Featured Issue: Immigration Detention and Alternatives to Detention
Update: On March 14, 2025, AILA released a statement in response to the Trump Administration resuming the practice of detaining families pending their court proceedings in the detention facility in Karnes County, TX, and indicating its plans to use a second facility in Dilley, TX, for family detention.
AILA calls on Congress to significantly reduce and phase out the use of immigration detention for immigration enforcement purposes. Detention is costly, leads to inefficiencies in processing cases, and has a long track record of human rights abuses. Community-based case management services and legal representation is more humane and should be offered to noncitizens to support their compliance of immigration obligations.
Contents
By the Numbers
- Book Outs/Books In: The Office of Homeland Security Statistics provides data on the number of migrants who are released from CBP custody to proceed with removal cases, transfers to ICE detention, and transfers to Health & Human Services (HHS). It also provides initial book-in data on ICE detention.
- Detention: For FY2024, Congress has provided funding to detain a daily average of 41,500 noncitizens at a cost of approximately $3.4 billion. During FY2023, Congress provided funding to detain a daily average of 34,000 noncitizens at a cost of approximately $2.9 billion. A December 2024 ICE memo in response to Congressional requests for information noted that increasing detention capacity by more than 60,000 beds will require a funding increase of approximately $3.2 billion dollars.
- Current Population: Per ICE, on December 8, 2024, there were 39,062 people in custody and on January 22, 2025, there were 39,703. For future data, see bi-weekly data posted on the ICE website under “Fiscal Year 2025 statistics” here.
- Daily Costs: Projected average daily costs of detaining an adult noncitizen: $164.65. The actual cost of detaining a noncitizen varies based on geographic region, length of detention, facility type, etc. A recent ICE memo in response to the costs of expanding detention noted that they expect a 5% inflationary increase from FY2024 enacted bed costs.
- Deaths at Adult Detention Centers - AILA supplies a continually updated list of ICE press releases announcing deaths in adult immigration detention. Note: there can be delays in ICE’s reporting of deaths and there have been instances of seriously ill individuals released from ICE custody, whose deaths are not included in this list.
- ICE Alternatives to Detention: For FY2024, Congress provided approximately $470 million in funding for ICE’s Alternatives to Detention (ADT) program. This is an increase from approximately $443 million in FY2023 in which 194,427 people were enrolled.
- Daily Costs of ICE ATD: Average daily cost for participants enrolled in ICE’s Intensive Appearance Supervision Program (ISAP): $8.00
- Community-Based Case Management: The FEMA/CRCL Case Management Pilot Program (CMPP), also known as the “Alternatives to Detention Grant Program,” received $15 million in continued funding for FY2024. Prior to January 20, 2025, it was operating in five cities.
- Average daily cost of providing case management for individual family members by a community-based organization (2018 pilot): $14.05
- Legal Representation: There is no right to a government-provided attorney in immigration court and 70 percent of detained persons face proceedings without counsel. There is a pilot program that serves adult individuals with mental disabilities. Congress did not provide any funding for adult legal representation for FY2024.
AILA’s Recommendations to Congress
- Reduce detention funding to at least 25,000 average daily population or less.
- Explicitly prohibit detention funding from being used to detain families and children in custodial settings.
- Provide continued funding community-based case management programs outside of ICE such as the Case Management Pilot Program (CMPP) operated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL)
- Conduct robust oversight of past congressional appropriations transparency requirements and continue to require ICE to disclose and publish information relating to detention contracts, inspection process and reports, detention data, and policies for the alternatives to detention program.
Background
Created in 2002, Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) has over 22,000 full-time employees, with a total annual budget of more than $9 billion. The agency has three core operational directorates: Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA). Housed within the Department of Homeland Security, ICE joins Customs & Border Protection (CBP) in making up the nation’s largest police force.
