(The Center Square) – The Spokane City Council accepted a $1 million federal grant on Thursday after deferring on it earlier this week over concerns it would tie them to President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.
The Spokane Police Department told officials ahead of Monday’s deferral that leadership was confident the city could comply with all the conditions. They pitched the U.S. Department of Justice’s grant as $1 million for eight new officers over the next five years but that also requires $5 million in local funding.
Logistically, it’s a tough sell for the council following back-to-back multimillion-dollar deficits.
City officials want to authorize funding for more officers, but SPD still employs fewer commissioned officers than in 2022.
As of last spring, SPD employed 333 commissioned officers, about 6% fewer than the 354 authorized.
However, the biggest hold up on Monday was over conditions requiring the city to comply with Trump’s executive orders and federal immigration law.
Councilmember Michael Cathcart, the last conservative on the dais, said he isn’t comfortable signing this knowing he may be “complicit in committing fraud.”
Before voting, the council asked Police Chief Kevin Hall to address concerns highlighted last Monday.
“The police department has never been full. I’ve never had 350, whatever the authorized number is. We’re always behind the eight ball,” Hall told the council during a special meeting on Thursday. “… I have no issue in rejecting this grant. We’re going to hire regardless … We just won’t have $1 million.”
Politicians often cite Washington state as having the fewest officers per capita nationwide, so SPD and other agencies have turned to the DOJ’s Community Oriented Policing Services Hiring Program. It gave the city of Spokane Valley $1.25 million in 2024, and local officials reapplied for more again last year.
“Oftentimes we’re told that we can afford things that we cannot,” Cathcart said Thursday, noting that he has advocated for hiring more police officers for six years. “Now, this grant, I don’t believe we have the ability to make the match over these five years, and nobody has told me how we’re going to.”
The Spokane City Council was concerned that, if it agreed to grant, the federal government might claw back the funding later due to potential noncompliance with some conditions. That would open Spokane up to potential lawsuits, something it hopes to avoid amid ongoing budget woes and legal exposure.
Last April, the Spokane Valley City Council passed a resolution explicitly opposing what critics dub the state’s “sanctuary” law. The nonbinding measure declared that the Valley is “not a sanctuary city,” just a few months after the Spokane City Council reaffirmed the state’s “Keep Washington Working Act.”
The move came as a new administration entered the White House after millions of immigrants illegally crossed the border under former President Joe Biden. Illegal border crossings have since dropped to record lows, but not everyone is happy with the approach.
“Claiming our federal funds do not make us beholden to the Trump administration,” Councilmember Kitty Klitzke said. “The Trump administration did not create those dollars – the U.S. taxpayers did.”
Elected officials in the city of Spokane often take stances against the Trump administration, aside from Cathcart and former Councilmember Jonathan Bingle, who also represented the conservative minority.
Leaders in the Valley typically take a different approach, supporting the Trump administration, though, that may not ring true across the entire dais.
Deputy Mayor Tim Hattenburg voted against the Valley’s resolution supporting immigration enforcement in opposition to the Keep Washington Working Act.
“Nothing about Keep Washington Working Act is at odds with [8 U.S.C. §1373],” Hall said Thursday.
The Washington State Office of the Attorney General’s guidance claims it’s not in conflict with federal immigration law, and Hall said the city’s legal team told him this as well. He said Trump has hundreds of executive orders, making it hard to track, but he doesn’t see anything that conflicts with the city.
When pressed, Hall confirmed they may be liable for repayment if the Trump administration disagrees.
The specific law referenced in this week’s concerns requires law enforcement to hand over immigration statuses they collect. The Keep Washington Working Act essentially prohibits SPD from collecting this. Hall said Spokane isn’t breaking the federal law because it requires data sharing, not collection.
“I again am questioning significantly whether or not we will be in compliance,” Cathcart said, noting he doesn’t agree with the AGO or Legal Department’s guidance. “That is a choice that we made as a city council and as a state. We made that choice by passing Keep Washington Working and the resolution.”
The DOJ issued a “sanctuary” city jurisdiction list last year after Trump threatened funding for any that are interfering with immigration enforcement. An initial version included Washington state, Seattle and Spokane County, despite the largely Trump-aligned Republican leaders in the unincorporated area. The DOJ later removed the county from an updated list, but it still included Washington state and Seattle. The city of Spokane was not on the sanctuary list.
Public testimony on Monday and Thursday was almost entirely in opposition to the grant. Some people called it a “bribe” and criticized police officers in general.
Still, the council approved the grant, noting it provides vital funding that the city will build on over the next five years to pay the $6.18 million total.
The council ultimately voted 5-2, with Cathcart and Councilmember Sarah Dixit voting in opposition.
“There is no guarantee of anything when it comes to grant money,” Council President Betsy Wilkerson said, “but financial assistance to accomplish the work that the citizens, you all, … are asking for.”