The operator changed. The facility stayed open. The money kept moving.
$452.9M to Amentum for Camp East Montana after ICE ended the first contract for its own convenience
A federal audit documented waste and standards failures at a 5,000-capacity El Paso detention camp. ICE terminated the Acquisition Logistics order for the government's convenience on April 17, 2026, GAO reports a different vendor began operating the next day, Amentum holds a sole-source award, and ICE has published a justification to extend it through September 2027 for up to $776 million more.
- Current award
- $452.9M
- Award ID (PIID)
- 70CDCR26C00000016
- Last verified
- August 20, 2026
Share with the sourcing attached
Both copied strings carry the attribution language and the canonical link, and label the reported extension figure as reported potential value rather than obligated spending.
The receipt
Camp East Montana opened in August 2025 with capacity for about 5,000 people. GAO found ICE never conducted the required pre-occupancy inspection, calculated millions of dollars paid for services and meals that were not needed, and documented failures across medical care, safety, legal access, and death reporting. ICE terminated the earlier Acquisition Logistics order for the government's convenience on April 17, 2026, and GAO reports that a different vendor was contracted to begin operating the site on April 18. In March 2026 Amentum Services, Inc. received a noncompetitive award recorded at about $452.9 million. No reviewed record states that the audit caused the change, that the termination was for cause, or that Amentum succeeded to the earlier contract. In July 2026 the Associated Press reported, from a published ICE justification notice, that ICE plans to extend that no-bid contract through September 30, 2027 at a potential additional cost of $776 million.
Contract scope as written on the federal record: “THE PURPOSE OF THIS CONTRACT IS TO PROVIDE DETENTION, TRANSPORTATION AND MEDICAL SERVICES AT THE CAMP EAST MONTANA TEMPORARY DETENTION CENTER IN EL PASO, TX.”
The figures, with what each one counts
Up to $11.5M
Paid before anyone was housed
GAO's calculation of waste for services invoiced from August 1 through August 15, 2025, before any detained noncitizens were housed at the facility.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability Office$423K
Meals not needed, Aug 16 – Sep 30 2025
GAO's calculation of the cost of meals ICE did not need from August 16 through September 30, 2025.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability Office$7.1M
Meals not needed, Oct 1 2025 – Mar 12 2026
GAO's calculation of the cost of meals ICE did not need from October 1, 2025 through March 12, 2026.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability Office$452.9M
Initial Amentum award
Current and potential award value of $452,855,435.04 recorded on the federal contract record for PIID 70CDCR26C00000016.
Federal contract record, USAspending.gov
USAspending.gov$776M
Potential additional cost of the reported extension
Potential additional cost of extending the contract through September 30, 2027, as reported by AP from ICE's published justification notice. This is a reported potential figure, not an obligation on the federal award record.
Reported by AP from an ICE justification notice
Associated Press
Paid capacity versus people held
ICE data cited by GAO showed about 1,600 people held at the end of February 2026 while ICE continued paying full meal costs for 5,000. The capacity figure is the facility's stated capacity, not a population count.
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeWhat changed and what did not
What changed
- The contractor of record changed: the initial facility contract was terminated for convenience and Amentum Services, Inc. was awarded PIID 70CDCR26C00000016.
- The contracting vehicle changed: the replacement award is recorded as not competed, with one offer received.
What did not
- The facility stayed open. Camp East Montana continued to operate as a detention site.
- The detention function stayed the same: detention, transportation, and medical services at the same El Paso site.
- The spending continued: $452,855,435.04 on the replacement award, with a reported justification to extend through September 30, 2027.
Replacing a contractor is not the same as remedying an audited condition. GAO's recommendations are shown as open.
