Greg Cunningham Appeared To Oppose H.B. 9 Which Blocked Counties From Contracting With ICE To Hold Immigrant Detainees, Saying It Was “Going To Destroy Cibola, Otero, And Torrance County’s Jobs”

VIDEO: February 2026: Cunningham Said The “Anti-ICE” Bill In The New Mexico State Legislature Was “Going To Destroy Cibola, Otero, And Torrance County’s Jobs.” CUNNINGHAM: “I’m very good friends with senators and legislators here, so when I when I reference them, please understand that I’m not, you know, I know that there are good, solid, hardworking people that are trying to do the right thing there in the legislature and in the Senate. So, but as a whole, the things that are coming out of our elected officials right now are not in our best interest. And I don’t even think that’s debatable. You know, we see, the, we see, the economic impact of it. I mean, this, this, I remember the Senate bill now. It’s the anti-ICE thing. I was in Cibola County the other day. That’s going to destroy Cibola, Otero and Torrance County’s jobs. Now, it’s going to destroy them economically. And for what? It’s for ideology. This is purely ideological, and they are just completely discounting the real human cost that we are going to pay as New Mexicans. And that’s just that’s unacceptable to me.” [Arik Kotkowski via YouTube, 54:36-55:38, 2/6/26] (VIDEO)

• February 2026: New Mexico Governor Grisham Signed H.B. 9, The Immigrant Safety Act, Into Law. “Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Immigrant Safety Act, House Bill 9, into law today, cementing New Mexico’s place as a national leader in protecting immigrant communities and refusing complicity in the Trump administration’s mass detention and deportation system. The historic legislation, sponsored by Representatives Eleanor Chávez, Angelica Rubio, Andrea Romero, Marianna Anaya, Senator Joseph Cervantes, and 19 other sponsors, prohibits state and local governments from entering into agreements to detain individuals for civil immigration violations, stops the use of public land for immigration detention, and bans 287(g) agreements that turn local law enforcement into immigration agents. With the Legislature’s passage of the bill and Governor Lujan Grisham’s signature, New Mexico has delivered on its commitment to stand with immigrant families and uphold New Mexico’s values of dignity, justice, and community safety.” [ACLU of

New Mexico, 2/5/26]

H.B. 9 Prohibited Public Entities Like Counties From Contracting With ICE To Hold Immigrant Detainees. “The United States Department of Justice on Friday filed a motion urging a federal judge to immediately prohibit New Mexico officials from enforcing House Bill 9, the Immigrant Safety Act, saying the new state law is unconstitutional and would irreparably harm a New Mexico county. The law prohibits public entities like counties from contracting with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to hold immigrant detainees. The law has faced sustained pushback in Otero County, where county officials say the measure will result in the loss of up to 284 jobs and force the county to sell its immigrant detention facility, the Otero County Processing Center, at a loss.” [Source New Mexico, 5/8/26]