GAO report: $11.5M wasted at Camp East Montana before detainees arrived

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- A new federal audit found millions of dollars in waste and significant oversight failures at Camp East Montana, the large immigration detention facility in the U.S., located on Fort Bliss.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office released a report detailing what it called waste and performance issues at the facility, which opened in August 2025.

The report said the Army and ICE expedited the facility's construction and contract award process, resulting in planning, oversight and operational problems.

According to the report, the Army awarded a contract worth up to $1.3 billion to build and operate the facility.

Auditors found the government paid millions of dollars for services before any detainees arrived and continued paying for meals and other services that were not needed while the facility operated below capacity.

The report estimated the Army wasted up to $11.5 million on services between Aug. 1 and Aug. 15, 2025, before detainees were housed at the facility. Auditors also found ICE paid millions more for unused meals after taking over contract administration.

The report also identified operational issues at the facility, including a lack of perimeter security cameras, insufficient recreation space, inadequate accommodations for detainees with disabilities and delays in providing access to attorneys and family visitation areas.

Auditors found ICE did not conduct a required pre-occupancy inspection before detainees were moved into the facility.

After the facility opened, ICE documented additional concerns, including gaps in medical care, the loss of a loaded firearm, unsanitary living conditions, a detainee escape, a detainee suicide and a homicide investigation involving allegations that evidence was missing or destroyed.

In response to the report, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson shared the following statement with ABC-7:

"ICE has contracted with a new provider following the termination of the old contract inherited from the Department of War. ICE is always looking at ways to improve our detention facilities to ensure we are providing the best care to illegal aliens in our custody.

“This new contractor will allow Camp East Montana to continue abiding by the highest detention standards WITH the ability to provide MORE medical care on-site. This contract also allows more on-site staff and a PRECISE quality assurance surveillance plan. ICE will have even more oversight of the contractors at this facility. Far from closing, Camp East Montana is upgrading

Representative Veronica Escobar, who represents El Paso, said the report validates concerns she has raised about the facility since it opened.

"A loaded gun taken onto a military installation by a private contractor who lost this weapon, evidence in a homicide investigation that was destroyed, tens of millions of taxpayer dollars paid in this no-bid contract that funded services not rendered. These are just a few of the explosive details revealed in a GAO report about the $1.3 billion tent city known as Camp East Montana," Escobar said.

Escobar called for the facility to be shut down, the contractor investigated and the destruction of evidence allegations referred to law enforcement.

GAO issued four recommendations aimed at reducing waste and improving oversight at immigration detention facilities, including requiring cost-saving measures such as tiered pricing for meals and services, ensuring facilities are inspected before detainees are housed, and strengthening oversight procedures.

The Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense agreed with the recommendations and said they would take steps to address the issues identified in the report.

Access the full report here or read it below: