The DOJ quietly dropped a Trump-era policy to withhold federal money from sanctuary cities, leaked memo says

• A Trump-era policy that withheld sanctuary cities from some federal grants is being axed.
• A DOJ memo obtained by Reuters said cooperation with ICE will not be a grant condition.
• Sanctuary cities are those that refuse or limit cooperation with federal immigration agencies.

The Justice Department quietly repealed a Trump-era policy that withheld federal grants from sanctuary cities, according to a leaked memo obtained by Reuters.

The policy held back millions of dollars in grants from states, cities, and counties that totally oppose or would not fully comply with federal immigration authorities.

In the memo cited by Reuters, acting head of the Office of Justice Programs Maureen Henneberg said that areas that already received grants would no longer have to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to get the grants.

This includes a $250 million annual grant program for local law enforcement, Reuters reported.

Henneberg also told staff that any other grants that have similar provisions in their application processes should be changed to remove those provisions, Reuters reported.

Trump previously threatened to withhold coronavirus aid from states that didn't follow his immigration policies.