Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has signed an executive order requiring companies seeking city contracts to disclose information regarding leadership diversity and any ties to certain law enforcement agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The order, announced Wednesday, aims to leverage the city's purchasing power to establish new contracting standards. Johnson stated that workplace data is essential for identifying discrimination and criticized past federal efforts to reduce reporting requirements.
"If you want to do business with this city, we want to know whether the people leading your company reflect the diversity of the communities whose tax dollars are paying your contracts," Johnson said during a press conference.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) accused Johnson of penalizing American companies for assisting federal immigration enforcement. A DHS spokesperson stated, "Make no mistake, we will not be deterred. Under President Trump, ICE will keep enforcing the law in Chicago, whether City Hall likes it or not."
Under the new executive order, contractors must report whether they have received more than $500,000 from government or law enforcement agencies and if they have faced allegations of excessive force, unlawful detention, unconstitutional policing, discrimination, or other civil rights violations within the past five years. Large private companies with at least $1 billion in net income must also provide data on leadership diversity, board composition, and diversity policies.
The order also directs contractors to report their efforts in hiring and promoting formerly incarcerated individuals. Future awardees will be required to update these disclosures annually.
While doing business with ICE is not an automatic disqualifier, firms can be barred for specified integrity, discrimination, or wage theft violations. Public integrity, workplace discrimination, or wage theft violations within the previous five years will also be grounds for barring vendors.
A campaign group called Not With Our Money identified $3.19 billion in Chicago contracts held by 42 firms that also conduct business with ICE, according to their research.
This order represents the latest action by Johnson to create friction with federal immigration authorities. In October, his administration prohibited ICE from using city parking lots and garages for operations, a policy that DHS said created operational risks and forced agents to stage in public spaces. DHS reported that an operation dubbed "Operation Midway Blitz" resulted in over 4,500 arrests by December.