Maine officials are pausing the issuance of undercover license plates after receiving a request for plates from federal border security authorities that comes amid rumors that a wave of immigration enforcement actions could soon be carried out in the state.

Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said Saturday that the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, which is housed in the secretary of state’s office, received a request for confidential, undercover Maine plates from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Bellows did not say when exactly the request came in.

“These requests in light of rumors of ICE deployment to Maine and abuses of power in Minnesota and elsewhere raise concerns,” she said in a written statement. “We have not revoked existing plates but have paused issuance of new plates. We want to be assured that Maine plates will not be used for lawless purposes.”

A spokesperson for Bellows said Saturday that additional information was not immediately available, including how many plates were requested and whether CBP has made such requests in the past.

A media contact for CBP did not immediately respond to questions from the Press Herald on Saturday night seeking details of the request and the agency’s response to the secretary of state’s pause on the issuance of new undercover plates.

The action comes as rumors have been circulating that Immigration and Customs Enforcement could expand its operations in Maine cities. The suggested raids have not yet materialized and the federal government has not shared details.

Federal authorities earlier this week placed an order for cold weather gear for U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Houlton.

At least one other federal law enforcement agency has raised concerns about the pause on undercover plates.

Ryan Guay, a supervisory deputy U.S. Marshal for the U.S. Marshals Service District of Maine, said he went Friday to register the agency’s fleet of vehicles via email with the secretary of state’s office and was told the state is not offering “covert status” for federal agencies.

In the past, Guay said the Marshals Service has been able to obtain undercover plates in order to carry out law enforcement operations. The marshals service is a federal agency that supports the judicial branch, including by executing federal court orders, providing security for the judiciary, managing federal prisoners and apprehending criminals.

Guay said he was surprised to learn of the change and was not told it is temporary. He said he was not given a specific reason for the change and said it poses a safety risk for the marshals service.

“This is a drastic change from historical precedent that gives us great concern,” he said. “We often do sensitive investigations or deal with protected persons, and we don’t want to advertise that they’re affiliated with us.”

Guay said Saturday that he was trying to figure out next steps for his agency.

“I’m engaged with our national office and offices around the country to kind of figure out what to do, as this is not a common occurrence at all,” he said.

Alex Bregman’s failed contract negotiations with the Red Sox have entered into a debate around a Massachusetts city’s selection of a new ambulance provider, ending a 25-year partnership with a previous company.

The city of Medford is set to transition to Cataldo Ambulance on Monday, following weeks of back-and-forth with the City Council, which requested that leaders pause the move until more information and transparency were provided.

City Councilor George Scarpelli has advocated for the city to stick with Armstrong Ambulance, a company that he says provided “impeccable” service for the past quarter century, instead of bringing in Cataldo.

During a meeting last week, Scarpelli compared the city’s discussions in selecting a new ambulance provider to Bregman’s contract negotiations with the Red Sox.

“Those people that follow the Red Sox — Alex Bregman was going back and forth while the Chicago Cubs gave a better deal. He’s gone now,” Scarpelli said. “Well, at least they went to the Red Sox and said, ‘What is it? Can you do this?’ And the Red Sox said, ‘No. We’re not gonna give you a no-trade clause. We’re not gonna put that in.’”

“It’s no different,” the city councilor added.

Bregman signed a five-year, $175 million deal with the Cubs last week, after he opted out of the three-year, $120 million contract that he signed with the Red Sox last February.

Unlike the Cubs, the Red Sox refused to offer Bregman, who turns 32 in March, a full no-trade clause. This was a top priority for the veteran third baseman, who sought a stable long-term home to raise his two young sons.

“Literally, the first second free agency really opened, it felt like we knew the Cubs wanted our family to be here,” Bregman told reporters in Chicago on Thursday. “We had a lot of conversations over the course of the first three months of the offseason. … It was pretty evident they wanted me to be here.”

In Medford, controversy swirled after Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn and other officials announced before the new year that the city had entered into a three-year contract agreement with Cataldo, breaking away from Armstrong.

Officials reiterated that the city didn’t terminate a contract with Armstrong and that the last agreement with the company expired in November. Concerns ranged from inadequate response times to a claim that the company refused to pay $75,000 in annual reimbursements owed to the city.

Nina Nazarian, the mayor’s chief of staff, emphasized that officials continued talks with Armstrong while beginning negotiations with Cataldo last spring.

“Honestly, I wish we weren’t here today. I think you all know that,” Nazarian told councilors last Tuesday. “I want to state that we frankly just didn’t want this to drag on. I also want to state very clearly that we didn’t want to cast shade on Armstrong Ambulance, but here we are.”

City officials have also highlighted how they expect service to improve through Cataldo as the company provides resources in responding to mental health and substance use emergency calls.

Scarpelli said he found it “alarming” that contract negotiations reportedly didn’t involve the fire and police chiefs, the city’s dispatch supervisor, nor the mayor. He claimed that the city’s outside legal counsel, KP Law, spearheaded discussions.

“That’s all I ask for: Everybody sit back at the table. We wouldn’t be here right now,” Scarpelli said. “We would clarify and clean up certain issues.”