Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) has introduced a bill to stop the Department of Homeland Security from using warehouses and similar structures as immigrant detention centers, targeting President Donald Trump’s deportation campaign. The Ban Warehouse Detention Act also prevents ICE from creating other “non-traditional” detention sites.
“ICE and CBP are harming people, tearing apart families, and locking individuals in cages. They’re now trying to purchase and convert warehouses into large prison camps against local community wishes,” Tlaib stated. “This only exacerbates human rights issues, medical neglect, harsh conditions, and rising deaths among immigrant families.”
In a February memo, ICE outlined its plan to expand into such facilities, estimating $38.3 billion for the project, funded by Trump’s 2025 Big Beautiful Bill Act, with $45 billion earmarked for new ICE facility construction. As of April 1st, DHS has spent over $1 billion on such warehouses. Under former secretary Kristi Noem, the department bought 11 warehouses for detention expansion. After Noem’s removal, the warehouse purchase plan paused temporarily for review by her successor, Markwayne Mullin. Tlaib’s bill seeks to permanently halt the policy.
Since Trump’s second term, ICE’s detention infrastructure has rapidly expanded. By November 2025, 104 facilities had opened, with detention capacity up by over 75% to a record 73,000 people. The administration plans further expansion using warehouses for detention.
“The Trump administration is aggressively pursuing a multi-layered detention expansion,” said Marisol Hernandez of Detention Watch Network. “Warehouses are not for detaining individuals, and treating people as commodities raises serious concerns.”
DHS spent $145.4 million on a warehouse near Salt Lake City, Utah, exceeding its assessed value by 50%, reports The Atlantic. The site faced opposition even in staunch Trump-supporting areas. Lawsuits have halted plans in New Jersey, Maryland, and Michigan. The Atlanta and other Georgia cities opposed new detention warehouses with resolutions passed by city councils. At a Surprise, Arizona council meeting, over 100 residents protested ICE’s warehouse plans there.
Hernandez noted that new detention centers sacrifice Americans’ access to healthcare, food, housing, and education. ICE raids were once urban issues, but Trump’s deportation policies are becoming a nationwide concern.