The investigative arm of Congress is questioning the pursuit for more detention space by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and auditors say most agreements made in recent years did not explain why more beds were needed.
A report by the Government Accountability Office says ICE spent millions of dollars a month for beds that weren’t used. The watchdog found that from October 2016 to early May 2020, ICE routinely did not follow its own blueprint for adding detention space.
The report also criticizes how ICE monitors detention agreements. It says some ICE staff charged with making sure that deals are followed didn’t have the right tools to do so. Others saw their ability to enforce rules undercut by local management.
To protect independence, auditors called for the oversight job to be moved to another part of ICE.
Homeland Security said no.
