Oklahoma County Sheriff Tommie Johnson III will not be sending deputies through federal immigration enforcement training after the Board of County Commissioners let his proposal die Aug. 19, 2026, without so much as a motion.

The agenda item would have created a memorandum of agreement between the sheriff's office and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement under the 287(g) program, which deputizes local officers to enforce federal immigration law. No commissioner moved to bring it to a vote at the board's regular meeting, The Oklahoman reported. The item simply died.

Commissioners Brian Maughan, Jason Lowe and Paul Foster offered no public explanation for why the item went unaddressed, according to the report.

Undersheriff Jim Anderson told the board that Johnson wanted a handful of deputies trained to improve communication with ICE, not to conduct the kind of enforcement actions the agency has drawn criticism for.

In a letter attached to the meeting agenda, Johnson wrote: "We are not creating a task force or specialty unit. We will not be wearing masks, knocking on doors, or checking schools, churches, or job sites."

Johnson said the training would cover only deputies working fugitive investigations and criminal interdiction who encounter wanted persons difficult to identify because of their involvement in the immigration system. He described it as a way to give those deputies access to proprietary federal technology and additional options for criminal disposition.

But the agreement Johnson submitted was the standard 287(g) "task force model" used by agencies nationwide. That model allows trained officers to interrogate, arrest and charge people suspected of being in the country illegally in the field, with ICE supervisor approval. Johnson acknowledged in his letter that the MOA language allows significant flexibility from department to department.

The gap between Johnson's stated narrow intent and the broad authority written into the agreement went unresolved. None of the three commissioners spoke publicly about the discrepancy.

Oklahoma already ranks second nationally in 287(g) funding. As of March 2026, 10 Oklahoma agencies were in line to receive an estimated $47 million through ICE agreements, trailing only Florida, according to The Oklahoman.

The 287(g) program has expanded sharply under President Donald Trump's second term. Nationally, nearly 1,600 agencies in 32 states held task force agreements as of mid-2026, with arrests averaging about 3,000 per month in early 2026, NPR reported. That compares to roughly 250 per month in 2024.

It is unclear whether Johnson can resubmit the proposal or whether commissioners plan to revisit it. The Oklahoman labeled its report a developing story. Residents who want to weigh in can contact their district commissioner through the Oklahoma County Clerk's office.