Follow the failure
2025
Senior direction accelerated expansion
GAO describes the facility as one of the detention sites stood up rapidly under the administration's detention expansion.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability Office2025
Army awarded the original facility contract
The original Army-administered contract for the facility was approximately $1.3 billion.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeAugust 2025
Facility opened without the required inspection
Camp East Montana opened in August 2025 with capacity for about 5,000 detained noncitizens. GAO found ICE did not conduct the required pre-occupancy inspection.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeThrough June 2026
GAO documented waste and standards failures
GAO calculated up to $11.5 million paid for services before anyone was housed, about $423,000 and about $7.1 million for meals that were not needed, and documented failures across medical care, safety, legal access, and death reporting.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeBefore March 2026
Initial contractor terminated for convenience
The original facility contract was terminated for convenience. A termination for convenience is a government contracting action and is not itself a finding of contractor fault.
GAO finding, GAO-26-108886
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeMarch 2026
Amentum received a sole-source bridge contract
PIID 70CDCR26C00000016 was signed March 12, 2026 with a period of performance beginning March 13, 2026 and ending September 30, 2026, recorded at $452,855,435.04. The federal record lists the extent competed as NOT COMPETED, solicitation procedures as ONLY ONE SOURCE, and one offer received.
Federal contract record, USAspending.gov
USAspending.govJuly 2026
ICE published a justification for another year
AP reported, from ICE's published justification notice, a plan to extend the no-bid contract through September 30, 2027 at a potential additional cost of $776 million, rejecting calls to close the facility.
Reported by AP from an ICE justification notice
Associated Press
Order of events only. Sequence does not establish causation.
Audit findings, grouped and unscored
acquisition
- The original Army-administered facility contract was approximately $1.3 billion.
- Camp East Montana opened in August 2025 with capacity for about 5,000 detained noncitizens.
- The initial contract was terminated for convenience and replaced by a noncompetitive award.
wasted public money
- Up to $11.5 million in waste calculated for services paid from August 1–15, 2025, before any detained noncitizens were housed there.
- About $423,000 for meals not needed from August 16 through September 30, 2025.
- About $7.1 million for meals not needed from October 1, 2025 through March 12, 2026.
- ICE data cited by GAO showed about 1,600 people held at the end of February 2026 while ICE continued paying full meal costs for 5,000.
medical care
- Tuberculosis screening failures.
- Missing chronic-care treatment plans.
safety and security
- Missing perimeter security cameras and blind spots.
- A lost loaded firearm.
- Unsanitary conditions.
- Supervision failures.
- Suicide-prevention failures.
- Insufficient outdoor recreation.
- Inadequate accessible facilities.
- Food-service and transportation failures.
legal access
- Delayed attorney and family visitation.
- Delayed law-library access.
death reporting
- Use-of-force and death reporting failures.
oversight
- ICE did not conduct the required pre-occupancy inspection.
- GAO made four recommendations; their status is shown as open on the GAO product page.
Findings are reproduced as grouped statements from the cited audit. They are not counted, weighted, or combined into any score or rating.
The agency's stated position
ICE's stated justification for extending without competition
AP reported that ICE's published justification notice argued relocation or a contractor transition would be impracticable because of bed-space limits, proprietary infrastructure, the need for replacement staffing, duplicated costs, and continuity risks. This is the agency's stated position as reported, not a finding of this project.
Associated PressContractor comment status
AP reported that Amentum referred its questions to ICE and DHS. No company response to those questions is recorded here.
Associated PressCalls for closure
AP reported that ICE rejected calls to close the facility.
Associated PressRecommendations on the record
The ICE Director should ensure that future detention facility acquisitions of this type incorporate cost-saving mechanisms, such as tiered pricing tied to actual population, so the government does not pay for unused capacity.
Responsible: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security · Status: open
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeThe ICE Director should develop and implement controls ensuring that required pre-occupancy inspections are completed and documented before detained people are housed at a new facility.
Responsible: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security · Status: open
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeThe Secretary of the Army should assess this acquisition and identify lessons learned for future interagency detention support work.
Responsible: Department of the Army, Department of Defense · Status: open
U.S. Government Accountability OfficeThe Secretary of Homeland Security should assess this acquisition and identify lessons learned for future detention capacity expansions carried out with other agencies.
Responsible: Department of Homeland Security · Status: open
U.S. Government Accountability Office
The chain
- 01
Public money
ICE custody operations
Detention, transportation, and medical services at a temporary detention center, funded through ICE contracting.
