Howard lawmakers’ bill would set higher tax rates on propose ICE facility in Elkridge

After Howard County officials lost the first round of a court fight to block a proposed immigration facility in Elkridge, state lawmakers Thursday unveiled legislation that would let the county instead set special, higher property taxes on any such property.

The tax proposal comes after a federal court rejected county emergency legislation that would have withdrawn the permit for the proposed 29,000-square-foot Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Elkridge office park. The facility would include a holding cell for immigrant detainees.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Clarence Lam (D-Howard and Anne Arundel) and Del. Gabriel Moreno (D-Howard), would give county officials the authority to assess the impact of the facility on county services, and set a higher property tax rate and a hither transfer tax to compensate.

“ICE’s facility is not something that we asked for…. We never wanted it here, and we will all pay a price,” Lam said at a Thursday press conference in Ellicott City. “We don’t believe that Howard County taxpayers should be footing the bill for their unwanted presence.”

The bill would apply the higher taxes to any property leased as a “secure confinement facility.” Moreno said the bill aims to combat the direct and indirect fiscal effects of the facility, such as additional traffic management and public safety concerns, that the county is unprepared to take on. 

“Our responsibility is not simply to respond to the presence of detention facilities, but to ensure that public costs and human consequences of its operations are not ignored,” Moreno said.

Lam added that the county aims to be a diverse space, and the “out-of-control agency” that ICE has become runs against community values.

Dozens of community leaders and members from organizations like We Are CASA, Indivisible Howard County and St. John’s Episcopal Church in Ellicott City joined Lam and Moreno in support of their efforts.

We Are CASA Maryland’s policy manager, Ninfa Amador-Hernandez, said the legislation is a necessary way for the community to ensure it has the resources to push back against the federal administration’s actions.

“The federal government plans to continue burdening our community, not just with their hatred and their infrastructure for their mass deportation and family separation agenda, but it will be hyper-able to do this with this detention center right here in our backyard,” she said.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson wrote in an email Thursday that “no tax will stop ICE from deporting criminal illegal aliens to make Maryland safe again.”

The bill would first have to be approved the county’s delegation in Annapolis of eight delegates and three senators, before going to the full General Assembly for consideration this spring. If passed and signed into law, the next step would be for county to pass legislation to set the specific rate, Lam said.

“We recognize that there is still a heavy lift coming up to make sure that we get it across the General Assembly and pass it into state law,” Lam said. “I feel fairly confident that our new county council, as well as our incoming county executive … will allow this to go into law.”

In February, the council passed and current County Executive Calvin Ball signed emergency legislation that would have revoked the permit that had been granted to the developer for the property. The bill, which was rushed through in less than a week, would also have established that local government was the only operator of a detention facility.

County officials at the time justified the permit revocation by saying the project failed to post notice and hold necessary public hearings, while also being too close to schools, parks and shopping centers.

The same day the county bill was signed, Gov. Wes Moore sent a two-page letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem criticizing a potential ICE facility in Hagerstown, writing that he had “grave concerns” about the project’s implications on that community’s public safety.

Project developer Genesis Strategic One LLC sued Howard County in March, claiming the county interfered with federal authority by attempting legislation to ban privately owned detention centers.

Hundreds rally against ICE as judge agrees to block detention center construction

U.S. District Judge Adam Abelson ruled in August that Howard County’s attempts to block the facility had overstepped its authority. He ruled that the county’s blockage of the project, which was almost complete when the permit was yanked, was pushing Genesis Strategic One into bankruptcy, and the county had to let the project continue while the court case proceeded.

The county has appealed that ruling, but it’s unclear when an appeal might be heard.

Lawmakers and community leaders maintained Thursday that the development runs counter to what they stand for. As the county braces for potential federal retaliation on the legislation and its efforts to block the development, Lam said they will continue fighting.

“Were it not for this facility, the extra burden would not be borne by Howard County,” Lam said. “This legislation is about accountability. That if you are using our resources, you do not get a free ride. You should foot the bill.”