Minnesota Facility Purchase for $495.6 Million Opens Probe Into Homeland Security Spending
Key Facts
U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan opened an investigation on November 12, 2026, into the Department of Homeland Security’s purchase of the Prairie Correctional Facility in Appleton, Minnesota, from CoreCivic for $495.6 million. Hassan asked the department and the company to preserve records related to the sale, while her committee examines whether the spending was subject to “improper influence, corruption or other violations of federal law,” according to the Associated Press. The deal closed on August 4, 2026, according to a company filing. Scrutiny of the purchase price comes as the facility has begun receiving detainees under the company’s management. The investigation could put the deal’s pricing and approval process under scrutiny by a Senate committee.
The facility sold for $495.6 million, according to a CoreCivic filing, while The Washington Post reported that the government bought the shuttered private prison, which has 1,600 beds, for $75 million. The figures indicate different estimates of the price, but the evidence available here does not establish the basis for comparing them. The company said the price reflects the cost of building a comparable facility at current construction prices, less depreciation, and was set after an independent appraisal. It added that independent appraisers hired by the government used a cost-based approach that took into account current replacement cost, depreciation, land value and other market factors. The company said the government reviewed the appraisal to ensure it complied with federal standards.
The deal involves the Prairie facility in Appleton, a private prison that had been closed before it was reopened for federal detention. According to the Associated Press, CoreCivic officials said the pricing method was based on an independent appraisal, while Hassan’s committee is examining the possibility of interference or legal violations related to the spending. The facility opened as a detention center on November 9, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and CoreCivic operates it, Minnesota Public Radio reported. The company announced on August 4 that it had signed a contract with the administration to begin operating the facility, with the contract set to start on August 11 and run for five years. The purchase review therefore comes in the context of a federal contractual relationship spanning several years.
The review of the Prairie purchase comes amid broader initiatives to expand detention facilities. The U.S. Government Accountability Office said in a report released in September 2026 that ICE had proceeded with six detention expansion initiatives since January 2025 without conducting the necessary analysis and planning. The report said the agency had purchased 11 warehouses to convert into detention facilities at a disclosed cost of about $1.07 billion, and that agency officials told the office in June 2026 that they were working to sell seven of them. The office also said the agency had not set consistent goals for the size and characteristics of detention facilities, or assessed the risks and benefits of using facilities with high operating costs compared with lower-cost options. The office recommended a comprehensive strategic plan for expansion, and the Department of Homeland Security agreed with the recommendation.
CoreCivic expects the facility to generate about $75 million in annual revenue once fully operational, with the phased expansion expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2027. The company had said it expected to begin receiving detainees in the fourth quarter of 2026, while operations began, according to an ICE announcement, on November 9. Hassan is expected to lead the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in January 2027, according to The Washington Post. In another part of the office’s oversight of detention costs, its report on Camp East Montana said the Army paid the full costs of meals and services between August 1 and 15, 2025, despite there being no detainees at the facility at the time. The Department of Homeland Security said in May 2026 that it was transitioning the Camp East Montana contract to tiered pricing, estimating that the change would be completed by the end of 2026.