Montgomery County launched an online portal on Thursday where residents can report potential violations of two local laws restricting ICE activity.
County Executive Marc Elrich and Council President Natali Fani-González announced the tool at a media briefing, calling it the county's latest effort to push back against federal immigration enforcement.
"People are really afraid. So to have as much as you can know about this is probably better than not knowing anything about it," Elrich said.
The portal lets anyone flag suspected violations of the County Values Act, which restricts how county departments interact with federal immigration agents on county property, and the Unmask ICE Act, which bans law enforcement officers from wearing masks while on duty. The council passed the County Values Act in March 2026 and unanimously approved the Unmask ICE Act in late April 2026. Elrich signed both into law.
About 33.6% of Montgomery County's roughly 1.07 million residents are foreign-born, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2020-2024 American Community Survey.
"I want to emphasize that the idea is for the community to report when they see ICE agents wearing a mask or when they see them in parking lots or in public property, which is now not legal based on the bills that we passed," Fani-González said at the briefing.
What the portal does — and doesn't do
Reports submitted through the portal are reviewed by county staff, according to Earl Stoddard, Montgomery County's assistant chief administrative officer. The county said it plans to share aggregated data with the public but has not established a timeline or format for doing so.
The portal is for county tracking only. It will not trigger an emergency response or provide individual case assistance. For emergencies, residents should call 911. Those needing support after a detention can reach the Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center at 240-777-4940. To report a raid and get immediate help, residents can call the CASA in Action Rapid Response Hotline at 1-888-214-6016.
