GAO says Camp East Montana rushed open, wasted millions on detainees
A $1.3 billion detention contract billed for 5,000 people even as Camp East Montana held 1,600, a mismatch the GAO says wasted millions. The facility also opened with safety and medical gaps.
Camp East Montana opened under a $1.3 billion contract that kept charging the government for 5,000 detainees even when the El Paso facility was holding far fewer people, a mismatch the Government Accountability Office says wasted millions of taxpayer dollars and exposed a wider failure to oversee one of the country’s largest immigration detention sites.
The Army and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement rushed the Fort Bliss facility into service in August 2025 under senior leadership direction, using a contracting vehicle that had not previously been used for detention services and selecting a contractor with no prior detention experience, according to the report released June 9. By the end of February 2026, Camp East Montana held about 1,600 detained non-citizens, yet the contract still required ICE to pay the full cost of meals and operational services for the full 5,000-person capacity. The Army also paid those full meal and service costs from August 1 through August 15, 2025, when there were no detainees at all.
The GAO said that setup led to millions of dollars in waste and that ICE could still save tens of millions more through September 2026 if it adopts cost-saving steps such as tiered meal pricing. The Army transferred contract administration to ICE in October 2025, and ICE later terminated the original contract for convenience in April 2026 and moved to a new contractor. Even so, the watchdog said the newer deal still had not incorporated key savings measures.
The report also found that Camp East Montana did not meet basic detention standards when it opened. The facility lacked perimeter security cameras, outdoor recreation areas, and spaces where detainees could meet with attorneys and family members. A February 2026 inspection by ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight found 49 deficiencies, including 22 tied to use of force and restraints. Inspectors cited failures to document incidents, provide medical exams after physical altercations, and record incidents on video. They also flagged four priority medical deficiencies, including failures to isolate and notify leadership about a detainee showing symptoms of pulmonary tuberculosis and failures to document suicide-prevention checks.
The accountability gaps were even starker in two January 2026 deaths, one ruled a homicide and the other a suicide. In the homicide case, reports were not provided to ICE and evidence was missing or destroyed. In the suicide case, staff placed the detainee in a medical holding room rather than a suicide-resistant cell and left the person unattended for more than 15 minutes. ICE medical officials also found in December 2025 that detainees with diabetes or HIV had no treatment plans.
The findings landed as the Trump administration’s detention system expanded sharply, with about 57,000 immigrants held in early June 2026, up from around 40,000 when Trump took office in 2025. The GAO said the lessons from Camp East Montana should shape future detention facilities, where the federal government is now spending faster than it has proven it can monitor.
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