No source attached - 02
Award
PIID 70CDCR26C00000016
Signed March 12, 2026; period of performance March 13 through September 30, 2026; recorded as not competed with one offer received.
No source attached - 03
Contractor
AMENTUM SERVICES, INC.
Named recipient on the federal award record; parent recipient listed as PAE Applied Technologies LLC.
No source attached - 04
Facility
Camp East Montana, El Paso, Texas
Named in the award description and audited by GAO in GAO-26-108886.
No source attached - 05
Evidence boundary
Documented in the same detention system. Not presented as a causal attribution. The record below is documented alongside this funding chain, not asserted to be caused by it.
Human cost
Documented by other sources, not by this contract record
GAO documents conditions and standards failures. Two deaths at this facility are recorded in the harm ledger; both occurred before this contract began, and this project attributes neither to this award.
No source attached
Contract timeline
August 1, 2025
Step 01
Facility opened
Camp East Montana opened with capacity for about 5,000 detained noncitizens, without the required pre-occupancy inspection.
February 28, 2026
Step 02
Occupancy versus meals paid
ICE data cited by GAO showed about 1,600 people held while ICE continued paying full meal costs for 5,000.
March 12, 2026
Step 03
Amentum award signed
$452,855,435.04Date signed on the federal record. The period of performance start is recorded one day later, March 13, 2026; both values are reproduced as published.
June 9, 2026
Step 04
GAO report published
GAO-26-108886 published with four recommendations.
July 27, 2026
Step 05
Extension reported
AP reported ICE's published justification to extend through September 30, 2027 at a potential additional cost of $776 million.
September 30, 2026
Step 06
Period of performance: March 13, 2026 to September 30, 2026, with a potential end of September 30, 2026 if options are exercised.
Award trajectory
How the obligation on this award moved, action by action, against the value ceilings the source reports.
- Cumulative reported obligation
- Current value (exercised options) — $452,855,435.04
Source: USAspending.gov award 70CDCR26C00000016, retrieved 2026-08-20. Unit: US dollars, nominal, not inflation-adjusted.
The line steps only on dates the source records. Cash outlay is reported as a single to-date total with no action-level dates, so it is drawn as one marker at the retrieval date and never as a line across time. Each action mark is keyboard focusable.
Contract actions as a table (1) — select a modification for its evidence trace
| Action date | Mod | Action | This action | Cumulative obligation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 12, 2026 | DEFINITIVE CONTRACT | $452,855,435.04 | $452,855,435.04 |
Contractor and facilities
Recipient
Amentum
AMENTUM SERVICES, INC.
Federal services contractor recorded on USAspending as the recipient of the March 2026 Camp East Montana award, with PAE Applied Technologies LLC listed as the parent recipient. Only the award records currently indexed here are totaled below; this is not the company's full federal portfolio.
Contractor profileFacilities named in the award
Camp East Montana Temporary Detention Center
El Paso, Texas · Temporary detention center (contracted services)
The facility record beside the money record
ERO El Paso Camp East Montana
Reviewed identity join · Contract detention facility
- Reported average daily population
- 2,026.4
- Reported average length of stay
- 11.5 days
- Reported guaranteed minimum
- 5,000
- Latest indexed oversight item
- None indexed
- Accountability dossier
- Published
- Observed harm records: 1
- Attributed: 1
- Allegations: 0
This award does not establish any condition, finding or harm listed here. Population and length-of-stay figures are fiscal-year aggregates as of the workbook pull, not counts on the award dates. ICE workbook data pull, 2026-07-20.
Evidence boundary
What the evidence establishes
- A federal award of $452,855,435.04 to AMENTUM SERVICES, INC. exists with PIID 70CDCR26C00000016, signed March 12, 2026.
- The federal record lists the extent competed as NOT COMPETED, solicitation procedures as ONLY ONE SOURCE, and one offer received.
- Its stated scope is detention, transportation, and medical services at the Camp East Montana Temporary Detention Center in El Paso, Texas.
