(The Center Square) — New York law enforcement agencies face limits on cooperating with federal immigration crackdowns under a state law that went into effect Tuesday, even as dueling lawsuits over the new rules play out in court.

The "Local Cops Local Crimes Act," signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul in May, bans state and local law enforcement agencies from signing so-called 287(g) agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that allow cops to be deputized for immigration enforcement. It also restricts ICE's access to schools, churches, courthouses and other "sensitive" locations and bans federal agents from wearing masks during civil immigration operations.

"Local police will assist ICE only if a real crime has been committed," Hochul, a Democrat, said in remarks Tuesday highlighting the new restrictions. "But on civil immigration matters, ICE is on their own."

Tuesday was the deadline set by the Hochul administration for local authorities to formally end those immigration agreements, and the governor warned that local law enforcement agencies must stop cooperating with ICE or face consequences.

Earlier this month, Hochul and Democratic Attorney General Letitia James put sheriffs on notice that they have until Aug. 25 to terminate the 287(g) agreements and provide documentation verifying it or face legal action by the state to force their compliance.

"Let me be clear, any police department or sheriff's office that disobeys this law, that maintains any agreement with ICE, will face legal action," Hochul said Tuesday. "To those suing us, to those trying to block the implementation of this law, tried before and failed, our law has been already upheld by courts. But if you're trying it again, I say, 'Bring it on.'"

To date, 11 of the 13 county sheriffs that had 287(g) agreements in place when the bill was signed have ended them, according to the Hochul administration. In other counties, like Nassau and Rensselaer, sheriff's offices have vowed not to end cooperation with federal immigration officials. Subpoenas have been sent to those sheriffs ordering them to comply.

In June, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against New York state challenging the constitutionality of the new law, which lawyers for the DOJ said would make ICE agents and other federal authorities subject “to criminal penalties" for wearing masks to protect their identities.

New York responded by filing a counter lawsuit seeking to uphold the new restrictions on immigration enforcement.

Neither case has been decided yet, but earlier this month a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking New York from enforcing its mask ban while the legal challenge plays out.

ICE has faced criticism from many Democratic-led states for allowing its agents to conduct immigration enforcement operations wearing plain clothes and face coverings.

The Department of Homeland Security has defended the practice, saying agents arresting immigrants are hiding their faces for their own safety because they face doxing and increasing threats.

But the wrangling over the new ICE restrictions has also spilled out into the governor's race. Hochul's Republican challenger, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, has questioned the legality of banning the immigration agreements with the federal government. Nassau is one of the few New York counties that has openly defied the new law.