Orange County Mayor Jerry L. Demings is demanding immediate federal action to recover hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs incurred by local taxpayers for housing federal immigration detainees at the Orange County Jail.
In a formal letter dated December 22 to the U.S. Marshals Service, Demings called for a renegotiation of the county’s existing Intergovernmental Services Agreement, or IGSA, and requested full retroactive reimbursement for what he says are mounting unrecovered expenses tied to Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees.
According to the mayor’s office, Orange County taxpayers have already absorbed more than $333,000 in unreimbursed detention costs.
Sharp rise in ICE detainee bookings
Demings pointed to a significant surge in ICE detainee bookings over the past eight months as the primary driver of the funding shortfall.
In his letter to Aisha Ogburn, a grants specialist with the Marshals Service’s South Central Region Prisoner Operations Division, Demings stated that the Orange County Jail has processed more than 5,000 ICE immigration detainees during that period.
Of those, 3,626 detainees were booked after August 11 — the date when Orange County formally requested that the federal government reopen negotiations on the reimbursement agreement.
County officials say the volume of detainees has placed sustained pressure on jail operations, staffing, medical services, and security resources.
Reimbursement rate falls far short of actual costs
Under the current IGSA, Orange County receives $88 per detainee per day from the federal government. However, Demings said a comprehensive cost review shows the true daily cost of housing an ICE detainee is approximately $180.
That gap leaves the county with a $92 per-detainee daily shortfall, which Demings argues is unsustainable and unfair to local residents.
“These costs are not theoretical,” Demings emphasized in his correspondence. “They represent real expenditures for staffing, healthcare, security, food services, and facility maintenance.”
The mayor argued that the existing rate no longer reflects economic realities, especially amid inflation and rising operational expenses.
Call for retroactive payment and renegotiation
Demings is seeking not only a revised reimbursement rate going forward, but also retroactive payment to cover the gap incurred since ICE detainee numbers surged earlier this year.
County officials maintain that Orange County has acted in good faith by continuing to house federal detainees while awaiting a response to its renegotiation request, but warn that continued delays will deepen the financial burden.
The letter urges the U.S. Marshals Service to act swiftly to prevent further strain on county budgets and public safety resources.
Local taxpayers bearing federal responsibilities
At the center of the dispute is a broader concern increasingly raised by local governments nationwide: that counties are being forced to shoulder federal immigration enforcement costs without adequate compensation.
Demings stressed that immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility and that local taxpayers should not be subsidizing detention operations tied to federal policy decisions.
“This is not a sustainable model,” county officials said, warning that prolonged underfunding could impact other local services if not addressed.
Awaiting federal response
As of this writing, the U.S. Marshals Service has not publicly responded to Demings’ request for renegotiation or retroactive reimbursement.
Orange County officials say they remain open to continued cooperation with federal authorities but insist that any future agreement must fully reflect actual detention costs.
The dispute adds to a growing national conversation over immigration enforcement funding, jail overcrowding, and the financial impact of federal detainee housing on local governments.