GEO Group Signs $528.6 Million ICE Contract for Colorado Facility

The GEO Group signed a five-year, $528.6 million contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to reopen the shuttered Hudson Correctional Facility in Hudson, Colorado. Renamed the Big Horn Contract Detention Center, the facility will provide 1,188 beds, nearly doubling ICE's detention capacity in the state to a total of 2,720 beds. The company will lease the property from the Chicago-based Highlands REIT starting August 1.

This expansion aligns with Trump administration efforts to support enhanced enforcement operations and the arrest of criminal aliens. GEO Group CEO George C. Zoley stated the new facility is necessary to meet the need for increased federal immigration processing center bedspace. Simultaneously, the company has filed a lawsuit against the state of Colorado, arguing that its status as a federal contractor exempts it from state laws requiring outside inspections and specific medical care standards at detention facilities.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Colorado condemned the reopening as a result of anti-immigrant fanaticism. ACLU representatives noted that the organization used public records litigation to uncover the expansion plans, which they claim ICE attempted to hide. Local officials in Hudson reported that they lack detailed operational information and staffing projections from federal agencies, though they stated they have no power to block the facility's reopening.