RELEASE: Rep. Heintzeman Calls Out MPCA on its ICE “Preparedness Plan”

St. Paul — In response to newly revealed internal documents from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) instructing agency employees on how to respond to potential Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity, Rep. Josh Heintzeman (R-Nisswa) issued the following statement:

“Minnesotans count on the MPCA to safeguard our natural resources, not to wade into national political battles. When an environmental agency circulates internal guidance on how to navigate an ICE raid, the public deserves answers. If MPCA leadership believes federal immigration enforcement could occur at their facilities, then taxpayers have a right to know why. And if there is no legitimate expectation of ICE involvement, then this memo is nothing more than political grandstanding and an apparent attempt to undermine federal law enforcement.”

The memo instructs MPCA employees to decline cooperation with federal immigration authorities, leave enforcement areas if they choose, refuse questions, and seek legal counsel. A letter from Commissioner Katrina Kessler accompanying the memo frames federal immigration actions as discriminatory and suggests staff seek counseling if distressed by national enforcement.

Heintzeman said he will be requesting a formal explanation from MPCA on the impetus for the memo – including asking if it was done solely at the discretion of the commissioner or if the agency was directed to do so by Governor Walz.

“Public trust in state government is in the gutter over costly mismanagement and oversight failures across this administration,” Heintzeman added. “Minnesotans expect accountability, transparency, and for agencies to stay in their lane. The MPCA missed the mark here.”

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