(NewsNation) — On the first day of his second term, President Donald Trump reversed 78 executive orders by former President Joe Biden, including one that eliminated Department of Justice contracts with private prisons.
The reversal affects contracts with the Bureau of Prisons and U.S. Marshals Service. When Biden took office in 2021, about 14,000 federal prisoners were housed in privately managed facilities. Biden’s original order terminated those contracts and transferred inmates to federal facilities.
Trump’s action comes after signals from private prison corporations like GEO Group and CoreCivic that they expected such a reversal, the Brennan Center reported. George Zoley, GEO Group’s executive chairman, had previously indicated anticipation of Trump overturning Biden’s executive orders, per the center.
The reversal does not impact contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which already extensively uses private detention centers, according to the center.
As of July 2023, over 90% of immigrant detention facilities were owned or managed by for-profit companies, per the ACLU.
For private prison companies, ICE contracts remain their most significant federal revenue stream. In 2023, ICE accounted for 30% of CoreCivic’s and 43% of GEO Group’s revenues, according to the Brennan Center.
With Trump promising mass deportations, these companies are expected to see significant revenue growth, particularly through ICE transportation and detention contracts.
The Marshals Service, which supervises over 60,000 individuals, is likely to quickly re-establish private prison contracts, having previously raised concerns about Biden’s original order.