WASHINGTON, Feb 24 - The Department of Homeland Security will not move forward with the proposed Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Merrimack, New Hampshire, the state's Republican governor said on Tuesday.
Governor Kelly Ayotte posted on X that she reached the outcome after meeting last week in Washington with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. Ayotte said she raised the concerns of the town, which lies about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) northeast of Boston, and added that New Hampshire law enforcement will continue to work with DHS on efforts to secure the state's border with Canada.
In a statement, Noem confirmed the meeting and said DHS would keep working with New Hampshire, calling the state "a strong partner." The decision to withdraw the Merrimack proposal comes as the administration advances an extensive immigration agenda that includes increasing detention capacity to support a nationwide ramp-up of enforcement activity.
Federal agents have intensified operations in several major U.S. cities, including Los Angeles and Chicago, where Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Border Patrol personnel have conducted sweeps through neighborhoods, at times clashing with residents. The enforcement campaign has also seen deadly encounters: federal agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis in January, and another citizen was shot and killed last year in Texas, according to officials cited by state and federal statements.
The administration is allocating significant resources to expand detention capacity, spending more than $38 billion this year on facilities. That push has prompted criticism from Democrats, civil rights organizations, clergy and other opponents who have raised human rights, legal and health concerns related to detention operations run by private contractors including GEO Group and CoreCivic.
Those critics point to reports of dismal conditions, poor treatment and outbreaks of infectious disease such as measles at various detention centers. Separately, mortality in detention remains a focal point: at least eight people have died in ICE detention centers since the start of 2026, following at least 31 deaths in the previous year.
The policy shift in New Hampshire arrives as legal challenges multiply. On Tuesday, Democratic-led Maryland filed suit against the federal government seeking to block a planned detention facility in western Washington County. At the same time, Senate Democrats have used appropriations tools to block funding for DHS as they press for limits on ICE's operations.
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters that President Donald Trump would use his State of the Union address later that night to urge lawmakers to approve funding for the department's immigration and detention initiatives.
Context and operational implications
The Merrimack withdrawal highlights tension between federal enforcement objectives and local and state concerns about hosting detention infrastructure. State law enforcement cooperation on border security remains in place in New Hampshire, but the decision removes one proposed site from the growing list of planned centers nationwide.
Private operators who manage many detention facilities, along with the federal budgeting process and congressional oversight, are central to how the administration's detention expansion will proceed. The combination of public opposition, legal actions and congressional resistance introduces ongoing uncertainty for the pace and scope of future facility openings.