The lawmakers, led by House Oversight ranking member James Comer, R-Ky., and Economic and Consumer Policy Subcommittee ranking member Michael Cloud, R-Texas, have written to current ICE Director Tae Johnson expressing "alarm at the potential waste of millions of taxpayer money and abuse of the contracting process by U.S. [ICE] officials."
"Not only have the Biden administration’s policies exacerbated the crisis on our border, it now appears the administration is exploiting the crisis to reward its political allies with sole-source contracts," they wrote.
WATCH: HOW WAS JURY SELECTION HANDLED IN TRUMP'S TRIAL?
ICE entered into the $86.9 million "sole source" (commonly called a "no-bid") contract with a company called Endeavors rather than through a competitive bidding process. The contract saw Endeavors provide 1,239 beds and other services to migrants after ICE recognized its current family residential centers would be insufficient to house the number of migrants crossing the border.
WATCH: "WE WILL OPEN YOU UP LIKE A SOFT PEANUT"
The San Antonio-based nonprofit separately entered into a no-bid contract with the Department of Health and Human Services for more than $500 million. The contracts were heated because Andrew Lorenzen-Strait, a former Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) official who also served as a Biden transition adviser on Homeland Security issues, is on the company’s board.
A LOOK INSIDE DEMOCRATS' PLAN TO WIN BACK THE HOUSE WITH RECORD INVESTMENT
The DHS Office of Inspector General went over the contract and found that ICE was not justified in using a no-bid contract, which it awarded after obtaining an unsolicited proposal from Endeavors, and that much of the space was unused as the contract required ICE pay for up to 1,239 beds no matter how many were used.
"ICE did not adequately justify the need for the sole-source contract to house migrant families and spent approximately $17 million for hotel space and services at six hotels that went largely unused between April and June 2021," the report says.
DEMS' LAST-MINUTE BID TO SAVE SEATS AMID SOUTHERN BORDER TURMOIL!
It says that usage ranged from an average of 21% in one hotel to 45% in another.
"ICE’s sole-source contract with Endeavors resulted in millions of dollars being spent on unused hotel space," the report says. The report was also critical of Endeavors, finding it did not meet new health care protocols related to COVID-19 and did not follow standards to ensure proper care for housing migrant families.
FOX NEWS COLUMNIST TEARS APART MTG'S "RECKLESS AGENDA"
ICE conflicted with parts of the report, saying it was justified in the use of the no-bid contract, which was allowed under an exemption for "unusual and compelling urgency" the agency was facing due to the border crisis. While it agreed with the need for an assessment of housing, it disagreed with the report's other findings, arguing that its testing protocols are sufficient and that ICE "ensured that Endeavors was in compliance with FRS at the Emergency Family Staging Centers.’
Discover alternative ideas that will make you think
Engage in mind bending debate
Earn points, rise in rank, have fun