Immigration enforcement, including taking noncitizens into custody, is the largest single area of responsibility for ICE. ICE detains noncitizens arrested from the interior of the country and those transferred from the border. Twenty-years ago, the average daily population of detained immigrants was approximately 7,000. During the first Trump Administration, it reached a height of 50,000 average daily population. Regardless of the circumstances of their first encounter with authorities, noncitizens are detained across America in a sprawling network of private and public detention facilities. Most of these facilities operate through contracts between ICE (or, less commonly, the U.S. Marshals Service) and localities for the purposes of detaining noncitizens. In some cases, localities later sub-contract services for operating detention facilities to private prison companies. In other instances, localities reserve space in local, county, or state jails and prisons for the purposes of detaining immigrants. In all cases, localities are financially incentivized to detain individuals to increase profit margins from contracts. One key part of the financial equation is the use of noncitizens to clean and maintain facilities in exchange for $1 a day.
Immigration detention facilities, regardless of the type of contracts, have been the sites of serious and repeated allegations of abuse, including allegations of sexual assault, violations of religious freedom, medical neglect, and the punitive use of solitary confinement. In 2020, the U.S. had the highest number of deaths in ICE adult detention since 2005. Several deaths in custody have been found to have been preventable. Conditions in ICE custody have been described as “barbaric” and “negligent” by DHS experts.
Civil immigration detention works mainly to facilitate deportation. While ICE has the authority to allow most noncitizens to continue with their removal cases on the outside of custody, it often defaults to detention based on alleged “flight risk or threat to public safety.” The vagueness of these concepts frequently works against the liberty interests of noncitizens and there is generally a lack of uniformity when it comes to these discretionary releases. Only a certain portion of the overall noncitizen population must be detained under “mandatory detention” laws and even those individuals may be released based on certain exceptions.
Lastly, because immigration detention is considered “civil,” indigent noncitizens are not generally provided counsel. As a result, representation rates for noncitizens in detention are as low as 14% and directly correlate with the ability to secure release or long-term protection.
Reports and Briefings
- "No Human Being Should Be Held There": The Mistreatment of LGBTQ and HIV-Positive People in U.S. Federal Immigration Jails
- Physicians for Human Rights: Endless Nightmare”: Torture and Inhuman Treatment in Solitary Confinement in U.S. Immigration Detention
- Harvard University Press Release: New Report Documents the Mental and Physical Harm Experienced by Children in Immigration Detention
- AILA Policy Brief: Case Management: An Effective and Humane Alternative to Detention - November 2, 2022
- AILA Policy Brief: Moving The Nation Forward by Leaving Immigration Detention Behind - March 25, 2021
- The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA): Emergency Medical Responses at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detention Centers in California -November 29, 2023
- Notable findings include: a number of EMS calls for pregnant people at Otay Mesa; a shockingly low number of 911 calls for psychiatric emergencies, despite the high number of complaints of serious mental health issues in the detention centers; nearly a third of all detained people had an abnormal vital sign when EMS encountered them, a disturbing trend given the association between abnormal vital signs and deaths in ICE custody; and finally, the number of emergency calls that the authors could find in EMS systems was significantly lower than the number of ICE-reported medical emergencies, a serious discrepancy that calls into question why ICE facilities aren’t calling 911 more frequently when there is an emergency happening.
- Black Alliance for Just Immigration: Uncovering the Truth: Violence and Abuse Against Black Migrants in Immigration Detention - October 2022
- Oxfam America and the Tahirih Justice Center: Surviving Deterrence: How U.S. Asylum Deterrence Policies Normalize Gender-Based Violence, October 11, 2022
- Law Professor César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández, TED Talk, The US can move past immigration prisons—and towards justice, July 27, 2022
- Alternatives to Detention: An Overview – American Immigration Council Fact Sheet, March 17, 2022
- Community Support for Migrants Navigating the U.S. Immigration System - February 26, 2021
- American Immigration Council Special Report: "Measuring In Absentia Removal in Immigration Court," Ingrid Eagly, Esq. and Steven Shafer, Esq. - January 28, 2021
Government Reports
- DHS Office of Inspector General: website has search function to view ICE detention audits, inspections, and evaluations completed by DHS OIG.
- ICE FOIA Library: Holds detention facility contracts, facility reviews, among other required posting information.
- U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO): Agency within the legislative branch that provides auditing, evaluative, and investigative services for the United States Congress. Website has search function to view audits done of ICE detention programs and policies.
- Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman Annual Report– June 20, 2023. As of January 29, 2025, the 2024 Annual Report had not been published.
- DHS Office of Civil Rights & Civil Liberties Recommendation and Investigation Memo Collection: CRCL investigates abuses in immigration detention. CRCL issues recommendations to the relevant DHS Component aimed at addressing any civil rights or civil liberties concerns identified as part of its investigation.
- DHS Advisory Committee Final Report on Family Residential Centers - September 30, 2016.
Legislative and Administrative Advocacy
- The Case Management Pilot Program: A Humane, Effective Alternative to Immigration Detention - August 15, 2024
- Senators Send Letter Urging Appropriators to Include Funding for ATD - May 15, 2024
- AILA Statement to Senate on ICE's Use of Solitary Confinement - April 16, 2024
- AILA Sends Letter to White House Opposing Family Detention – March 13, 2023
- AILA and Partners Send Letter to White House Urging Closure of ICE Detention Sites - November 21, 2022
- Members of Congress Send Letter to DHS on Access to Counsel - November 3, 2022
- Over 100 House Democrats Send Letter to DHS to Halt Immigration Detention - March 10, 2022
Browse the Featured Issue: Immigration Detention and Alternatives to Detention collection
Department of the Treasury Notice on Immigration Bond Interest Rates
Department of the Treasury notice that for the period beginning 10/1/18 and ending 12/31/18, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Immigration Bond interest rate is 2.08 per centum per annum. (83 FR 51567, 10/11/18)
Trump Administration Offers Agreement to Provide Separated Parents a Second Chance at Asylum
The Trump administration, as well as counsel from Ms. L v. ICE, M. M. M. v. ICE, and Dora v. Sessions, came up with an agreement that would allow parents who were separated from their children at the southwest border, a second chance to make asylum claims in the United States.
S. 3567: No Internment Camps Act
On 10/10/18, Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the No Internment Camps Act (S. 3567) to prohibit the use of funds for the operation or construction of immigration detention facilities, and for other purposes.
GAO Issues Report on Agency Efforts to Reunify Children Separated from Parents at the Border
The GAO issued a report on the processes for tracking and reunifying separated families. This report discusses DHS/HHS efforts related to the AG’s April 2018 memo, systems for indicating children were separated from parents, and actions to reunify families in response to the June 2018 court order.
House Members Condemn Transfer of Migrant Children to Tent City in Texas
On 10/5/18, Representatives Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), and Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) led a group of 72 members of Congress in sending a letter to DHHS and DHS condemning the transfer of more than 1,600 children to an Office of Refugee Resettlement tent city in Tornillo, TX.
HHS Notice of Intent to Fund 222 Additional Beds to Keep Unaccompanied Children in Custody
HHS (Department of Health and Human Services) notice of intent to provide up to $6,500,000 of funding for 222 beds to keep unaccompanied children in custody. (83 FR 49931, 10/3/18)
ACLU Wins Preliminary Injunction on Behalf of Noncitizen Minors Arrested Without Hearings
A district court issued a preliminary injunction ordering the government to provide noncitizen minors previously released to a sponsor who were rearrested based on allegations of gang affiliation with a hearing before an immigration judge by 11/29/17. (Saravia v. Sessions, 11/20/17)
Resources on Class Action Lawsuit Against Private Prison Contractor
Nine federal immigrant detainees filed a class action complaint (Menocal, et al. v. The Geo Group, Inc.) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado against private prison contractor, The GEO Group, alleging violations for unpaid wages and forced labor.
EOIR Released Median Pending Times for Detained Cases
EOIR released the median pending times for detained cases (broken down by review cases and non-review cases) for FY2008 through FY2018.
EOIR Released Percentage of DHS-Detained Cases Completed Within Six Months for FY2018
EOIR released the median pending times for detained cases (broken down by review cases and non-review cases) for FY2008 through FY2018.
