California Gov.Gavin Newsom signed a bill earlier this week that would impose a 25% tax on private detention centers, a policy that would apply to all the facilities that partner with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the Golden State."If we can’t kick out private facilities, we’ll go after their profits," Newsom said in a press release.The move, which Newsom hailed as a way to push back against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and what he sees as the practice of privatizing federal enforcement, is raising concerns among immigration experts who believe the increased tax could force the government to explore alternative facilities less suited to housing detainees.
It also poses questions about what would happen if all eight of ICE's detention facilities choose to suspend their operations in California.CITIZENS BANK CUTS TIES WITH ICE PRISON CONTRACTORS AFTER MONTHS OF ACTIVIST PRESSUREGov.Gavin Newsom speaks on March 26, 2025, in Los Angeles.
(Frazer Harrison/WireImage)That’s the view of Hans von Spakovsky, senior legal fellow and an immigration expert with Advancing American Freedom, a conservative-leaning think tank."It's very clear that there's only one purpose to this California gigantic tax increase, and that is to make sure that the federal government cannot find any private property owners, any private contractors in California that are willing to lease space to the federal government," Spakovsky said in an interview with Fox News Digital."The alternative for the federal government is to look at all the different federal properties that the government actually owns out there, over which neither Newsom or anybody else in California can impose any kind of tax, and see if any of those federal facilities can be converted to being a detention facility."Spakovsky explained that could mean repurposing warehouses or office space.The newly minted law, AB 1633, is among 20 other bills that Newsom signed on Tuesday.In its current form,...