Gov. Kelly Ayotte said Tuesday morning that the Department of Homeland Security is no longer planning to build an immigrant detention center in Merrimack. The federal government planned to retrofit a warehouse on Robert Milligan Parkway in Merrimack into a processing center where immigrants would be detained temporarily before being transferred to a larger detention […]

This story updated on Feb. 12 at 3:30 p.m. Todd Lyons, acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, confirmed Thursday that ICE was building an immigrant detention center in Merrimack and said that the Department of Homeland Security “has worked with Gov. Ayotte” on the economic impact of the project — a claim Gov. Kelly […]

Gov. Kelly Ayotte, speaking to reporters Wednesday, said her team asked the White House and the Department of Homeland Security about reports that an immigration detention center is planned for Merrimack. Ayotte said there was no confirmation that the federal government plans to open a facility there, but ultimately she “did not get an answer […]

Amid an increasingly aggressive national deportation campaign by the Trump administration and reports that Merrimack might play a more significant role in that campaign soon, New Hampshire Democrats are trying to prevent state, county, or municipal funding from being used to assist. House Bill 1609, filed by state Rep. David Meuse, would prohibit New Hampshire […]