Residents Protest, Demand Permanent End To ICE Cooperation In Marin County Via SCAAP Funding

SAN RAFAEL, CA — A coalition of Marin residents and advocacy groups mobilized Monday morning, at the Marin Center Showcase Theater to demand that the County Board of Supervisors make a clear, public commitment to fully and permanently withdraw from the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program.

The protest coincided with the opening session of the Board of Supervisors' three-day budget workshop.

SCAAP is a federal program that provides grants — often characterized by critics as a bounty — to local law enforcement agencies for sharing information on undocumented immigrants in their custody with the Department of Justice, ICE, and the Department of Homeland Security. Eligibility for the funds requires sharing specific detainee data, including name, date of birth, country of birth and incarceration dates, for individuals held for at least four days with one felony or two misdemeanor convictions.

Over the past three years, the Marin County Sheriff’s Office has received over $1.2 million through SCAAP for reporting information on more than 1,000 immigrants. In 2024, the county received $338,136.

While County Executive Derek Johnson announced a positive step on Feb. 10 by removing SCAAP funding from the proposed 2026-2028 budget, protestors argue the action does not go far enough.

“The county executive’s announcement to drop SCAAP funding from the 2026-2028 budget is a positive step, but not enough,” said Curt Ries, Co-chair of the Marin Democratic Socialists of America. “We need a clear public commitment from our elected officials to fully withdraw from the program.”

The "No ICE in Marin" action was organized by groups including Marin DSA, Fuerzas Unidas, MVFREE, Indivisible Marin, and Indivisible Novato.

Organizers highlighted that more than 4,500 Marin residents have already signed a petition calling on the Sheriff to stop cooperating with ICE.

The protestors are pressing the supervisors to formalize the decision and ensure the county's noncooperation is a permanent policy, not just a one-time budget cut.