States Are Deporting Non-U.S. Inmates—Should Federal Authorities Follow Suit?
The cost of housing federal inmates continues to rise each year due to a combination of structural, staffing, and operational pressures within the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). Aging prison infrastructure requires constant maintenance, and many facilities operate beyond their intended lifespan. At the same time, the BOP faces a persistent staffing crisis—particularly among correctional officers—which forces reliance on costly overtime and augmented staffing from other departments. Health care costs have also surged, driven by an aging inmate population and increasing rates of chronic illness, mental health disorders, and substance abuse. Meanwhile, limited investment in reentry and community programs keeps the prison population higher than necessary, sustaining expensive incarceration rather than cost-effective alternatives like home confinement or halfway houses. Together, these factors have created a system where the average annual cost per inmate now exceeds $51,000, even as policymakers call for greater efficiency and reform.
With over 155,000 federal inmates and continued pressure on the BOP to manage costs, perhaps it should look at ways of reducing the number of people they are incarcerating to see if there is an alternative. With the Donald J. Trump administration continuing to push immigration reform and the growing emphasis on deporting non-US citizens who are here illegally, the 25,000 non-US citizen inmates could be offered a sooner return back to their home country.
