ICE Taps Untested Firms for New Warehouse Detention Centers

The Trump administration's $38 billion plan to convert industrial warehouses into large-scale immigrant detention facilities is turning to relatively inexperienced companies to rapidly build and operate the new centers.

Published on Mar. 10, 2026

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As the Trump administration embarks on a $38 billion plan to convert industrial warehouses into a new breed of large-scale immigrant detention centers, it is turning to a crop of relatively untested businesses to rapidly build and operate the facilities. The Department of Homeland Security has awarded contracts worth over $400 million to KVG LLC and GardaWorld Federal Services, companies with little to no prior experience in immigrant detention, to build and run the new warehouse detention centers. This signals a shift in the industry, threatening the core business of longtime detention providers Geo Group and CoreCivic.

Why it matters

The selection of inexperienced firms to rapidly build and operate these new large-scale detention centers raises concerns about the government's ability to properly oversee and maintain humane conditions at the facilities. The pivot away from established private prison operators also signals the government's desire to exert more control over detention operations, potentially reducing the leverage of companies like Geo Group and CoreCivic that have long dominated the immigrant detention industry.

The details

The government has awarded a $113.1 million contract to KVG LLC, a defense contractor with no prior federal contracts for immigrant detention, to build and operate a 1,500-bed detention center in Williamsport, Maryland. GardaWorld Federal Services, a security contractor that has not previously been directly contracted by ICE, was awarded at least $313.4 million to run a detention center planned for a warehouse in Surprise, Arizona. The companies will have to rapidly transform empty warehouses into secure holding facilities with climate control, dormitories, recreational spaces, courtrooms, cafeterias, visitation rooms and medical facilities, all while working around infrastructure limitations in many locations.

  • The Department of Homeland Security has said the first facility will begin accepting detainees by April 2026, giving some contractors just weeks to complete the transformation.
  • Last month, DHS representatives said the agency planned to replace much of the nation's existing detention capacity with the new warehouses, potentially closing dozens of privately owned detention centers and ending ICE's partnerships with county-run jails.

The players

KVG LLC

A defense contractor based in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania that was awarded a $113.1 million contract to build and operate a 1,500-bed detention center in Williamsport, Maryland. The company has not been awarded any previous federal contracts for immigrant detention.

GardaWorld Federal Services

A security contractor that was awarded at least $313.4 million to run the detention center planned at a warehouse in Surprise, Arizona. Prior to this award, the company had not been directly contracted by ICE to oversee any detention centers.

Geo Group

A private prison company that has long been one of the government's go-to partners for immigrant detention, operating facilities where the majority of people detained by ICE are held.

CoreCivic

Another private prison company that has been a major provider of immigrant detention services, but is now facing the threat of losing business as the government explores new detention methods.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

The government agency overseeing the $38 billion plan to convert industrial warehouses into large-scale immigrant detention centers, and awarding contracts to less experienced firms to rapidly build and operate the new facilities.

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What they’re saying

“CoreCivic isn't a company whose business model is under threat - we're a company whose expertise has never been more essential. The idea that companies with no track record in this industry can replicate the decades of operational experience, compliance infrastructure and facility management capability we have defies common sense.”

— Steve Owen, Spokesman, CoreCivic

“It has traditionally been difficult for the federal government to avoid contracting with firms like Geo Group, CoreCivic and LaSalle Corrections because the government didn't have' enough of its own detention space.”

— Lauren-Brooke Eisen, Senior Director of the Justice Program, Brennan Center

What’s next

The judge overseeing the contract awards will decide in the coming weeks whether to allow the new, less experienced firms to proceed with the rapid construction and operation of the warehouse detention centers.

The takeaway

The government's decision to award major detention center contracts to companies with little to no prior experience in this industry raises serious concerns about the ability to properly oversee these new large-scale facilities and maintain humane conditions for detainees. This shift away from established private prison operators also signals the government's desire to exert more control over detention operations, potentially reducing the leverage of companies that have long dominated the immigrant detention market.