On June 5, 2026, Susan Collins voted for the Secure America Act, which added billions of dollars for ICE and Customs and Border Protection on top of the enforcement money approved in 2025. The same day she voted against an amendment to put body-worn cameras on immigration agents, and on June 4 she voted against amendments to fund an unannounced inspection of a detention center and an independent detention ombudsman. In January 2025 she voted for the Laken Riley Act, which requires detention of some immigrants before any conviction.
Collins voted to confirm Kristi Noem and then Markwayne Mullin to lead the Department of Homeland Security, whose agents killed two American citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis in January 2026. In July 2026 an ICE officer shot and killed a motorist in Biddeford, Maine.
Susan Collins's Votes on ICE Money, Detention Oversight and the Homeland Security Leaders
- Collins Voted for $69.5 Billion More for ICE and Border Patrol in June 2026. On June 5, 2026, Susan Collins voted yes on S. 2, the Secure America Act, which passed 52-47 and gives ICE and CBP a total of $69.5 billion dollars until September 30, 2029. In April she had voted to adopt the budget resolution that set up the bill. Together with the 2025 law, Congress has provided nearly a quarter of a trillion dollars to DHS through the two bills. At an October 12, 2026 debate in Maine, Collins said "far too many ICE officers were hired and deployed without adequate vetting and training."
- Collins Voted for the Laken Riley Act, Which Requires Detention Before Any Conviction, in January 2025. On January 20, 2025, Collins voted yes on S. 5, the Laken Riley Act, which passed 64-35 and requires ICE to detain immigrants who have been accused or arrested for theft and other offenses, before any conviction. Immigration judges now cite the law to hold people never charged with violent crimes, KPBS reported in August 2026.
- Collins Voted to Confirm Kristi Noem, Whose Department's Agents Killed Two U.S. Citizens in Minneapolis. On January 25, 2025, Collins voted to confirm Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security. During Noem's tenure, an ICE officer killed Renee Good, 37, a U.S. citizen, in Minneapolis on January 7, 2026, and the medical examiner listed her death as a homicide. Federal officials said Good had weaponized her vehicle, though video evidence contradicted that. Her department also ended protected status for 348,202 Venezuelans.
- Collins Voted to Confirm Markwayne Mullin, Under Whom ICE Officers Shot and Killed a Motorist in Maine. On March 23, 2026, Collins voted to confirm Markwayne Mullin as Secretary of Homeland Security. Under Mullin, ICE officers in Houston and Maine shot and killed individuals in their cars in July 2026.
- Collins Voted Against Body Cameras for Immigration Agents in June 2026. On June 5, 2026, Collins voted no on Sen. Alex Padilla's amendment to set aside at least $300 million of the bill's money for body-worn cameras on immigration officers, with footage available to Congress and to the people filmed. It failed 46-53. Immigration agents have killed nine people since January 2025, according to data compiled by The Trace and reported by NPR.
- Collins Voted Against Withholding Payment From Detention Contractors Found to Use Excessive Force in June 2026. On June 4, 2026, Collins voted no on Sen. Cory Booker's amendment to fund the Immigration Detention Ombudsman and to stop payments to any contractor where DHS finds substantiated misconduct, excessive force, or violations of law or detention standards. It failed 46-53. Most detention facilities are run by for-profit companies, which reported a combined $1.4 billion in quarterly revenue in spring 2026.
- Collins Voted Against Surprise Inspections of a Detention Center in June 2026. On June 4, 2026, Collins voted no on an amendment to pay for an unannounced inspection of the Delaney Hall Detention Facility in Newark by the inspector general. It failed 46-53. ICE's own records list 36 deaths in its custody in the 2026 fiscal year.
- Collins Voted to Keep a Rule That Makes Immigrant Workers Lose Their Work Permits in April 2026. On April 29, 2026, Collins voted no on taking up S.J.Res. 99, which would have overturned the USCIS rule ending automatic extensions of work permits for people with pending renewals. It failed 47-50, and the resolution died. DHS itself wrote that the rule would result in temporary lapses in employment authorization, and it estimated 293,000 to 449,000 pending renewal EAD applicants at risk without extensions.
- Collins Voted to Confirm the USCIS Director Who Ended Automatic Work-Permit Extensions. On July 15, 2025, Collins voted to confirm Joseph Edlow as director of Citizenship and Immigration Services, and he was confirmed 52-47. His agency's October 2025 rule ended automatic work-permit extensions, which DHS said would cause lost compensation to workers, and USCIS froze green card and citizenship cases for people from 39 countries until a court held USCIS's pause on processing cases of individuals from the 39 affected countries was illegal.
- Collins Voted to Give ICE More Money While Earlier Money Sat Unspent in April 2026. On April 23, 2026, Collins voted no on a motion by Sen. Alex Padilla to block new budget-bill money for an agency that has unobligated funds from the 2025 law. It failed 46-52, clearing the way for the Secure America Act money.
- Collins Did Not Say Whether Noem Should Stay After the Minneapolis Killings. On January 27, 2026, NOTUS reported that Collins did not respond to direct questions on whether Noem should remain as DHS secretary. Three days earlier, Border Patrol agents had killed Alex Pretti, a VA nurse, who was fatally shot while filming an immigration operation.
What Immigration Enforcement Under the Officials Susan Collins Confirmed Has Meant for Maine
- Fatal shooting. On July 13, 2026, a federal immigration agent fatally shot a 25-year-old motorist in Biddeford, Maine. Maine Public identified ICE as the agency involved in the fatal shooting, and protesters later targeted Collins at her office over her vote for the June funding package.
- Arrests. During ICE's January 2026 operation in Maine, immigration lawyers said "it's mostly people without criminal records who are being arrested", NPR reported.
Frequently Asked Questions About Susan Collins on Immigration and enforcement
What is Susan Collins's record on immigration enforcement under Trump?
Susan Collins voted on June 5, 2026 for the Secure America Act's new ICE and Border Patrol money and against amendments to require body cameras on immigration agents and to fund detention oversight. She voted in January 2025 for the Laken Riley Act and voted to confirm Kristi Noem and Markwayne Mullin to run the Department of Homeland Security. In Maine, an ICE officer fatally shot a motorist in Biddeford in July 2026, and protesters targeted Collins at her office over the funding.
How much did ICE grow after the money Susan Collins voted for?
Susan Collins voted on June 5, 2026 for the Secure America Act, which added $69.5 billion for ICE and CBP to the 2025 law's enforcement money. ICE said its workforce grew from about 10,000 personnel to more than 22,000 during its hiring surge, which raised oversight concerns about training standards.
Did Susan Collins vote to confirm Markwayne Mullin as Homeland Security secretary?
Yes. Susan Collins voted to confirm Markwayne Mullin on March 23, 2026. Two months earlier, Mullin had called Alex Pretti, the nurse Border Patrol agents killed in Minneapolis, "A deranged individual who came in to cause massive damage with a loaded pistol".
Do most Americans approve of the ICE operations Susan Collins voted to fund?
Most do not. Susan Collins voted for more money for ICE in June 2026, and a Marquette Law School poll in early 2026 found 60% of adults disapprove of how ICE handles its job. Quinnipiac found 57% of voters disapprove of how ICE enforces immigration laws.
Last updated: 2026-10-25