A group of four Democratic lawmakers sent a Friday letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) urging the agency to investigate no-bid detention center contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Reps. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.); Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement; Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), ranking member of the Judiciary Committee; and Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), ranking member of the Homeland Security Committee, co-led the effort.
“As the Trump Administration has continued to solicit publicly traded companies to operate detention facilities for immigration enforcement— contracts worth tens of millions of dollars — we, the undersigned, believe that there is an increased need for close oversight by the SEC, in addition to other government accountability measures,” the group wrote to SEC Chair Paul Atkins.
“Given the speed and opaque nature of these contracts, there is a heightened need to monitor and oversee the release of material information related to these no-bid contracts,” they added.
The push comes as large demonstrations have taken place across the country opposing the treatment of undocumented immigrants detained in privately run facilities.
California Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D) said constituents have reported concerns of overcrowding as detainees are living in tents with limited access to electricity, food and water.
“Given the numerous claims of civil rights violations, inadequate care, and misuse of resources by many of these companies, we believe that it is imperative that we provide every employee with trusted mechanism to provide Congress and the Federal government with pertinent information, including the SEC as it pertains to these contracts, disclosures, and conduct within the company that could violate federal law or SEC regulations,” the Democrats said.
“Furthermore, the Trump Administration essentially ended the ability of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to police itself or conduct oversight over its various components,” they added.
Democratic lawmakers in New Jersey faced federal charges after attempting to conduct oversight at the Delaney Hall Detention Center, where ICE signed a $1 billion contract with the GEO Group to utilize the site for immigration enforcement.
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court overturned a New Jersey law banning private operators from gaining contracts with the federal government to run immigration detention centers.
Their ruling will now allow the CoreCivic prison firm to continue operating New Jersey’s Elizabeth Detention Center, which has drawn broad attention amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.