A group of New York House Democrats, led by Rep. Dan Goldman, sent a letter on Friday to the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, demanding they be allowed to conduct immigration oversight.

The letter comes two days after ICE denied a request by Goldman and Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), who also signed the document, to observe an ICE field office in New York City. ICE has said that a 72-hour advance notice is required for a visit.

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“We write to express alarm about the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE)
continued obstruction of lawful congressional oversight visits, including recent denials of access
to ICE field offices being used to house immigrants, such as the one located at 26 Federal Plaza
in New York City,” the congress members, also including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Grace Meng (D-NY), Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), and Yvette Clarke (D-NY), wrote.

“These denials are not only indefensible, but they are also a clear violation of current law,” they added in the letter addressed to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and acting ICE Director Todd Lyons.

The members of Congress argued that because the office at 26 Federal Plaza houses migrants for multiple days, it should be considered a migrant housing facility and subject to oversight that cannot be denied under Section 527(a) of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act. They said that “New York Deputy Field Director Bill Joyce confirmed that individuals are in fact held – without beds – at 26 Federal Plaza for multiple days.”

“When individuals are deprived of their liberty in a secure facility for multiple days, they are
unquestionably being ‘detained’ or ‘housed’ under the plain language of Section 527(a),” they wrote.

“And the facility need not be designated as a ‘detention facility’; rather, the plain language of the
statute refers to a facility ‘used’ to detain or house immigrants. By ICE’s own admission, the
Field Office at 26 Federal Plaza is being ‘used’ to ‘house’ immigrants,” they added.

The congress members are asking the Trump administration to rescind all guidance saying ICE field offices are exempt from Section 527 oversight, reaffirm that they are allowed to “conduct unannounced
oversight visits” to any facility housing migrants, and direct all ICE field offices to comply with Section 527, “and facilitate congressional access consistent with current law,” no later than June 30.

“Your cooperation, or lack thereof, will determine whether the Department of Homeland Security
is committed to transparency and upholding the law with integrity or to secrecy and obstruction
of congressional oversight,” the letter concluded.

Many Democratic lawmakers have tried to conduct immigration oversight in recent months.

ICE ASKS LAWMAKERS TO REQUEST VISITS 72 HOURS IN ADVANCE AMID DEMOCRATIC PUSHBACK

Democratic New Jersey Reps. Rob Menendez, LaMonica McIver, and Bonnie Watson Coleman, along with Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, tried to conduct oversight at an ICE facility in New Jersey, but the effort went awry.

Police arrested Baraka for trespassing while the Democratic representatives were accused of “storming” the facility. McIver has been charged with obstructing law enforcement, and the House Ethics Committee is reviewing the allegations against her.