Ranking Members Raskin, Crockett and Jayapal Press “Border Czar” Tom Homan on His Apparent Conflict of Interest as Former Consultant for Troubled Immigration Detention Conglomerate, GEO Group

Washington, D.C. (August 26, 2025)—Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Oversight, and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, sent a letter to Trump Administration “Border Czar” Tom Homan demanding answers about Homan’s past work as a paid consultant for a major immigration detention conglomerate, GEO Group, which has already been awarded several major government contracts under the Trump Administration.

 Homan’s February 2025 ethics disclosure reveals that he worked as a consultant for GEO Group in the two years prior to joining the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Recent media reports also reveal that Homan played a key role in the hiring of David Venturella, a former GEO Group executive who now serves as the “No. 2 official overseeing the ICE division that manages contracts for immigrant detention centers.” 

“As Border Czar, you are responsible for implementing the Administration’s policy of mass roundups and detention—a policy that depends heavily on the operators of private detention facilities, including GEO Group. However, your past work as a paid consultant for GEO Group and your involvement in the hiring of Mr. Venturella raise serious concerns about potential conflicts of interest in this arrangement,” wrote the Ranking Members. 

As Border Czar, Homan is positioned to help his former client reap the windfall from Trump’s immigration agenda and ICE’s massive budget, boosted to $75 billion by Republicans’ “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” He has repeatedly called for expanding ICE’s detention capacity, and ICE has worked closely with private prison companies, including GEO Group, to implement this expansion. 

Over the past eight months, DHS has awarded GEO Group a number of new government contracts, including a 15-year contract valued at $1 billion to support the establishment of a federal immigration processing center at GEO Group’s Delaney Hall Facility in Newark, New Jersey. GEO Group has also said that it expects ICE to issue contracts for its remaining vacant facilities by the end of this year.

The increasing reliance on GEO Group by ICE is particularly troubling given the well-documented history of abuse, mismanagement, and neglect within the company’s facilities. Earlier this year, four inmates at the GEO Group-run Delaney Hall facility escaped from ICE custody after they broke through the facility’s internal and external walls. According to immigration groups, the escape occurred following a riot at the detention facility over insufficient food and other poor conditions.

“In light of these grave concerns and your past work for GEO Group, you may have an actual conflict of interest—and certainly the appearance of one—if you are participating in or influencing agency decisions or actions that could affect the spending of hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars with your former client. Accordingly, please confirm that you have completely recused yourself from all matters that could directly or indirectly benefit GEO Group, including through the award, writing and execution of federal contracts,” concluded the Ranking Members. 

The Ranking Members requested Homan provide documents, communications, and information, including a copy of his February 2025 financial disclosure, a full accounting of all financial benefits he has received from GEO Group, and any communications since January 20, 2025, referencing GEO Group’s operations or federal contracts.

Click here to read the letter.