ICE has wasted tens of millions of dollars with 'uninformed' detention plans, GAO finds

Key Points:

• A U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report warns that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and related agencies have wasted tens of millions of dollars on poorly planned efforts to rapidly expand detention capacity since President Trump took office in January 2025.
• ICE spent nearly $3 million on unused tents at Guantanamo Bay and $20 million maintaining warehouses purchased for detention that never housed detainees; these warehouses are now being sold at a loss due to inadequate planning.
• Despite receiving $45 billion from Congress to expand detention capacity, ICE lacks a comprehensive strategic plan for spending, leading to inefficiencies as the detainee population swelled from 39,000 to 67,000 within seven months.
• The report highlights costly contracts, including a $1.5 billion purchase of private detention facilities without assessing long-term affordability, and expensive agreements with Florida and the Bureau of Prisons that have resulted in excessive per-detainee daily rates.
• The Department of Homeland Security plans to develop a detention expansion strategy by August 2027, but GAO cautions this delay may allow continued mismanagement and waste of resources.