HR 175: urging all county planning and permitting agencies to deny all permit applications related to the construction, expansion, or use of warehouses by united states immigration and customs enforcement for the purpose of detaining individuals facing deportation.

HOUSE RESOLUTION

urging all county planning and permitting agencies to deny all permit applications related to the construction, expansion, or use of warehouses by united states immigration and customs enforcement for the purpose of detaining individuals facing deportation.

     WHEREAS, in July 2025, Congress appropriated $45,000,000,000 to United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement to build new immigration detention centers; and

     WHEREAS, according to reports by the Washington Post, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement intends to use these funds to acquire large warehouses to incarcerate people who are set to be deported; and

     WHEREAS, once operational, individuals will be transferred from local processing sites to the warehouses, some of which are expected to hold up to ten thousand people; and

     WHEREAS, once transferred to these warehouses, individuals could be far from their homes, families, and legal counsel; and

     WHEREAS, this system is dehumanizing, creates an immigration system rooted in mass incarceration, and deprives immigrants of individual dignity and due process; and

     WHEREAS, state and local officials across the country have expressed serious concerns regarding the health and safety of incarcerating individuals in these warehouses as well as the strain such facilities would place on local resources; and

     WHEREAS, the use of these warehouses for mass incarceration is contrary to Hawaii's priorities and values, which emphasize dignity and respect for all individuals, regardless of immigration status; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that all county planning and permitting agencies are urged to deny all permit applications related to the construction, expansion, or use of warehouses by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement for the purpose of detaining individuals facing deportation; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to Director of the Department of Planning and Permitting of the City and County of Honolulu; Director of the Planning Department of the County of Maui; Planning Director of the Planning Department of the County of Hawaii; and Planning Director of the Planning Department of the County of Kauai.

Report Title: 

United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Detention Warehouses; County Planning; Permits