As the U.S. government expands its immigration detention capacity in Georgia, private detention centers like the Folkston ICE Processing Center are making millions, all while stripping immigrants of their earned benefits.
Immigration & Justice | The Haitian Pulse Editorial Team | August 1, 2025
The Hidden Financial Benefit of Stripping Immigrants of Their Legal Status
The U.S. immigration system is increasingly structured to exploit immigrants in ways that go beyond simple deportation or legal penalties. The stripping of legal status from immigrants—particularly those who have worked in the country for decades—has profound financial implications. While immigrants contribute to the economy through their labor, they often lose the ability to access Social Security benefits they’ve paid into over the years, enriching the U.S. government in the process.
The Dilemma: Denied Access to Benefits
Here’s the harsh reality: When green card holders or U.S. citizens lose their legal status, they may be denied Social Security benefits such as retirement, disability, or survivor benefits, despite having worked and contributed to the system for years. This is one of the most significant financial injustices faced by immigrants. Despite paying into the system through taxes and Social Security contributions, when their legal status is revoked—whether through deportation or other measures—they are left without access to their earned benefits.
This practice is not just an immigration issue; it’s an economic one. The U.S. government retains the Social Security funds that these immigrants have contributed, benefiting from their labor without compensating them for their years of work. In many cases, this money is absorbed into the Social Security Trust Fund, essentially robbing immigrants of their hard-earned benefits.
For instance, immigrants, many of whom work in physically demanding, low-wage jobs with little job security, pay into the system through their taxes, only to be denied access to Social Security benefits if their legal status is revoked. This creates an injustice where immigrant workers contribute significantly to the U.S. economy but are denied their rightful benefits in return.
The Expansion of ICE Detention Facilities and the Privatization of Immigrant Detention
As the U.S. government increases its immigration detention capacity, private prisons are poised to profit immensely. One of the most controversial developments is the expansion of the Folkston ICE Processing Center in Georgia. The facility, operated by the GEO Group, is currently undergoing a massive expansion, set to become the largest ICE detention center in the country. The expansion will increase the facility’s capacity from around 1,100 detainees to nearly 3,000.
This expansion is part of a $47 million contract between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the GEO Group, a private prison company that operates many of the nation’s largest detention centers. The Folkston ICE Processing Center will now merge with the D. Ray James Correctional Facility, which is also managed by the GEO Group. This merger will create a combined facility capable of holding up to 3,000 detainees, making it the largest ICE detention center in the U.S..
This expansion is a troubling development because it underscores the financial incentives behind immigration detention and deportation. Private prisons like the GEO Group profit daily from the detention of immigrants, housing them at a per diem rate. These facilities are funded by taxpayers, yet the profits go to private corporations that have little incentive to treat detainees humanely.
But the Folkston ICE Processing Center is just one of many private detention facilities profiting from immigrant labor. Consider the Florida Everglades detention center, ominously dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz." This newly established detention center has an estimated cost of $411 per detainee per day, far higher than the average cost at many other facilities, such as Stewart Detention Center in Georgia, where the per diem rate is $62.03 per detainee.
The $411 cost per detainee per day at the Florida facility represents an exorbitant amount of taxpayer money spent on holding individuals in private detention centers. Private prison companies like GEO Group and CoreCivic receive millions of dollars in federal funding for housing detainees, despite the questionable conditions and poor treatment many detainees endure.
The Financial Model Behind Private Detention Centers
The financial model of private detention centers is simple: the more immigrants detained, the more money these facilities make. The GEO Group is one of the largest private prison companies in the U.S. and is responsible for operating several ICE detention centers. The company receives a per diem rate—the amount paid by the U.S. government for each detainee housed at the facility.
At facilities like the Stewart Detention Center in Georgia, operated by CoreCivic, the cost per detainee is around $62.03 per day. The GEO Group operates the Folkston ICE Processing Center, and the expansion is expected to increase the cost of housing detainees in the region. These costs are taxpayer-funded, but the profits from housing detainees go to private prison companies.
Moreover, the cost per detainee can vary depending on the location and the level of services provided, but private prison companies like the GEO Group are incentivized to keep detention numbers high. This increases their profits at the expense of immigrant detainees, many of whom are held in overcrowded conditions with limited access to medical care, legal representation, and humane treatment.
Criticism from Immigrant Rights Groups
The expansion of the Folkston ICE Processing Center has sparked widespread protests from immigrant rights groups and local activists who argue that increasing detention capacity is both inhumane and unnecessary. Critics claim that the U.S. government is prioritizing detention over reform and that the treatment of detainees in private facilities is often substandard.
Reports have documented overcrowding in detention centers, poor medical care, and even deaths of detainees under questionable circumstances. The 2024 death of a detainee at a GEO-operated facility in Florida is just one example of the concerning conditions that persist in these centers. Furthermore, privatized detention centers are rarely held to the same accountability standards as publicly operated facilities, and many activists believe this leads to the dehumanization of detainees.
The Broader Impact on Immigrant Families and Communities
Beyond the immense profits for private prison companies, the expansion of ICE detention centers also has a devastating impact on immigrant families. Immigrants who are detained face significant psychological and emotional trauma, as they are separated from their families, often without clear timelines for their release.
For families whose primary breadwinners are detained, the financial strain can be overwhelming. Deportation or the loss of legal status often means separation from families, loss of income, and instability. The U.S. government’s policies seem to prioritize immigrant detention over creating humane, alternative solutions, further perpetuating the economic and social hardship for immigrant communities.
The U.S. Government’s Role in the Systemic Exploitation of Immigrants
The U.S. government’s role in the systematic exploitation of immigrants is clear. It continues to rely on private corporations to house immigrant detainees while avoiding the responsibility of providing adequate care or oversight. The GEO Group, CoreCivic, and other private prison companies benefit immensely from the detention of immigrants, as they collect taxpayer money without facing the same level of scrutiny or accountability as publicly operated facilities.
The financial benefits of detaining immigrants are substantial for the U.S. government, and private companies are thriving on the backs of detained immigrants. However, the human cost is often invisible—families are torn apart, workers lose their benefits, and the nation’s moral standing continues to erode.
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