Last week, the governor along with the Utah Sheriffs’ Association sent a letter to the soon-to-be Trump administration addressing obstacles law enforcement officials in the state reportedly have faced along with some proposed action items.

The letter, dated Jan. 2, was addressed to Tom Homan, the recently appointed “border czar,” and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Trump’s nominee to be secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, regarding Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, within Utah.

Cox and others proposed resolutions to challenges they say the state has faced in detaining and removing undocumented migrants who are convicted of crimes.

The letter was signed by Cox and the leadership team within the Utah Sheriff’s Association, including Sheriff Mike Smith of Utah County. It also was shared this week on social media by the Weber County Sheriff’s Office.

The group is asking for new ICE leadership in Utah as well as to either remove or make changes to standards in housing ICE detainees in Utah. They also requested more funding for ICE jail beds and transportation for migrants who need to be deported.

In the letter, the officials detailed challenges they say Utah has faced under the Biden administration, specifically a lack of cooperation from federal partners with ICE.

Cox has repeatedly expressed frustrations with the Biden administration’s regulations that reportedly have made detaining migrant criminals more difficult for county sheriff’s departments.

The letter asks for a transfer of Salt Lake City Field Office Director Michael Bernacke, citing his alleged lack of leadership and good faith with state leadership.

“We have been deeply frustrated over an extended period of time with Mr. Bernacke’s lack of leadership and resistance to solutions,” the letter said.

According to the letter, Cox’s office and local law enforcement explored ways to meet federal requirements while keeping migrants accused of crimes off the streets, but it claims they have been met with resistance and excuses by Bernacke.

The letter referenced a retracted statement made by Bernacke last year when he called Utah a “sanctuary state” for migrants, a characterization later disputed by Cox and others.

The Utah Sheriffs’ Association also rebuked those claims, calling it misleading, reckless and damaging to further interactions with ICE.

“In short Mr. Bernacke no longer has any credibility or good faith with the Cox administration or the larger Utah law enforcement community–an untenable situation at any time, but especially in this current crisis,” the letter said.

ICE’s Salt Lake City Field Office did not immediately respond to the Daily Herald’s request for comment.

The letter goes on to request that “unreasonable detention standards” be lifted, as they “are complicating out counties’ ability to hold ICE detainees.” According to the list of requirements for ICE detainees subject to deportation, facilities must offer special privileges such as their own jail entrance or haircuts.

The officials listed extra funding for jail beds and transportation resources for those facing deportation as one way to solving the issues.

Currently, the nearest ICE detention center is in Las Vegas, which according to the letter only has about 40 beds and holds detainees from four states — Utah, Nevada, Idaho and Montana — a figure the letter says “will not nearly be enough given the scope of the problem.”

In May, Cox said he wants an ICE facility in Utah so counties don’t have to send detained migrants to Las Vegas, but the efforts have been unsuccessful so far, Utah News Dispatch reported.

Many years ago, Smith said, the Utah County Jail would hold ICE detainees beyond the allotted 48-hour period. But since then, he added, facilities have become subject to audits and inspections.

“We hold federal inmates, such as a U.S. Marshals office hold, and we don’t have those same issues. But when we hold ICE (detainees), we have those issues,” Smith told the Daily Herald.

The sheriff said Utah County is among other counties in the state seeing an uptick in criminal activity by migrants with an invalid status.

But Smith believes the incoming president’s administration will need to “cut through the red tape” and work collaboratively with state and local authorities to address these issues effectively.

“I think the focus should be on crime,” Smith said. “If you’re here illegally and you’re committing crime in our cities and our counties, then there should be a fast track out of here.”

While some state leaders have voiced their support for Trump’s second term and future policies, other elected officials worry about the message that’s being conveyed and how political rhetoric potentially could lump undocumented immigrants together with legal migrants.

At a press conference Monday, during a preview of the upcoming legislative session, the topic of immigration and deportation was said to be one of the many items lawmakers will look closely at.

While Cox’s focus is on criminals, House Minority Leader Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City, and Senate Minority Leader Luz Escamilla expressed concerns about how any plans lawmakers enact will ultimately impact legal immigrants.

Romero said there’s no question the nation’s immigration issues to be addressed, but expressed her belief that it should be up to Congress and not the Utah Legislature, Utah News Dispatch reported.

Local immigration attorneys say they are already fielding concerns from people they assist.

Jake Tuimaualuga, an immigration lawyer at ImmiVisa Law Group in Lehi, says some clients he works with fear being removed or unable to stay in the U.S., even if they’ve done nothing wrong, due to rhetoric surrounding immigration.

“A lot of the fear from your average undocumented person in your neighborhood that just goes to work and pays their taxes, is that – tomorrow, somebody’s going to be knocking at their door to take him out of here,” Tuimaualuga explained.

Whether or not a migrant individual has their legal status, he says it’s important for them to know and understand their constitutional rights.

But Tuimaualuga said he encourages clients to take every and any path possible achieving local status, though in some cases – barriers to becoming a documented immigrant poses challenges.

“A lot of people choose to delay because of costs or difficulty, or just the comfort of where they’re at,” he told the Daily Herald. “Some people don’t have options. But for those that do, I tell them you need to do something.”

He also noted alternative resources like the Utah Immigration Collaborative, which works with a team of nonprofits to provide legal services to immigrants in the community.