To prohibit the Department of Homeland Security from entering into, modifying, extending, or renewing, any contract or intergovernmental service agreement to establish or operate any new immigration detention model, including the use of warehouses, modular facilities, soft-sided structures, tent systems, and processing centers.
- Bill Number
- H.R. 8494
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 2
- Policy Area
- Immigration
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2026-04-24: Referred to the Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability.
- Last Updated
- 2026-06-16T14:55:25Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
This bill (H.R. 8494) aims to block the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), from creating, funding, or operating new types of immigration detention facilities. It targets unconventional setups like warehouses, tents, and modular structures, citing human rights concerns, poor conditions, deaths in custody, and harm to communities.
Key Provisions
- Findings Section: Lists 10 reasons for the bill, including DHS plans to spend $38.3 billion on warehouse conversions, comparisons to historical internment camps (e.g., Japanese American internment during WWII), documented abuses like medical neglect and overcrowding, 46 deaths in detention (33 in 2025, 13 in 2026 so far), and negative effects on local resources and health infrastructure.
- Prohibitions:
- DHS and its components cannot establish, implement, operate, expand, convert, or renovate any "new immigration detention model" (defined as new, temporary, or alternative detention frameworks).
- Bans specific structures: warehouses, industrial facilities, tents, soft-sided structures, modular units, or similar for holding or processing people under immigration law.
- Funding Restrictions:
- No pre-existing funds can be used, obligated, expended, reprogrammed, or transferred for these purposes.
- Funds already committed to such projects must be redirected to services like affordable health care and housing.
- Definitions:
- Covered agency: DHS, ICE, and components.
- New immigration model: Any new detention setup leading to immigration detention.
- Expand: Includes building, acquiring, leasing, retrofitting, or increasing capacity.
- Effective Date: Immediate upon enactment.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Introduces outright bans on non-traditional detention facilities, overriding other laws.
- Prohibits all funding mechanisms (contracts, agreements, reprogramming) for these models, a new restriction not previously specified.
- Mandates redirection of funds, altering how immigration enforcement budgets can be managed.
Potential Impacts
- Government Agencies: DHS and ICE lose flexibility to expand detention capacity via cost-effective or rapid-deployment options (e.g., tents or warehouses), potentially limiting responses to border surges.
- Citizens and Immigrants: Reduces risk of detention in substandard facilities for migrants; redirects funds to public health and housing, benefiting low-income communities.
- Local Communities: Eases strain on infrastructure (water, electricity), reduces surveillance/policing, preserves tax revenue, and avoids economic shifts toward detention operations.
- International Relations: Minimal direct impact, but could signal U.S. policy shift toward less detention-focused immigration enforcement.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- DHS and ICE: Directly restricted in operations and budgeting.
- Immigrants in Custody: Protected from expansion of potentially harmful facilities.
- Local Governments and Communities: Near proposed sites benefit from resource preservation.
- Contractors and Vendors: Blocked from new deals for detention-related construction or operations.
- Advocacy Groups: Aligns with concerns over human rights and conditions in detention.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Relies on Congress's "power of the purse" (constitutional authority to control federal spending), potentially overriding executive branch plans without needing new appropriations.
- Constitutional: No direct challenges noted, but could face disputes over immigration enforcement powers (executive branch) vs. congressional funding control.
- Political: Highlights partisan divides on immigration; introduced by Democrats, emphasizes humanitarian and community harms, may influence budget debates or court challenges if enacted.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (25)
Rep. McClain Delaney, April [D-MD-6], Rep. Clarke, Yvette D. [D-NY-9], Rep. Ramirez, Delia C. [D-IL-3], Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large], Rep. Goldman, Daniel S. [D-NY-10], Rep. García, Jesús G. "Chuy" [D-IL-4], Rep. Morrison, Kelly [D-MN-3], Rep. Thanedar, Shri [D-MI-13], Rep. Salinas, Andrea [D-OR-6], Rep. Davis, Danny K. [D-IL-7], Rep. Green, Al [D-TX-9], Rep. Grijalva, Adelita S. [D-AZ-7], Rep. Castro, Joaquin [D-TX-20], Rep. Simon, Lateefah [D-CA-12], Rep. Casar, Greg [D-TX-35], Rep. Garcia, Sylvia R. [D-TX-29], Rep. Takano, Mark [D-CA-39], Rep. Craig, Angie [D-MN-2], Rep. Mfume, Kweisi [D-MD-7], Rep. Wilson, Frederica S. [D-FL-24], Rep. Escobar, Veronica [D-TX-16], Rep. McCollum, Betty [D-MN-4], Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7], Rep. Hoyle, Val T. [D-OR-4], Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5]
Recent Actions
- 2026-04-24: Referred to the Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability.
- 2026-04-23: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- 2026-04-23: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- 2026-04-23: Introduced in House
- 2026-04-23: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- To prohibit the Department of Homeland Security from entering into, modifying, extending, or renewing, any contract or intergovernmental service agreement to establish or operate any new immigration detention model, including the use of warehouses, modular facilities, soft-sided structures, tent systems, and processing centers. — issued 2026-04-23 — PDF (6 pages)