The Obama administration’s plan to streamline federal detention for immigration violators could impact Utah jails and a company based in the state, reports the Salt Lake Tribune. The government now scatters tens of thousands of people designated for deportation among 350 jails, prisons and contract facilities with little federal oversight. But over the next five years, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to drop that number and move undocumented immigrants into their own facilities, which will resemble locked-up dorms more than prison cells.
The move may mean Weber, Washington and Utah county jails would house fewer immigrants awaiting deportation and receive less federal funding. It could also impact the business of Management & Training Corp., a Centerville-based company that runs two out-of-state ICE lockups. But federal officials say they are months away from determining the details. What is known is that ICE wants fewer locations, but more regulations and oversight. And it plans to make the changes within its existing $3 billion detention budget.