UPDATE: As of Friday, February 20, 2026, Mayor Rick Bell confirmed that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is shopping for a facility on Hwy 109 within the Lebanon City limits. He, the County Mayor and other local leaders have expressed publicly they do not want this facility in our community. CLICK HERE to read the latest. 

Sign this petition against an ICE facility to open in Wilson County, TN! A recent report from TN Lookout, alleges the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has purchased property to build a second ICE detention facility in Tennessee in Lebanon.

Wilson County residents are against this facility because:

• This is not the legacy Wilson County wants;
• This would lower property values for surrounding businesses and homeowners; 
• More strain on an already-burdened infrastructure - "A massive planned warehouse detention facility in Social Circle, Georgia, could triple the town’s current population of 5,000. City Manager Eric Taylor has told multiple news outlets that the local infrastructure, specifically water and sewer, is nearly maxed out and cannot handle this kind of additional load.";
• Other communities where ICE facilities have opened, have been negatively impacted because of the Federal government’s lack of payment on tax revenue. "Similarly, in Hutchins, south of Dallas, local officials worry that DHS’s purchase of a 1-million square foot building will, among other things, imperil the local treasury. The property was generating about $1.8 million in annual tax revenue that the federal government would not have to pay, potentially jeopardizing the city’s ability to pay back a bond.";
• ICE has a reputation of inhumane treatment; 
• Nearly 70% of those detained by ICE do not have a previous criminal convictions; 
• New report shows 2% of all crimes in TN are committed by undocumented immigrants and most are traffic violations! See report here; and
• We do not want our community to become a breeding ground for hate or a place where our neighbors feel threatened.

According to the Feb 13th article, local and state officials were unaware of details about the facility.

LOCAL SHERIFF DEPUTIES WORKING WITH ICE: On January 20, 2026, Sheriff Bryan signed an official 287g contract with ICE under the WSO (Warrant Service Officer) model. This contract allows Sheriff Deputies to transfer immigrants into ICE custody and alert ICE if identification is in question during routine traffic stops among other things. You can view that contract here. 

• Attend the March 3 Lebanon City Council Meeting at 6pm at 200 N Castle Heights Ave. Lebanon, TN 

LOCAL OBSERVERS: There are volunteers throughout our community who have trained to become observers during these ICE detentions. In Wilson County, most take place during court and about a dozen immigrants are being detained behind closed doors after court hearings. Sign up to help MigraWatch here. 

IMMIGRATION FACTS: 

• It is not a criminal offense to be in this country without papers, it is a civil offense.  
• Trump’s version of ICE is already responsible for the murder of at least 2 U.S. citizens and the wrongful deportations of hundreds. 
• Other states are seeing aggressive ICE raids taking place in public schools, daycares, places of worship and more. We do not want this in Tennessee.