Lehigh County controller wants to evict ICE from local offices, says agency owes over $100K in rent
A Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, government official said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security owe more than $100,000 in unpaid rent for an Allentown office space owned by the county.
Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley is calling for ICE and DHS to pay back rent for the space and urging the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners to evict the federal tenants immediately.
"I think the county should be unequivocal and tell ICE: pay your bills, pack your s---, and get the hell out," Pinsley said in a letter to the board and County Executive Josh Siegel on Tuesday.
Pinsley explained his demands during a press conference Tuesday. He said he feels "a growing sense of alarm and sadness" following recent ICE activities in Minneapolis.
"As Lehigh County controller, I have watched Minneapolis but worry about Lehigh Valley. There were no pepper balls flying across Hamilton Street on my way to work today, but that's no guarantee that there won't be tomorrow," he said.
"We can give them a taste of their own medicine. We're going to deport ICE," Pinsley said.
Do ICE, HSI owe rent to Lehigh County?
Pinsley said Homeland Security Investigations entered into a "memorandum of agreement," or MOA, with the county in November 2022 to lease county-owned office space inside the Hamilton Financial Center building in Allentown. County commissioners intended that agreement to be a binding contract for 10 months, and then HSI and ICE would enter into a standard three-year lease of the office space through September 2026, Pinsley claimed.
Pinsley said HSI would pay $29,250 for the first 10 months under the MOA, and then shift to yearly rent costs of $36,153 for the first year under the lease, increasing annually until reaching $38,354 for the final year.
HSI's Special Agent in Charge at the time signed the MOA, but not the lease. HSI later said the person who signed the agreement lacked the authority to do so.
The county and HSI are also seeking a 3-year renewal for the lease, which would keep HSI and ICE in the space into the fall of 2029. Pinsley notes that HSI intends to pay the county once the lease terms are agreed upon.
"While the MOA was agreed to, both parties have not agreed to the terms of a lease agreement, which is still pending to date. As such, no payment has been made by HSI to the county since the commencement of the MOA and lease agreement on December 1, 2022," Pinsley's letter said.
The county's fiscal records don't show that any rent was received for this property, despite it being occupied since 2022. Pinsley said the total amount of back rent uncollected totals to about $115,000, with the potential for $7,600 in late fees.
HSI has been using the space to collaborate with local law enforcement and the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office.
Pinsley said continuing to allow HSI and ICE to use the space could create "public perception risk that the County is enabling ICE," and could be "creating the impression that County government is not standing with working families or protecting community stability."
Pinsley, a Democrat, is seeking his party's nomination to run against incumbent Rep. Ryan Mackenzie in Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District.
CBS News Philadelphia has reached out to ICE and the Department of Homeland Security and will update this story with their response.