The government “wasted” millions of dollars and failed to meet health, security, and use of force documentation requirements after it hastily propped up Camp East Montana<\/a>, the nation’s largest detention facility at Ft. Bliss in El Paso, Texas, a federal report says.<\/p>\n The facility opened in August 2025, when the Army awarded and administered a $1.3 billion contract. ICE later took control over the contracts.<\/p>\n “Army and ICE officials indicated that the expedited time frames\u00a0directed by senior leadership dictated several decisions related to their acquisition approach, such as using a contracting vehicle not previously used for detention services. They also selected a contractor that did not have prior experience providing detention services,” the report, authored by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan agency said.\u00a0<\/p>\n In this Feb. 13, 2026, file photo, a sign marks the entrance to a series of hardened tents at the Camp East Montana immigrant detention center in the desert at a U.S. Army base on the outskirts of El Paso, Texas.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Morgan Lee\/AP Photo, FILE<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n GAO said it found several deficiencies “resulting in millions of dollars of waste,” including the Army’s failure to “incorporate flexibilities in the contract to account for occupancy levels below the maximum.” In one example, GAO said that in the first 15 days of August 2025, there were no detainees, but the Army still paid the full cost for meals.<\/p>\n The report also says that the facility didn’t meet key detention standards when the facility opened, like installing security cameras around the perimeter, \u00a0providing\u00a0outdoor recreation areas, or\u00a0establishing\u00a0areas where detainees could meet with attorneys and family members.<\/p>\n “ICE did not identify these issues because it did not inspect the facility prior to housing detained noncitizens there, as required by ICE policy,” the report says.\u00a0<\/p>\n As previously reported by ABC News, in April, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told ABC News the agency hired a new contractor for the facility and “is always looking at ways to improve our detention facilities.”<\/p>\n When ABC News reached out about the GAO report on Wednesday, a DHS spokesperson did not specifically address questions about the findings and instead offered a similar statement.<\/p>\n “ICE has contracted with a new provider following the termination of the old contract inherited from the Department of War. ICE is always looking at ways to improve our detention facilities to ensure we are providing the best care to illegal aliens in our custody,” the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n![\"ABC](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/eae7f046-a11f-4e4b-a6ff-b6ae5cc219b0\/east-montana-detention-ap-jt-260610_1781121326714_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"ABC")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>‘Missing or destroyed’ evidence<\/h3>\n
![\"Camp](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/2284a09b-24dc-4844-b249-abfdbec4653c\/east-montana-protest-rt-jt-260610_1781121555742_hpEmbed_3x2.jpg?w=375 "\\"Camp")
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