WASHINGTON, D.C — Congress has approved a $170 billion immigration enforcement enforcement package that critics say will will supercharge deportations, funnel billions into private detention, and sideline due process protections, marking one of the largest expansions of immigration enforcement in U.S. history.
According to an analysis by Margy O’Herron in Just Security, the One Big Beautiful Act allocates more than the annual budget of all state and local police departments combined and represents one of the largest single expansions of immigrant enforcement in U.S. history.
O’Herron argues that, while the administration frames the measure as necessary for public safety and national security, the spending surge focuses heavily on arrests, detentions, and deportations with minimal investment in immigration courts, humanitarian processing, or legal support services.
According to O’Herron, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will receive the largest share of the new funding—$75 billion over four years, approximately $18.7 billion per year, Combined with $10 billion Congress appropriated to ICE in March 2025, the agency now has $28.7 billion at its disposal this year—nearly triple its Fiscal Year 2024 budget.
O’Herron notes that two-thirds of ICE’s funding, $45 billion over four years, will be used for detention, potentially holding more than 100,000 people annually. This represents a 400 percent increase in the annual detention budget and exceeds the Department of Justice’s request for the entire federal prison system.
The law also authorizes ICE to build new facilities to detain families, including mothers with children, without any limit on detention duration—an apparent departure from a decades-old settlement that caps the detention of children at 20 days, O’Herron wrote.
O’Herron reports that the bill allocates $30 billion over four years for ICE to locate, arrest, and deport immigrants, funding 10,000 new deportation officer positions—a 300 percent increase compared to the agency’s prior-year budget. The administration has also broadened arrest authority, allowing ICE agents to detain individuals in locations that had previously been considered off-limits, including schools, churches, and courthouses.
The article further states that while the administration has publicly pledged to focus on the “worst of the worst,” enforcement efforts now include many individuals without criminal records. These include people who previously had lawful immigration status, temporary protected status, or humanitarian deferrals, whose protections have since been revoked.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will also see a substantial funding increase. O’Herron notes the agency already received $20 billion for Fiscal Year 2025; the July package adds nearly $65 billion more over four years. Of that, $47 billion is earmarked for continued construction of a physical wall along the U.S.-Mexico border—a sharp increase from the $5 billion appropriated during the first Trump administration, plus an additional $10 billion redirected from the Department of Defense.
The remaining $18.2 billion will support hiring, facilities, technology, and surveillance. O’Herron points out that existing CBP surveillance of border communities has raised privacy concerns, and the new funding could expand these efforts further.
While the package dramatically increases enforcement funding, it does not substantially expand the immigration court system. O’Herron writes that the backlog of nearly 4 million cases will persist, as the bill caps hiring at 800 new immigration judges over three and a half years—a 14 percent increase compared to the 400 percent increase in detention funding.
The administration has also ended legal orientation and support programs that help immigrants navigate the system, including those for families separated during prior enforcement actions. No additional funding is provided for the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, which has a record 11.3 million pending cases.
O’Herron reports that the administration is shifting resources from other federal law enforcement agencies, reassigning FBI, drug, and gun agents to immigration enforcement. Crime prevention programs in 48 states have been cut, and the administration’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget proposal includes eliminating 1,500 FBI employees and reducing funding for other law enforcement agencies.
The article notes that critics see this reallocation as prioritizing immigration enforcement over efforts to combat terrorism, violent crime, and drug trafficking, despite research showing that immigrants do not increase crime rates.
O’Herron warns that the rush to spend the 300 percent budget increase may result in contracts flowing to private prison companies and other contractors with minimal oversight. Nearly 90 percent of ICE detainees are already held in for-profit facilities. The two largest companies have made significant political contributions to the president and hired several former high-level ICE officials.
Past rapid hiring initiatives at border agencies have been linked to increased corruption rates. O’Herron cites a 2017 Inspector General report estimating that to hire 10,000 officers, ICE would need 500,000 applicants—an especially high target during a nationwide shortage of law enforcement personnel. ICE’s expedited hiring authority allows it to bypass certain federal standards, raising concerns about vetting and qualifications.
According to O’Herron, once agencies expand their budgets, staffing, and contracts, reversing course becomes difficult. The funding structure may create entrenched financial and political interests that sustain high levels of immigration enforcement regardless of future policy changes.
O’Herron concludes that a more balanced approach would include resources for humanitarian screening, legal immigration processing, and expanded court capacity to uphold due process protections in the immigration system.
