim assistance funds from being used to provide “legal services to any removable alien or any alien otherwise unlawfully present in the United States.”

SNAP benefits for refugees and asylees (New York v. Rollins, D. Or.).  Lawsuit against the Department of Agriculture, challenging the agency’s unlawful efforts to cut off Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to certain noncitizens, including refugees and asylees who have obtained legal permanent resident status.

H-1B visa petition fees (California v. Noem, D. Mass.).  Lawsuit against the Departments of Homeland Security, State, Labor, and Justice, challenging those agencies’ efforts to implement the President’s policy of imposing an unlawful $100,000 fee for H-1B visa petitions.

Construction of ICE detention center (Oregon v. Noem, D. Or.).  Lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies, which seeks to halt the unlawful construction of a mass federal detention center for ICE activities on the Oregon Coast.