As immigrant arrests continue to surge under President Donald Trump, Utah National Guard troops are being asked to volunteer to help with a fall operation by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
A message sent to some members Thursday said the state force was “seeking volunteers” who are willing to provide administrative and logistical support, as well as assist in transportation.
Lt. Col. Christopher Kroeber, a spokesperson for the Utah National Guard, confirmed in an email late Thursday that the unit had “received a request for support.” The message, he added, was “sent to help us determine availability of our Soldiers and Airmen.”
The request to determine troops’ availability to help ICE came from the U.S. Department of Defense through the National Guard Bureau earlier this week, Kroeber clarified in a phone call Friday evening.
Kroeber said the guard has “some idea” of how many members a mission would require, adding that the number is “not huge.” He pointed to social media posts about Thursday’s message that elicited “hostile” comments in declining to specify the size of the operation, citing concerns about the safety of volunteers.
The message came hours after Gov. Spencer Cox, the commander-in-chief of the state force, told reporters at a news conference that his office is actively communicating with the federal government about the possibility of Utah guard members working with ICE.
“We’ll know in the next couple weeks what that looks like, as they get more information back to us, and we’ll be able to make that decision,” Cox said.
A spokesperson for the governor responded Friday afternoon to an email requesting more information by referring to Kroeber, as well as Cox’s remarks in the Thursday news conference. Neither the DHS nor ICE answered questions sent over email about the operation.
The Pentagon previously authorized the Utah National Guard to help in immigration enforcement operations, although Kroeber told The Christian Science Monitor earlier this month that the force had not yet received a mission.
That authorization came under Title 32 of federal code, meaning the guard is still under state control but is federally funded. Using Title 32 for immigration enforcement efforts is seemingly unprecedented.
When activated under it, guard members can engage in homeland defense activities and are not subject to the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which generally prohibits the military from engaging in domestic law enforcement.
The current expiration date for Title 32 authorizations issued for 20 Republican-led states across the country is Nov. 15.
“We are early in the planning stages and still seeking clarification and details,” Kroeber told The Salt Lake Tribune.
The Utah National Guard anticipates it would help with an operation from Sept. 15 through Nov. 15, “or as long as needed,” the message disseminated Thursday said. Guard members will work along the Wasatch Front and in southern Utah.
That message comes one week after the governor met with the head of the Utah National Guard, Maj. Gen. Daniel Boyack, for a “military briefing,” according to Cox’s public schedule.
Administrative and clerical tasks that would be performed by troops could include “transportation between facilities, fingerprinting, and tasks like that,” Kroeber wrote. “If/when these mission requests become an actual order, we anticipate federal funding to support.”
Several Republican-led states so far have seen their National Guard units activated to assist in immigration enforcement.
“What we’ve said from the very beginning is this,” Cox told reporters Thursday, “that we are willing to work to support the efforts to remove people who are here illegally. However, with a couple caveats there.”
The governor said the federal government would have to pay for any efforts by the Utah National Guard, and that guard members “will not be putting hands on people, will not be arresting people.”
“That is not the role of the National Guard, and we would not allow that to happen,” Cox said. “We’ve offered in the past … to help with things like transport, because we don’t have an ICE facility here. Transportation takes a lot of time and effort away from Homeland Security and their ability to do their jobs.”
In 2024, Cox sent five members of the Utah National Guard to the southern border on the state’s dime in response to a request from Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. Those troops, Kroeber said then, helped repair military equipment.
Note to readers, 7:55 p.m. • This story has been updated to include more information from the Utah National Guard.