The Private Prison Model For Texas Detention Centers
The South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley has drawn widespread attention over the alleged conditions for detained children. That focus has also shed a spotlight on the for-profit company that operates it.
Over the last few weeks, the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley has drawn widespread attention over the alleged conditions for detained children. Most recently, it was where four members of the Gámez-Cuéllar family were held before being released. And that focus has also shed a spotlight on the for-profit company that operates Dilley.
On February 9, ProPublica published letters and drawings by children held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas. The children, some as young as 5 and others in their teens, wrote about their prolonged detention, in some cases lasting more than 70 days, and in others up to four months. They described missing school and family members, emotional distress, and difficult living conditions inside the facility.
Later, families and attorneys reported that CoreCivic guards searched rooms and confiscated drawings, paper, and pencils that children had used to document their experiences. Detainees and lawyers said some of the artwork created by the children was discarded. CoreCivic and the Department of Homeland Security denied destroying children’s drawings and stated that the searches were routine and conducted in accordance with facility policy.
The Subcontract Model and CoreCivic
CoreCivic, one of the largest for-profit prison and detention contractors, has managed the center in Dilley since 2014 under a government contract with ICE. The center reopened in 2025 after a one-year pause. CoreCivic oversees approximately 80 facilities nationwide: prisons, rehabilitation centers, and immigration detention centers, and holds a key position among Texas service providers, working with ICE, USMS, and TDCJ.
CoreCivic expanded its contract portfolio following the federal tightening of immigration policy. The company relies on what is often known as a “pass-through system,” in which municipalities serve as intermediaries, allowing it to bypass competitive bidding and secure a steady flow of federal funds. Previously, the city of Eloy, Arizona, served as one such conduit: Eloy acted as the prime contractor under an IGSA agreement, with CoreCivic as the subcontractor.
Eloy received an annual administrative fee of $438,000. Since the city legally assumed responsibility for the facility, the private company bore minimal liability, even though the facility in Dilley sits 920 miles from Eloy.
These arrangements often offer little transparency, provide a commission benefit to the municipality, and frequently face no competitive pressure due to direct appointment. In 2018, the DHS Inspector General found this scheme improper and called the intermediation unnecessary. However, in March 2025, CoreCivic announced the resumption of operations at the center in Dilley. The company used a similar pass-through system again. Under the new contract, the city of Dilley itself acts as the prime contractor under an IGSA agreement, with CoreCivic as the subcontractor.
According to company reports, the expected annual revenue from the Dilley contract totals approximately $180 million. The official amount that the city receives as the main contractor remains unknown. Under the contract terms, the company receives a fixed fee per bed, even if beds remain empty. Currently, CoreCivic maintains several contracts and facilities in Texas, including the following:
The Houston Processing Center, which opened in 1984, was the nation's first private immigration detention facility. ICE extended the contract to 2029 without meaningful competition, valued at $39.5 million. The facility maintains a contracted capacity of approximately 1,000 beds and an average daily population of around 880 detainees by late January. ICE makes payments in the “funding only actions” format, a mechanism in which money is added to a contract without changing its stated scope, making it difficult to track how funds are actually used.
T. Don Hutto Residential Center (Taylor, Texas)
CoreCivic operates this center under a direct contract with ICE for ten years until 2030. The direct contract bypasses Williamson County, which previously terminated its own agreement with the company. Recent reports from KXAN confirmed there was virtually no local oversight into the center.
CoreCivic has an indefinite contract since 2019 through the intermediary city of Eden. CoreCivic owns the building and provides maintenance and care. Under the 2023 amendment to the contract, the city’s administrative fee is $1.08 per federal detainee day.
Lawsuits and Lobbying
Over the last decade, CoreCivic has faced a handful of legal challenges. One of the largest cases was Gonzalez v. CoreCivic. This was a class action lawsuit alleging a violation of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. CoreCivic filed a motion to dismiss, claiming that it was immune from suit, but the court sided with the plaintiffs. A similar case, Owino v. CoreCivic, has been certified as a class action, and remains pending. The defendants argued they were merely following ICE directives and pointed to their contractual immunity.
The case Coyoy v. United States also continues. This case, filed against the United States, concerns the death of a 21-month-old child in Dilley in 2018 because of alleged medical negligence. The case has been complicated by restricted access to government documents. And officials maintain that the mother had previously declined medical assistance.
As they navigate some legal hurdles, CoreCivic maintains an extensive lobbying portfolio. A recent investigation from the Project On Government Oversight revealed that CoreCivic spent $3.69 million on lobbying spending in 2025.
In Austin, the company retains lobbyists at a scale comparable to that of firms like Greenberg Traurig, one of the powerful lobbying firms in Texas. Among key figures are Demetrius McDaniel, the firm's top Texas government relations partner and a three-time “Lawyer of the Year” in Austin. Alongside him is Haley Cornyn, daughter of U.S. Senator John Cornyn. Their fees reach up to $111,219, with exact amounts undisclosed.
CoreCivic projects EBITDA, earnings before interest, taxes, and other expenses, of $437-445 million and net income of $145-157 million. The company plans to consolidate existing contracts and expand capacity by renovating its facilities.
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