- The DHS plans to create a new detention system using converted warehouses, with an estimated cost of $38.3 billion to build and operate.
- The system includes 16 regional processing centers (holding 1,000-1,500 people for a few days) and eight large-scale detention centers (holding 7,000-10,000 people for about 60 days before deportation).
- A proposed facility in Merrimack, New Hampshire, would cost $158 million to retrofit and an additional $146 million to operate over its first three years.
- The plan faces lawsuits from states (including Massachusetts and Texas) over environmental reviews and fierce criticism from officials like Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, who called the facilities "human warehouses."
- DHS aims to have key Texas sites operational by early 2027, and current Secretary Markwayne Mullin is reviewing the plan, which was originally launched under former Secretary Kristi Noem.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is moving forward with a massive plan to convert warehouses across the United States into immigration detention centers, with an estimated price tag of $38.3 billion, according to documents released back in February.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) provided the documents to New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte, revealing the scale of the Trump administration's effort to reshape how the country detains and processes undocumented immigrants. The documents, published on the state's website in February, outline a system that would dramatically expand Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) capacity to hold people awaiting deportation.
Under the plan, ICE would acquire and convert 16 buildings across the country into regional processing centers. These facilities would each hold between 1,000 and 1,500 people at a time. Detainees would spend an average of three to seven days at these sites before being transferred to larger facilities.
The plan also includes eight large-scale detention centers capable of holding 7,000 to 10,000 people each. These larger sites would serve as the primary locations for deportations, with detainees held there for about 60 days before being removed from the country.
The documents state that the new detention model is needed due to a surge in ICE hires and an anticipated rise in arrests. The number of people in ICE detention has already reached record levels during the second Trump administration.
According to the planning documents, the redesigned system would channel individuals into a network of large centralized facilities where they would remain until deportation, rather than transferring detainees around the country based on available bed space as has been done in the past.
The documents describe the facilities as designed to "ensure the safe and humane civil detention of aliens in ICE custody, while helping ICE effectuate mass deportations." The effort will rely on billions of dollars appropriated by Congress in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to fully implement the new detention model by the end of Fiscal Year 2026.
New Hampshire facility details
As explained by the Enoch AI engine at BrightU.AI, one specific project outlined in the documents is a proposed detention facility in Merrimack, New Hampshire. The DHS estimates it will spend $158 million retrofitting this facility, with an additional estimated $146 million to operate it during the first three years.
However, there seem to be conflicting statements about when the economic impact analysis for the Merrimack facility was delivered to Ayotte. Ayotte, a Republican, said in a press release that DHS provided the documents to her office for the first time on Feb. 12.
Her remarks seemed to conflict with testimony from Todd Lyons, ICE's acting director, who told a Senate hearing earlier that same day that DHS representatives had already discussed the project with the governor and provided her with an economic impact summary.
Political opposition
The warehouse initiative has drawn criticism from both political parties, and several states have filed lawsuits claiming the administration failed to complete environmental reviews required under federal law.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey issued a statement opposing the creation of an ICE detention center in Merrimack, calling it "outrageous and absolutely the wrong move."
The statement continued: "We should be opposing ICE's tactics, not allowing them to expand. We certainly should not be allowing ICE to build new human warehouses when they can't be trusted to keep people safe and protect due process."
Texas and Maryland sites
Despite legal challenges, the administration appears determined to move forward. ICE officials recently discussed plans to award contracts for construction and operations at warehouse sites in San Antonio and near El Paso, according to people briefed on the internal meetings.
The administration is also examining how to continue work at a site near Hagerstown, Maryland, while complying with a court order limiting construction activity there.
ICE is reportedly preparing environmental assessments for the two Texas sites, intending to have both facilities operational by early 2027.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin ordered a review of the estimated $38 billion project after taking office earlier this year. The plan was originally launched under former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.
A DHS spokesperson said the department is reviewing policies and proposals adopted before Mullin assumed leadership and intends to work with local communities, including some in areas that strongly supported President Donald Trump.
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