WASHINGTON — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to extend the contract of CoreCivic, a private prison firm, to operate the Elizabeth detention center where more than 300 people are held.
Tennessee-based CoreCivic for decades has operated the Elizabeth Detention Center in Union County, about 20 miles south of Manhattan. ICE intends to add two months to the contract that expires at the end of March, the agency said in solicitation details.
“Only the incumbent, CoreCivic, can meet the government’s needs by the required performance start date of April 1, 2026 and no other service or provider will satisfy the agency requirement,” the Department of Homeland Security said on a government contracting website.
“Out of respect to our government partners at ICE, we kindly ask that you direct your contract related questions to ICE” public affairs, said CoreCivic spokesman Ryan Gustin. ICE did not respond to a request for comment about contract extensions.
The Elizabeth site, a hub in President Donald Trump’s growing national detention and deportation apparatus, held about 309 people as of early February, according to TRAC, a nonpartisan research group that obtains and analyzes federal records. The majority do not have criminal records.
Another New Jersey detention center run by a separate operator, Delaney Hall in Newark, has a population about three times that size.
Armed with tens of billions of dollars, ICE has set a goal of 92,600 beds nationally. It’s building a coast-to-coast network of detention sites and recently purchased a warehouse in Roxbury Township, in Morris County, for roughly $130 million.
CoreCivic and GEO Group Inc., which operates Delaney Hall, each gave $500,000 to President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee, campaign records show.
GEO Group’s contract to run Delaney Hall, finalized in February 2025, is more than $1 billion.
The Trump administration, in turn, has delivered a financial windfall for the private-prison industry.
“We closed 2025 with strong financial performance, which wouldn’t have been possible without the tremendous efforts of our professional staff and the trust of our government partners,” said Patrick Swindle, CoreCivic’s president and chief executive officer, said last month.
Last year, CoreCivic’s net income — its profit — was up 69% from 2024 as the company acquired more government contracts. GEO Group’s 2025 net income was about $254 million, an astronomical increase of almost 700% from the prior year, when the company brought in $32 million in profit. Combined, the companies logged almost $3 billion in revenue.
Immigration detention sites in New Jersey and elsewhere have a history of rancid food and unsanitary dining conditions; loose weapons and violence; and invasive and sometimes nonconsensual medical procedures on women, according to independent federal investigators. ICE has also systematically lost track of tens of thousands of immigrant children in its care while detaining their parents, according to the Department of Homeland Security inspector general.
The expiring contract at the Elizabeth facility has been modified and extended repeatedly since at least 2005, according to copies released under the Freedom of Information Act.
