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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
USINFO | 2013-10-29 11:30
| Abbreviation | ICE |
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| ICE is a component of the United States Department of Homeland Security | |
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| Badge of a Homeland Security Instigations Special Agent | |
| Motto | "Protecting National Security and Upholding Public Safety" |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | March 1, 2003 |
| Preceding agencies |
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| Employees | 19,330+ (2013) |
| Annual budget | $5.87 billion (2013) |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Federal agency | United States |
| Constituting instrument | Homeland Security Act of 2002 |
| General nature |
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| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
| Agency executive | John T. Morton, Director |
| Parent agency | U.S. Department of Homeland Security |
| Website | |
| ice.gov | |
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), responsible for identifying, investigating, and dismantling vulnerabilities regarding the nation's border, economic, transportation, and infrastructure security. ICE has two primary components: Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., ICE is charged with the investigation and enforcement of over 400 federal statutes within the United States, and maintains attachés at major U.S. embassies overseas.
ICE is led by a director, who is appointed at the sub-Cabinet level by the president of the United States, confirmed by the Senate, and reports directly to the Secretary of Homeland Security.[1] ICE is the second largest criminal investigations agency in the U.S. government, following the FBI.[2] The mission of ICE is to protect the United States and uphold public safety by enforcing immigration and customs laws.
