On April 17, 2026, the San Antonio City Council passed an ordinance placing new restrictions on the operation of private detention facilities within city limits. The ordinance contains a grandfathering provision that exempts the already-announced ICE warehouse detention facility, limiting its practical effect to blocking future expansion or new-site selection within the city. The action joins a growing set of municipal ordinances passed in response to ICE's expanding warehouse-to-detention program — including Durant, OK's January 10, 2026 emergency ordinance restricting sales to ICE, and similar actions from Social Circle, GA (water use restriction) and Oklahoma City (facility rejected after opposition).
The San Antonio exemption highlights a pattern limiting these local tools: ordinances passed after a federal deed is recorded cannot undo the transaction. NPR's March 23 analysis noted that representatives in Oakwood, GA; Baytown, TX; Highland Park, MI; and other cities report receiving no DHS notification or response. Local government learns about ICE detention purchases from deed records, not from federal consultation — which has shaped the adaptation of local resistance toward preemptive ordinances (e.g., Durant) and post-hoc environmental litigation (e.g., Williamsport MD).