GAO Report Finds ICE Mismanaged Tens of Millions in Detention Expansion Projects
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A Government Accountability Office review identified multiple instances of costly missteps by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including unused tents at Guantanamo Bay and unoccupied warehouses, suggesting a lack of strategic planning for recent detention-capacity funding.
The Government Accountability Office reported Thursday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has incurred tens of millions of dollars in waste while pursuing rapid detention-capacity expansions. The audit highlighted several specific expenditures, such as nearly $3 million spent on tents assembled at Guantanamo Bay that were never used, $20 million in costs tied to warehouses purchased but never occupied, and higher-than-average daily rates paid for detainee housing in Florida.
Congress allocated $45 billion to ICE last year for detention expansion, yet the agency lacks a comprehensive plan for allocating those funds, the GAO said. Detainee numbers rose from about 39,000 in January to roughly 67,000 by the end of July. The GAO warned that without adopting standard program- and project-management practices, ICE could continue to make uninformed decisions that waste resources.
The Department of Homeland Security, ICE’s parent agency, told the GAO it will develop a detention-expansion plan by Aug. 31 2027, though the report noted that delay may allow further inefficiencies. ICE and DHS did not provide additional comment.
The audit also examined a scrapped plan to use Guantanamo Bay for mass immigration detention. After the White House directed the use of the base in January 2025, the Department of Defense erected tents for 5,000 people at a cost of $2.85 million, but the tents failed to meet detention standards and were removed before any detainees were housed.
Earlier this year ICE purchased 11 large warehouses for $1.07 billion as part of a capacity-increase initiative. Public opposition led to the abandonment of the plan, and seven of the facilities are slated for sale. The agency has already spent $20 million on related services and will need to sell the properties for $707 million to avoid additional loss. Renovations on four remaining warehouses, including a $426 million outlay in Arizona and Maryland, remain on hold due to legal challenges.
ICE also spent $1.5 billion to acquire two privately owned detention facilities in July and may purchase more, despite the GAO noting that the agency has not evaluated the long-term affordability of owning such sites.
Other findings include the termination of a contract with Florida for the “Alligator Alcatraz” facility after a year of operation amid reports of substandard conditions, and the use of a $608 million FEMA grant that reimburses the state at $249 per detainee per day—significantly higher than ICE’s typical rate of $92. A separate agreement with the Bureau of Prisons requires ICE to reimburse full costs for detainee housing at eight facilities, with daily rates reaching $182.
The GAO concluded that without a clear strategic framework, ICE’s detention-expansion spending is prone to further inefficiencies and waste.