The Bristol County Sheriff’s Office has taken a big step to partner with federal immigration enforcement.

The Bristol County Sheriff’s Office was recently accepted into Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s 287(g) program, which will give Bristol County personnel delegated authority to apprehend, detain, and assist with deportation of criminal illegal aliens locally, according to a BCSO press release.

Under the 287(g) partnership, Bristol County personnel will receive training and authorization to perform immigration law enforcement functions, such as identifying, processing, and detaining immigration offenders in Bristol County. Before entering the 287(g) partnership, ICE officers from Boston were the only officials authorized to perform immigration interviews, according to the release.

The Bristol County Sheriff’s Office is the third organization in New England to enter into the 287(g) program, according to the news release

The Sheriff’s Office applied for the partnership months before the election, and before municipalities pledged to defy national immigration policy, according to the release.

ICE officials will join Sheriff Thomas Hodgson for an official signing of the Memorandum of Agreement at a later date.