On September 25, the Government Accountability Office reported that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement wasted millions of taxpayer dollars in a rushed expansion of its detention network since Trump returned to office. Despite receiving more than $75 billion, ICE pursued projects without comprehensive strategy and mismanaged initiatives, resulting in significant waste.
On September 25, 2026, the Government Accountability Office reported that the Trump administration squandered millions on immigration detention expansion, including unused tents and uneaten food.
A US Government Accountability Office report found that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agencies squandered tens of millions of dollars on poorly planned detention capacity expansion projects as of September 25, 2026. The report documents costly problems in ICE's efforts to rapidly increase detention capacity under the Trump administration.
The Government Accountability Office reported on September 16, 2026, that the Trump administration spent $9.5 billion on paid administrative leave during the prior year as it pursued cost-cutting measures under DOGE initiatives. Use of such leave surged 435 percent between 2023 and 2025.