Cochise County approves $1.57 million DPS local-border support agreement over public objections
January 27, 2026 | Cochise County, Arizona
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The Cochise County Board of Supervisors on Jan. 27 approved an intergovernmental agreement (IGA 2025-320) with the Arizona Department of Public Safety to provide $1,567,303.26 for Local Border Support activities, effective July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2027. Supervisor Gomez moved the measure; the board voted to adopt the agreement.
The funding is intended to augment law-enforcement capacity for border-related investigations and prosecutions, including personnel, overtime and jail-related booking costs. CCSO Captain Jurd told the board the award is a continuation of recent grant funding and “goes towards salaries and personnel and overtime,” and that $250,000 of the allocation is budgeted to cover border-related jail booking and related costs.
Public commenter Allison Morse opposed the agreement during the meeting’s public-comment period, raising concerns about timing, extended jurisdiction and connections with federal immigration enforcement. Morse said the county should reject the IGA and asked the board to “please vote no on this agenda item.” Her remarks also invoked broader allegations about immigration-enforcement tactics and recent deaths in custody.
Captain Jurd disputed the assertion that crossings have stopped and described local operational needs. He said the sheriff’s office is “authorized” at the statewide level and emphasized a recent operation that prevented a human-smuggling outcome: “We... took the action to make sure that this boy was — that this smuggling attempt was stopped,” he told the board, describing how deputies and task-force officers intervened on behalf of an eight-year-old victim.
Board discussion noted the contested nature of the policy and the public commenter’s concerns, but the motion carried and the agreement was approved.
The IGA will be administered by the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office per the terms presented to the board; the board did not attach special conditions to the approval during the meeting. The agreement becomes effective on July 1, 2025, as written in the contract language presented to the board.
The board moved next to several other agenda items, including additional DPS awards and capital transfers.
The funding is intended to augment law-enforcement capacity for border-related investigations and prosecutions, including personnel, overtime and jail-related booking costs. CCSO Captain Jurd told the board the award is a continuation of recent grant funding and “goes towards salaries and personnel and overtime,” and that $250,000 of the allocation is budgeted to cover border-related jail booking and related costs.
Public commenter Allison Morse opposed the agreement during the meeting’s public-comment period, raising concerns about timing, extended jurisdiction and connections with federal immigration enforcement. Morse said the county should reject the IGA and asked the board to “please vote no on this agenda item.” Her remarks also invoked broader allegations about immigration-enforcement tactics and recent deaths in custody.
Captain Jurd disputed the assertion that crossings have stopped and described local operational needs. He said the sheriff’s office is “authorized” at the statewide level and emphasized a recent operation that prevented a human-smuggling outcome: “We... took the action to make sure that this boy was — that this smuggling attempt was stopped,” he told the board, describing how deputies and task-force officers intervened on behalf of an eight-year-old victim.
Board discussion noted the contested nature of the policy and the public commenter’s concerns, but the motion carried and the agreement was approved.
The IGA will be administered by the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office per the terms presented to the board; the board did not attach special conditions to the approval during the meeting. The agreement becomes effective on July 1, 2025, as written in the contract language presented to the board.
The board moved next to several other agenda items, including additional DPS awards and capital transfers.
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