Wyoming Communities Reject Private Immigration Jail Proposals

A proposal to build a 900-bed immigration detention center in Kemmerer, Wyoming, has been met with strong opposition from local officials and residents, WyoFile reports.

The private prison industry, which has previously attempted similar projects in the region, has struggled to gain traction this time around.

Last week, Sabot Consulting presented a plan to the Kemmerer City Council for a for-profit immigration detention facility funded through a city bond issuance. Under the proposal:

• Kemmerer would own the facility.

• An Alaskan Native corporation, Akima, would staff and operate the jail under a federal contract with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

• Sabot Consulting would facilitate the agreement between the city, ICE, and Akima.

The proposed jail was positioned as an economic opportunity, promising high-paying jobs and revenue for the area. However, local officials quickly dismissed the idea, citing overwhelming public opposition.

“There’s no interest among council members or even the majority of our constituents,” Kemmerer Mayor Robert Bowen stated.

City Council member Bill Ellis echoed the sentiment, saying:

“We said, ‘We can’t do it, and we don’t want it.'”

This is not the first time private prison companies have sought to establish an immigration detention center in southwestern Wyoming.

• Evanston, a city 50 miles from Kemmerer, faced years of heated debate from 2017 to 2020 over similar proposals from two large private prison companies, Management Training Corporation and CoreCivic.

• Despite initial local government support, both companies ultimately abandoned their plans without providing clear explanations.

• The controversy left a lasting divide in the community, with opposition groups like WyoSayNo and the ACLU of Wyoming challenging the project.

Now, some Evanston officials have rejected new efforts to revive the concept in Uinta County, where ICE has expressed interest in securing a facility within a two-hour drive of Salt Lake City.

Kemmerer is undergoing a significant economic transition and has alternative growth opportunities that make the private prison industry less appealing.

• The $4 billion TerraPower nuclear project, backed by Bill Gates, is expected to create long-term jobs and economic growth.

• Carbon capture projects and trona mining expansions are also contributing to an economic shift away from coal.

• Mayor Bowen expressed concerns that hosting a large immigration jail could harm Kemmerer’s reputation, potentially discouraging future investment.

Additionally, city officials raised financial concerns, noting that if federal contracts changed or ended, Kemmerer could be left responsible for an empty detention center.

“The risk versus reward wasn’t really there for us,” Bowen said.