Richmond City Council is expected to discuss a resolution this fall that would direct Mayor Danny Avula’s administration to develop a formal “trust policy” to foster trust between immigrant communities and the city.
The resolution, introduced by Councilor Nicole Jones (9th District), asks that the city establish clear rules for departments and employees around the use of city-owned resources for purposes of civil federal immigration enforcement and the disclosure of residents’ citizenship information.
“There’s no public safety without public trust, so we have to build that trust, because we are still really kind of building that relationship with our Latino population,” Jones said.
City officials have maintained that they do not collaborate with federal immigration authorities, but the proposed resolution would formalize those protections by making them part of the city’s policies.
In May, the city also announced that federal agencies would be prohibited from using city-owned property to stage immigration operations, process detainees or conduct immigration-related surveillance.
Avula has already expressed support for Jones’ resolution, calling it a way to publicly codify the city’s commitment to protecting immigrant residents: “Our immigrant communities are a huge part of what makes Richmond a vibrant city, and I want them to have assurances that they are safe and valued in this city.”
Discussion of Jones’ proposal comes after more than a year of concern from immigrant residents and community organizations about how local government services intersect with federal immigration enforcement.
Those concerns intensified in the summer of 2025, after a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid at Southwood Apartments, a predominantly Latino community.
Jones, whose district includes Southwood, said at the time that she would be in favor of any policy that strengthened the city’s support for the immigrant community — but was unsure if the solution would be the specific trust policy proposed by activist groups.
Prior to the Southwood raid, Jones said she had already seen some of the challenges immigrant families can face when navigating city services through her previous experience on the Richmond School Board.
One of those challenges, Jones said, is questions about identification and the handling of personal information, which are sticky points for families who worry about immigration consequences.
“We want to make sure that we’re inclusive and that people know where to go to obtain the resources that they need, but then that they also can feel safe going and feel safe sharing the information that is requested of them,” Jones said.
Jones said she sees her resolution as the start of ensuring all city agencies, departments and current and future employees know what is expected of them.
“I think the legislation allows us to know what’s on file and if someone new comes in, ‘OK, what are we doing? What are we supposed to be doing? Who gets trained? Who does what?’” Jones said. “I think it’s a guiding document that betters the city, but it’s codified in a way that if we have any changes to the city, it exists.”
The next step is discussion by City Council members at their next Governmental Operations Committee meeting on Oct. 28. (The committee’s September meeting has been canceled.)
If the resolution is passed by City Council this fall, the Avula administration would need to establish rules and regulations by Jan. 1, 2027 — which city council would then review.
“We’ll then look at that — make sure that it has enough teeth in it for what it is that we’re attempting to do,” Jones said.
“Which is, again, to be inclusive, making sure that people are trained, they know what to say, and our commitment to the Latino community that [when] you give someone your information, you don’t have to worry about them turning you in.
