Punjab Outlook

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities have reached maximum capacity, holding 47,600 detainees, a senior ICE official confirmed in a media briefing on Wednesday. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that the Trump administration is actively seeking additional bed space to accommodate its immigration enforcement agenda.
The agency, which is currently funded to house an average of 41,500 detainees, is expanding its capacity with support from the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Marshals Service, and Bureau of Prisons. Additionally, ICE is working with lawmakers to secure more funding to increase detention facilities.
President Donald Trump has pledged to ramp up deportations, arguing that illegal immigration surged under his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden. In December 2024, Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, stated that the administration would require at least 100,000 detention beds to implement its large-scale deportation plans.
Since taking office on January 20, the Trump administration has intensified immigration enforcement. ICE reported approximately 32,800 arrests between January 20 and March 10, with 27% of detainees classified as immigration violators who had no prior criminal charges or convictions.
In contrast, ICE under Biden recorded 113,400 total arrests during the entire 2024 fiscal year. Although the number of arrests has surged under Trump, deportations have so far lagged behind Biden-era figures, according to a February Reuters report. The higher deportation numbers under Biden were largely due to migrants caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, many of whom were swiftly deported or returned to Mexico.
With ICE facilities already stretched beyond their funded capacity, the administration’s push for increased detentions and mass deportations will likely require significant financial and logistical expansion.