WATCH: Houston faces $110M hit as Texas gov lays down law on 'sanctuary' policies
Houston, a major red-state city run by Democrats, is in "crisis" mode as it faces an ultimatum to repay the State of Texas approximately $110 million if it does not repeal a "sanctuary"-type ordinance limiting cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The Houston City Council recently voted to end a policy requiring police to wait at least 30 minutes for ICE to arrive if a suspect had an immigration warrant. Afterward, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, drew a line in the sand, telling the city to immediately reverse its policy or face "extraordinarily difficult financial choices."
Abbott asserted that Houston is "trying to renege on their obligations" after signing onto a public safety agreement to receive state funding that required it to cooperate with immigration enforcement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
"The City of Houston right now is in breach of contract," Abbott told reporters last week. "That’s going to require the City of Houston to immediately provide $110 million to the State of Texas."
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Regardless of whether the city council cooperates, Abbott said city officials will face the consequences of their noncompliance. If officials refuse to repay Texas, Abbott said the state comptroller will withhold sales tax revenue that would otherwise go to the city.
"It’s not as if they’re going to say, ‘Well, we may or may not get around to writing a check,’" he said. "Know this, the way the law works … the comptroller will withhold the sales tax revenue that otherwise will go to the City of Houston and will be retained by the State of Texas until the State of Texas is fully repaid the $110 million that is owed by Houston to the state."
Abbott shot down a reporter’s question on whether his ultimatum contradicts his public safety goals.
"Let’s be clear about a couple things," he said. "If the city council was serious about public safety, they would not allow illegal immigrants to roam their streets and kill people like Jocelyn Nungaray."
He added that "there are other people like that in Houston who have been raped, assaulted and victimized by people who are here illegally and allowed to roam the streets."
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He further cautioned that the city council will have to find an alternate method of funding its police force, or it will be in violation of Texas law requiring cities fully fund law enforcement forces.
"Houston will still be obligated to come up with the additional funds to fully fund their police," he said.
He stressed to the city council that it is "in breach of contract," adding, "We’ve given the opportunity to what’s called ‘cure’ that breach."
"Failure to do so will lead to extraordinarily difficult financial choices that are purposefully made by the city council of Houston," he concluded.
In response to the ultimatum, Houston Democratic Mayor John Whitmire has called on the city council to reexamine the policy and vote on possibly repealing it. Whitmire called the situation a "crisis" that affects the Houston police and fire departments, public safety services across the city, and even preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
According to Whitmire, Abbott has given the city a deadline of this Wednesday before the state moves to enforce the contract. He said a special session of the Houston City Council has been called for that day, giving his office "additional time to continue productive discussions with the Governor’s office, City Council members, law enforcement, and the community."
Fox News Digital reached out to the city council for comment.
