10 days after DHS ‘sanctuary’ list deletion, PA officials bemused, unfazed

Deep in the rural heart of Pennsylvania, Montour County has an 80-year streak of supporting GOP presidential candidates – the lone exception being when it went for Lyndon Johnson in 1964.

It is not the kind of place you associate with progressive-leaning scofflaws. Which is probably why, when the commonwealth’s smallest county was included on the federal Department of Homeland Security’s list of so-called sanctuary jurisdictions – and, by extension, threatened with the loss of federal funding for failing to comply with federal immigration actions – Montour officials weren’t particularly concerned. 

“Our prison policies are clear, cooperative and fully compliant with federal immigration law,” wrote Rebecca Dressler, the chair of the county’s Board of Commissioners, in an email affirming that Montour is not a sanctuary jurisdiction. She added that the commission contacted the federal government about its error – one of many on the list, which was also rife with misspellings, and which disappeared just days after it appeared on the DHS website on May 29.

Dressler’s blasé attitude was a typical reaction from the 16 Pennsylvania municipalities – 11 counties and five cities – on the list. Rather than spring into prophylactic action as a hedge against the potential loss of millions of federal dollars, the listed jurisdictions have, for the most part, taken a wait-and-see approach to a now-you-see-it, now-you-don’t list that was, to many, more mystifying than ominous.

“I think the list was a mistake,” offered Steve Nevada, the county manager for Adams County, another Republican stronghold. Like Montour, Adams has not designated itself as a sanctuary jurisdiction – a nonspecific term that typically refers to a municipality's pledge to refuse to partner its local law enforcement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions.

In its May 29 press release announcing the list, DHS accused the named sanctuary jurisdictions of “deliberately obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration laws and endangering American citizens,” adding that these municipalities “protect dangerous criminal illegal aliens from facing consequences and put law enforcement in grave danger.”

It seemed likely that a technical error – specifically, an overzealous “find” function trained on the word “sanctuary” – might have prompted some erroneous inclusions. Dressler speculated that the confusion around Montour might stem from a 2021 resolution declaring the municipality a “Bill of Rights Sanctuary County,” “which has nothing to do with immigration,” she wrote. “It was passed to affirm our commitment to constitutional rights like free speech, due process and the right to bear arms.”

Likewise, Clarion County in Western Pennsylvania – which has an even longer GOP presidential-voting streak than Montour, including a 53-point advantage for Trump in 2024 – declared itself a “Second Amendment Sanctuary County” in 2021, meaning it would decline to enforce legislation restricting gun access. Clarion was also named on the May DHS list.

“This list from the Trump administration looks like a poorly prompted ChatGPT response,” was the take of Neil Makhija, the chair of the commissioners for Montgomery County – which, while promoting a welcoming spirit toward immigrants, has also never identified itself as a sanctuary jurisdiction, though it appeared on the list.

And neither has the City of York, which nonetheless appeared on the DHS list. On behalf of the York City Council, President Edwina Washington declined to comment on the dustup.

As anti-ICE protests consume Philadelphia, as well as cities nationwide – and with Americans now growing accustomed to the president’s on-again, off-again approach to political threats – Pennsylvania officials are taking the long view.

“It’s hard to plan for every scenario, because it seems like every day there’s a new thing,” said Justin Douglas, who chairs the Dauphin County Commission. “The county, like any other, relies on federal funds … so we closely monitor the situation to ensure that if there’s talk of cuts, we have as much of a runway to prepare as possible. But you can’t be too reactionary from a planning perspective, because you don’t know what’s real until it’s real.”

Douglas, a Democrat, has been outspoken against a spate of recent federal deportations of green-card-holding constituents. “Dauphin County remains committed to following the law, and executive orders are not new laws,” he said. “I took an oath to the Constitution, not the federal government, and so I will continue to uphold due process … and ensure that law enforcement has the independence needed to serve the community here.”

The DHS threat does appear to have hit home in Philadelphia, which was a self-designated sanctuary city until the list came out; on May 30, Mayor Cherelle Parker confirmed that Philadelphia would instead be known as a “welcoming city.”

Whatever you call it, Philadelphia City Councilmember Rue Landau opined that targeting municipalities like hers – where immigrants significantly contribute to powering the economy – will have “massive financial ramifications,” she said, “and it’s something the Trump administration should think long and hard about.”

In an op-ed in The Washington Post this week, former Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney affirmed the financial, legal and social benefits of sanctuary-city status, which he established in Philadelphia through a 2016 executive order. “If migrants aren’t willing to report crimes or act as witnesses, police officers are going to have a much harder time arresting dangerous criminals,” wrote Kenney. He added that cities lose tax revenue when immigrants are too scared to declare their incomes.

With the sanctuary issue effectively on hold this week as the Trump administration focuses on more immediate immigration-related matters – including high-profile raids and nationwide protests that have given the president the opportunity to order a military response – Pennsylvania officials’ wait-and-see approach to the sanctuary-city threat appears sound.