- GAO calculated up to $11.5 million in waste for services paid August 1–15, 2025, about $423,000 for meals not needed August 16 – September 30, 2025, and about $7.1 million for meals not needed October 1, 2025 – March 12, 2026.
- GAO found ICE did not conduct the required pre-occupancy inspection, and documented failures across medical care, safety and security, legal access, and death reporting.
- AP reported, from ICE's published justification notice, a planned extension through September 30, 2027 at a potential additional cost of $776 million.
What it does not establish
- That the $776 million extension has been obligated. It is a reported potential cost from a published justification notice, not a figure on the federal award record.
- That Amentum is responsible for any condition GAO documented before its contract began on March 13, 2026.
- That either death recorded at this facility was caused by, or is attributable to, Amentum, the March 2026 award, or the reported July 2026 extension.
- That the waste GAO calculated was unlawful, fraudulent, or criminal. GAO calculated cost for services and meals that were not needed.
- Why the award record shows $0.00 outlayed at retrieval. Outlay reporting lags invoicing.
- Anything about the company's total federal revenue — only this award is represented here.
Human impact linkage
No harm record in this dataset is linked to this award at the contract level. Two deaths recorded at this facility are shown below as facility history only: both occurred before this contract began.
Facility history · no contract-level linkage
Geraldo Lunas Campos — January 3, 2026
Camp East Montana · recorded as attributed
The cause language is reproduced as an attributed source finding. This project does not independently diagnose the death or adjudicate negligence, preventability, or responsibility.
Victor Manuel Diaz — January 14, 2026
Camp East Montana · recorded as attributed
The cause language is reproduced as an attributed source finding. This project does not independently diagnose the death or adjudicate negligence, preventability, or responsibility.
These two records are shown because the cited source names Camp East Montana as the facility. Both deaths — January 3, 2026 and January 14, 2026 — occurred before Amentum's contract began on March 13, 2026. The facility connection is established. This project does not attribute either death to Amentum, to the March 2026 award, or to the reported July 2026 extension, and the categories and caveats recorded in the harm ledger are unchanged here.
Oversight and intervention windows
These records live in the central leverage ledger. A date passing never closes one; it flags it for review.
GAO recommendation 1 — cost-saving mechanisms in future acquisitions
Decision at issue
Whether ICE adopts a pricing mechanism that ties payment to the population actually held, including on the Camp East Montana contract.
- Controls it
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security
- Office of the Director, ICE
- Federal
- Date · Estimated date
- Estimated implementation horizon: by the end of 2026
- An agency estimate, not a deadline. GAO reports that DHS stated in May 2026 it was shifting the Camp East Montana contract to tiered pricing and estimated doing so by the end of 2026. December 31, 2026 is this project's normalized sort boundary for that “by end of 2026” estimate, and no calendar file is offered for it.
Still unknown
- The end-of-2026 figure is an agency estimate reported by GAO, not a compliance deadline. No source establishes a date by which ICE must act, and December 31, 2026 is only this project's normalized representation of that estimate.
- Whether the tiered-pricing change has been executed is not established in the sources indexed here.
GAO recommendation 2 — controls for pre-occupancy inspections
Decision at issue
Whether ICE puts a documented control in place before the next facility of this type is occupied.
- Controls it
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security
- Office of the Director, ICE
- Federal
- Date · Unknown date
- No verified hard date
- GAO recommendations do not carry a published compliance deadline. GAO-26-108886 was published June 9, 2026; that is a source publication date, not a deadline.
Still unknown
- No implementation date is published for this recommendation.
- Whether ICE has since issued any implementing control beyond the existing policy it cited is not established in the sources indexed here.
GAO recommendation 3 — Army assessment and lessons learned
Decision at issue
Whether the Army completes and documents an assessment of its role in this acquisition.
- Controls it
- Department of the Army, Department of Defense
- Office of the Secretary of the Army
- Federal
- Date · Unknown date
- No verified hard date
- GAO recommendations do not carry a published compliance deadline. GAO-26-108886 was published June 9, 2026; that is a source publication date, not a deadline.
Still unknown
- No implementation date is published for this recommendation.
