Ansari, Stanton, Grijalva Press GardaWorld Over Unanswered Questions After Company Secures New $1.2 Billion ICE Contract

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. RepresentativesYassamin Ansari (AZ-03), Greg Stanton (AZ-04), and Adelita Grijalva (AZ-07) demand answers from GardaWorld Federal Services (GWFS) following its latest $1.2 billion contract to expand immigration detention facilities in Florence, Arizona. The lawmakers also pressed the company to answer questions it failed to address in a previous inquiry related to the Surprise warehouse facility.

The new contract, awarded September 21, raises fresh concerns about transparency and coordination with local governments. According to reporting, the Town of Florence was not notified of the planned expansion and had no additional information about the contract.

"It is deeply concerning that, despite the significant scale of these projects and their potential impact on surrounding communities, local governments continue to learn about them only after contracts have been awarded," the lawmakers wrote.

The letter also presses GWFS on questions left unanswered from the lawmakers' March 2026 inquiry into its contract with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to convert a warehouse in Surprise into an immigration detention facility. In its April response, GWFS deferred many questions to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and failed to address basic questions about its own detention experience, staffing, facility assessments, and subcontracting plans. The lawmakers are demanding full answers.

The lawmakers also raised concerns about GWFS' previously undisclosed role in the environmental review of the Surprise warehouse. The City of Surprise revealed that a company representative had requested information for the assessment, despite neither GWFS nor federal agencies publicly disclosing its involvement.

The lawmakers are requesting written responses within 15 business days of receipt of the letter, including answers about:

• Experience and staffing: GWFS' qualifications to manage both projects, personnel overseeing operations, and plans to subcontract construction, medical care, staffing, or facility management.
• Facility safety: Structural and code-compliance assessments of the Surprise warehouse, including plans for ventilation, extreme heat mitigation, fire safety, and medical care.
• Environmental review: GWFS' role in the Surprise environmental assessment and its experience conducting comparable federal reviews.
• Florence expansion: Specific projects, facilities, and task orders planned under the $1.2 billion contract, including their scope and cost.
• Local coordination: Consultations with Surprise, Florence, Maricopa and Pinal counties, school districts, and public safety agencies.
• Taxpayer costs: Whether GWFS or DHS will cover increased demands for emergency medical services, fire protection, and law enforcement rather than shifting those costs to local taxpayers.

"The communities surrounding the Surprise and Florence facilities deserve transparency," the lawmakers concluded.

Read the full letter HERE.

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