A new report out from the Government Accountability Office finds ICE failed to do necessary analysis and planning before pouring billions into expanding detention capacity.
As a result, the GAO says millions in taxpayer funds were wasted. Under one initiative, ICE spent over a billion dollars purchasing 11 warehouses around the country to create new holding facilities — including in Surprise.
The GAO says by June of this year, the agency was working to sell seven of those sites, resulting in $20 million in non-recoverable costs.
Plans for the space in Surprise, meanwhile, are on pause due to a lawsuit. But $313 million are already set aside for renovations.
ICE has agreed to create a comprehensive spending plan, but not til August 2027 — a timeline the GAO says could result in more wasted funds.
ICE did not respond to requests for comment about the report.
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The Utah-based Management & Training Corporation, or MTC, operates several prisons and ICE facilities around the U.S. This Marana site is an old state prison that was run by MTC before Arizona severed that contract and shut it down in 2023. -
The association says immigrant workers account for more than 25% of the construction workforce. And the impact of immigration enforcement and workplace raids is felt across the board — with some markets reporting even workers with legal status not showing up due to ICE fears. -
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has poured billions into expanding detention capacity under the second Trump administration, but a new watchdog report shows tens of millions of it were wasted. -
Rights groups sued the Trump administration last year to stop what are known as third country removals — a process where immigrants are sent to a country they’re not from and have no ties to, often with little to no warning. -
The letter says Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has been unwilling to publicly affirm ICE and Border Patrol won't be sent to voting polls — despite that being against federal law.
