ICE cut detention inspections as detainee numbers rose 50%, federal watchdog finds

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the federal agency that arrests and jails immigrants facing deportation. It has cut back on inspections of its detention centers even as the number of people held inside grew by more than half. That is the finding of a report released Thursday, Nov. 5, by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress's nonpartisan watchdog ¹.

Inspectors look for problems in areas like medical care and food service. GAO found that ICE has not used evidence to judge how the cutbacks affect conditions inside its facilities ¹. The report, numbered GAO-27-109299, covers facilities that hold people for more than 72 hours ¹³.

Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat and the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, released the report two days after the midterm election ². He tied the findings directly to the vote ².

On Tuesday, the American people overwhelmingly rejected the Trump Administration’s cruel immigration tactics

More detainees, fewer inspections

From April 2025 to April 2026, ICE added more than 40 detention facilities. Over the same period, the average number of people held on a given day rose by more than 50 percent, to 61,817 ¹. Durbin's office, citing the report, said active facilities went from 128 to 172 and that ICE received more than $45 billion for detention over those two years ².

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Meanwhile, three of the four Department of Homeland Security (DHS) offices that inspect the facilities either changed how often they inspect or stopped completely, GAO found ¹. According to Durbin's summary, ICE's main inspection unit, the Office of Detention Oversight, cut its inspections from 194 to 102 in one year. It also moved larger facilities from two visits a year to one a year or fewer ².

The DHS Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman was an independent office that had the legal power to make surprise inspections. The release says it "has been shut down entirely" ². DHS now lets many smaller facilities inspect themselves and usually warns facilities before inspectors arrive ². Only the ICE Health Service Corps, which reviews medical care, kept its inspection process the same ².

A funding safeguard was dropped

ICE told GAO that fewer inspections would lighten the load on facilities and make it easier to sign detention contracts with state and local partners ²³. GAO found that ICE did not look at evidence, such as past inspection failures, before it made the changes ².

Starting in fiscal year 2019, spending bills barred ICE from continuing to fund a facility that got two inadequate inspection ratings in a row ²³. That rule was left out of the 2026 DHS spending law. ICE told GAO that failing ratings will no longer block funding ².

That matters because inspections are how problems come to light. At Camp East Montana, a detention center on the Fort Bliss Army base in El Paso, Texas, ICE inspectors found 49 violations of detention standards in February 2026, NPR reported ⁵. An earlier GAO review of that site found that the contractor "did not provide use of force and death reports to ICE, as required" ⁵. At least three people have died in custody there. The county medical examiner ruled one death, of Geraldo Lunas Campos, a homicide ⁵.

Deaths at record levels

The cutbacks come as deaths in ICE custody have risen. NPR reported in April that 29 people had died in ICE custody since October 2025, when the federal budget year began. That broke the record of 28 set in 2004 ⁴. Todd Lyons, then ICE's acting director, told NPR ⁴:

No death is what we want. We don't want anyone to die in custody

Lyons pointed to the size of the system, saying "we do have the highest amount in detention that ICE has ever had since its inception in 2003" ⁴. DHS told NPR there had been no spike in deaths and said death rates were "0.009% of the detained population" ⁴.

What happens next

GAO made two recommendations. First, the ICE director should use data to decide whether the inspections, taken together, are enough to catch problems. Second, ICE should change its inspections based on what it finds ¹. DHS agreed with both but asked GAO to mark them as already done, pointing to work underway. GAO said no because ICE had not shown evidence of an assessment covering all the changes together. Both recommendations remain open ¹³.

Now that the power has shifted in Congress, the Trump Administration should take immediate steps to respond to this new alarming GAO report, which found ICE has reduced inspections

Durbin's office noted that the DHS Office of Inspector General, the department's internal watchdog, received $20 million for extra inspections ². Taken together, the findings show that money for detention grew fast while checks on those facilities shrank, and the rule that cut off money to failing jails was dropped. Durbin's statement shows Democrats plan to use their new standing in Congress to press the issue ².

The Record

1. Apr 17, 2026NPR reports 29 deaths in ICE custody since October 2025, breaking the 2004 record of 28 ⁴
2. Jun 10, 2026NPR reports a GAO review of Camp East Montana in El Paso, where one detainee death was ruled a homicide ⁵
3. Nov 3, 2026Midterm election, which Durbin says rejected the administration's immigration tactics and shifted power in Congress ²
4. Nov 5, 2026GAO releases report finding ICE cut inspections without assessing the effect; Durbin makes it public ¹²