- Whether the Army has begun or completed the assessment is not established in the sources indexed here.
GAO recommendation 4 — DHS assessment and lessons learned
Decision at issue
Whether DHS completes and documents an assessment covering capacity expansions run with other agencies.
- Controls it
- Department of Homeland Security
- Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security
- Federal
- Date · Unknown date
- No verified hard date
- GAO recommendations do not carry a published compliance deadline. GAO-26-108886 was published June 9, 2026; that is a source publication date, not a deadline.
Still unknown
- No implementation date is published for this recommendation.
- Whether the ICE and Office of the Chief Readiness Support Officer assessment has begun or concluded is not established in the sources indexed here.
Reported extension period would end September 30, 2027
Decision at issue
Whether the reported extension is executed, and on what terms, quantity, and price basis.
- Controls it
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
- ICE Office of Acquisition Management
- Federal
- Date · Estimated date
- Reported period end: September 30, 2027
- Reported extension period end, as described in AP's reporting on ICE's justification notice. It is not a verified decision deadline and this project does not present it as one.
Still unknown
- Whether the reported extension has been executed is not established by the records indexed here.
- The $776 million figure is an AP-reported potential extension value; no obligated amount for an extension appears on the award record read here.
Current period of performance ends September 30, 2026
Decision at issue
Whether ICE extends the noncompetitive award, recompetes the requirement, or ends it at the recorded period end.
- Controls it
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
- ICE Office of Acquisition Management
- Federal
- Date · Hard date
- September 30, 2026
- Period-of-performance end date on the federal award record for PIID 70CDCR26C00000016. It is a period end, not a published decision date, and no source establishes when ICE must decide.
Still unknown
- The date by which ICE must decide is not established by any source indexed here.
- Whether a modification has been signed after the August 20, 2026 review is not established here.
Institutional channels · not windows
Standing official routes. Each establishes only that the channel exists; none implies a request, complaint, hearing, or investigation, and none carries a status or a date.
Institutional channel · not a window
ICE FOIA records channel
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement · ICE FOIA Office
ICE operates a published FOIA request channel. Concretely requestable here: the justification for other than full and open competition behind the reported extension, contractor invoices for the period GAO audited, and the pre-occupancy inspection file GAO found missing.
What this does not establish
The official page establishes only that a request channel exists. It does not establish that any request has been filed, that a responsive record exists, that it is non-exempt, or that anything will be released.
Open official page Verified August 20, 2026Institutional channel · not a window
DHS OIG complaint intake
U.S. Department of Homeland Security · DHS Office of Inspector General
DHS OIG publishes a hotline that accepts complaints concerning DHS programs, personnel, and contractors. GAO documented contract-performance and oversight failures at this facility in GAO-26-108886.
What this does not establish
The official page establishes only that DHS OIG accepts complaints. It does not establish that any complaint has been submitted, that a submission will be investigated, or that any OIG review of this facility, contract, or death exists.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector GeneralU.S. Government Accountability OfficeOpen official page Verified August 20, 2026Institutional channel · not a window
House ICE oversight jurisdiction
U.S. House of Representatives · Committee on Homeland Security, Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement
The subcommittee's official page states oversight jurisdiction over U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. That standing jurisdiction is the whole of what is established here.
What this does not establish
Standing jurisdiction only. No hearing, letter, inquiry, markup, or commitment to act on this facility, contract, or extension is established by this or any source indexed here.
Open official page Verified August 20, 2026
Source docket
How current this record is
Automated source retrieval
- Award record watched
- 70CDCR26C00000016
- Source last checked
- 2026-10-02 17:24 UTC
- Last result
- ok
- Published data current through
- 2026-08-20
Retrieval runs on a schedule. Detected changes are queued for human review, not published automatically. A successful check means the source responded and validated; it does not mean the upstream record changed. Every figure on this page was verified against the cited source by a person. Source health
Provenance and corrections
- Source snapshot
- August 20, 2026
- Parser state
- automated parse manually reviewed
- Claim status
- verified against source
- Corrections
- None recorded