BIA Dismisses Appeal of Bond Decision Absent Evidence to Support Respondent’s Position
Unpublished BIA decision dismisses respondent’s appeal of IJ’s bond decision, finding respondent did not present arguments or evidence to support his position that the bond amount was set too high. (Matter of M-S-, 9/28/18)
DHS OIG: Results of Unannounced Inspections of Conditions for Unaccompanied Children in CBP Custody
DHS OIG issued a report based on visits between June 26, and 28, 2018, by an OIG team to nine CBP facilities in McAllen and El Paso, Texas, including five Border Patrol stations and four OFO ports of entry. DHS OIG found that children were held longer than the 72 hours generally permitted by law.
DHS OIG: Initial Observations Regarding Family Separation Issues Under the Zero Tolerance Policy
DHS OIG issued a report with its observations in the field and its analysis of family separation data based on visits between June 26, and 28, 2018, by an OIG team to nine CBP facilities in McAllen and El Paso, Texas, including five Border Patrol stations and four OFO ports of entry.
DHS OIG Report on Issues Requiring Action at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center
DHS OIG issued a report after an unannounced visit to the Adelanto ICE Processing Center and identified serious violations including improper and overly restrictive segregation and untimely and inadequate detainee medical care.
Democratic Senators Demand DHS and HHS to Rescind the Proposed Rule on Flores Settlement Agreement
On 9/26/18, twenty-nine Democratic senators urged DHS and HHS to rescind their 9/7/18 proposed regulation that would allow the indefinite detention of children in ICE facilities and avoid complying with the government’s legal obligations under the 1997 Flores Settlement.
CA3 Holds Noncitizen with Reinstated Removal Order Pursuing Withholding-Only Is Subject to Detention Under §241(a), Which CA3 Finds Has Implicit Bond
The court, following CA9, found petitioner was detained pursuant to §241(a) because his reinstated order of removal was administratively final despite his open withholding-only request. (Guerrero-Sanchez v. Osterlind, 9/26/18)
AILA and the Council File Amicus Brief on Bond Eligibility in Withholding-Only Proceedings
AILA and the American Immigration Council filed an amicus brief with the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Guzman Chavez v. Hott. The brief argues that respondents in withholding-only proceedings are governed by INA §236(a), and thus eligible for a bond hearing.
TRAC Finds Lawsuits Challenging Confinement of Noncitizens Increasing
TRAC found that habeas corpus filings in federal courts challenging the confinement of noncitizens continue to rise. The latest available data show that during August 2018 the government reported 174 new habeas corpus civil filings by noncitizens. This is up 27.9 percent over the previous month.
ICE Issues Statement to Senate Committee on Flores Settlement
ICE Executive Associate Director Matthew T. Albence issued a statement to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on reinterpretation of Flores settlement and its impact on family separation and “catch and release.”
HHS Notice of Intent to Fund 3,800 Additional Beds to Keep Unaccompanied Children in Custody
HHS (Department of Health and Human Services) notice of intent to provide up to $367,860,381 of funding for 3,800 beds to keep unaccompanied children in custody. (83 FR 47176, 9/18/18)
GAO Statement on Progress and Challenges in the Management of Immigration Courts and Alternatives to Detention Program
The GAO issued a statement before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, addressing EOIR’s caseload and participation in and the cost of the ATD program and the extent to which ICE has measured the performance of the ATD program.
AILA and Council Issue Statement to Senate HSGAC Committee on Flores Settlement Agreement
AILA and American Immigration Council statement submitted to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (HSGAC) addressing recently proposed regulations that would undermine the 1997 Flores Settlement Agreement.
Sign-On Letter Opposing Legislation That Would Expand Family Detention
On 9/14/18, AILA joined national and state/local organizations to urge the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to reject any legislation that would expand the scale and length of immigrant family detention.
AILA Quicktake #250: Proposed Changes to Flores Settlement Agreement
AILA's Associate Director of Government Relations Kate Voigt discusses the proposed changes to the Flores Settlement Agreement and their possible impact on the detention of immigrant children.
DHS/HHS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Flores Settlement Agreement
DHS/HHS notice of proposed rulemaking to amend regulations related to the apprehension, processing, care, custody, and release of undocumented juveniles and would terminate the Flores Settlement Agreement. Comments are due by 11/6/18. (83 FR 45486, 9/7/18)