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<h2>ICE cut detention inspections as detainee numbers rose 50%, federal watchdog finds</h2> <p><em>By The GOP Files National Desk. This article first appeared on <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/story/ice-cut-detention-inspections-as-detainee-numbers-rose-50-federal-watchdog-finds">The GOP Files</a> on Saturday, November 7, 2026.</em></p> <p>Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the federal agency that arrests and jails immigrants facing deportation. It has cut back on inspections of its detention centers even as the number of people held inside grew by more than half. That is the finding of a report released Thursday, Nov. 5, by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress&#39;s nonpartisan watchdog .</p> <p>Inspectors look for problems in areas like medical care and food service. GAO found that ICE has not used evidence to judge how the cutbacks affect conditions inside its facilities . The report, numbered GAO-27-109299, covers facilities that hold people for more than 72 hours .</p> <p>Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate&#39;s No. 2 Democrat and the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, released the report two days after the midterm election . He tied the findings directly to the vote .</p> <blockquote><p>On Tuesday, the American people overwhelmingly rejected the Trump Administration’s cruel immigration tactics</p><p>&mdash; Dick Durbin, Senate Democratic Whip and Judiciary Committee ranking member, D-Ill.</p></blockquote> <h2>More detainees, fewer inspections</h2> <p>From April 2025 to April 2026, ICE added more than 40 detention facilities. Over the same period, the average number of people held on a given day rose by more than 50 percent, to 61,817 . Durbin&#39;s office, citing the report, said active facilities went from 128 to 172 and that ICE received more than $45 billion for detention over those two years .</p> <p>Meanwhile, three of the four Department of Homeland Security (DHS) offices that inspect the facilities either changed how often they inspect or stopped completely, GAO found . According to Durbin&#39;s summary, ICE&#39;s main inspection unit, the Office of Detention Oversight, cut its inspections from 194 to 102 in one year. It also moved larger facilities from two visits a year to one a year or fewer .</p> <p>The DHS Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman was an independent office that had the legal power to make surprise inspections. The release says it &quot;has been shut down entirely&quot; . DHS now lets many smaller facilities inspect themselves and usually warns facilities before inspectors arrive . Only the ICE Health Service Corps, which reviews medical care, kept its inspection process the same .</p> <h2>A funding safeguard was dropped</h2> <p>ICE told GAO that fewer inspections would lighten the load on facilities and make it easier to sign detention contracts with state and local partners . GAO found that ICE did not look at evidence, such as past inspection failures, before it made the changes .</p> <p>Starting in fiscal year 2019, spending bills barred ICE from continuing to fund a facility that got two inadequate inspection ratings in a row . That rule was left out of the 2026 DHS spending law. ICE told GAO that failing ratings will no longer block funding .</p> <p>That matters because inspections are how problems come to light. At Camp East Montana, a detention center on the Fort Bliss Army base in El Paso, Texas, ICE inspectors found 49 violations of detention standards in February 2026, NPR reported . An earlier GAO review of that site found that the contractor &quot;did not provide use of force and death reports to ICE, as required&quot; . At least three people have died in custody there. The county medical examiner ruled one death, of Geraldo Lunas Campos, a homicide .</p> <h2>Deaths at record levels</h2> <p>The cutbacks come as deaths in ICE custody have risen. NPR reported in April that 29 people had died in ICE custody since October 2025, when the federal budget year began. That broke the record of 28 set in 2004 . Todd Lyons, then ICE&#39;s acting director, told NPR :</p> <blockquote><p>No death is what we want. We don&#39;t want anyone to die in custody</p><p>&mdash; Todd Lyons, Acting director, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (as of April 2026)</p></blockquote> <p>Lyons pointed to the size of the system, saying &quot;we do have the highest amount in detention that ICE has ever had since its inception in 2003&quot; . DHS told NPR there had been no spike in deaths and said death rates were &quot;0.009% of the detained population&quot; .</p> <h2>What happens next</h2> <p>GAO made two recommendations. First, the ICE director should use data to decide whether the inspections, taken together, are enough to catch problems. Second, ICE should change its inspections based on what it finds . DHS agreed with both but asked GAO to mark them as already done, pointing to work underway. GAO said no because ICE had not shown evidence of an assessment covering all the changes together. Both recommendations remain open .</p> <blockquote><p>Now that the power has shifted in Congress, the Trump Administration should take immediate steps to respond to this new alarming GAO report, which found ICE has reduced inspections</p><p>&mdash; Dick Durbin, Senate Democratic Whip and Judiciary Committee ranking member, D-Ill.</p></blockquote> <p>Durbin&#39;s office noted that the DHS Office of Inspector General, the department&#39;s internal watchdog, received $20 million for extra inspections . Taken together, the findings show that money for detention grew fast while checks on those facilities shrank, and the rule that cut off money to failing jails was dropped. Durbin&#39;s statement shows Democrats plan to use their new standing in Congress to press the issue .</p> <p><em>Read the original, with every source linked, at <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/story/ice-cut-detention-inspections-as-detainee-numbers-rose-50-federal-watchdog-finds">thegopfiles.com</a>. Republished under The GOP Files' <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/republish">free republishing terms</a>.</em></p> <img src="https://thegopfiles.com/api/rp/ice-cut-detention-inspections-as-detainee-numbers-rose-50-federal-watchdog-finds.gif" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border:0;width:1px;height:1px">

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Sources

1. U.S. Government Accountability Office, “Immigration Detention: Changes In Inspections of ICE Facilities Raise Questions About Oversight (GAO-27-109299)” (2026-11-05). gao.gov/products/gao-27-109299
2. Senate Judiciary Committee (Democrats), “Durbin Releases GAO Report Raising Alarms Over Changes In Inspections In ICE Immigration Detention Facilities” (2026-11-05). judiciary.senate.gov/press/dem/releases/durbin-releases-gao-
3. IANS via Social News XYZ, “ICE inspections fall as detention expands: GAO” (2026-11-05). socialnews.xyz/2026/11/05/ice-inspections-fall-as-detention-
4. NPR via WFAE, “Deaths of migrants in ICE custody hit record high under Trump” (2026-04-17). wfae.org/race-equity/2026-04-17/deaths-of-migrants-in-ice-cu
5. NPR via Connecticut Public, “Report: ICE wasted millions, endangered detainees in largest immigration facility” (2026-06-10). ctpublic.org/2026-06-10/report-ice-wasted-millions-endangere

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