New Detention Standards Act Mandates US Marshal Rules for All Contracted Immigration Facilities

The newly introduced Equal Detention Standards Act of 2025 is short, direct, and tackles a major issue in federal contracting: inconsistent standards. Essentially, this bill says that if the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) hires a private company or a local government to run an immigration detention facility, that facility must now adhere to the Federal Performance Based Detention Standards (FPBDS) used by the U.S. Marshal Service (USMS). This mandate applies to every new contract and every renewal starting the moment the bill becomes law (Sec. 2).

The End of the Wild West for Detention Standards

Think of it this way: right now, the standards in contracted immigration facilities can be a bit of a patchwork, depending on the specific agreement between DHS and the contractor. This bill scraps that variability. It’s like telling every franchisee they have to use the same corporate playbook, even if their original agreement was a little looser. By requiring the USMS standards—which are generally seen as a baseline for federal custody operations—the goal is to standardize conditions and accountability across the board. For the people detained, this means conditions should become more predictable and hopefully, consistently better, regardless of whether the facility is run by a county jail or a private corporation.

Who Pays for the Upgrade?

This standardization isn't free, of course. The immediate impact falls on the private and local entities currently running these detention centers. If their current operational standards are below the USMS’s FPBDS, they’ll need to invest in upgrades—be it staffing, medical services, facility maintenance, or training—to meet the new federal baseline. This could translate into higher operational costs for the contractors, which they will likely pass back to the federal government in future contract negotiations. For taxpayers, this means the cost of running contracted detention facilities might tick up, but in exchange, there's a mandated level of quality and performance.

Accountability Gets a Clearer Ruler

One of the biggest practical changes is in oversight. When DHS contracts out detention services, they need a clear metric to measure performance. By mandating the USMS standards, the government gets a uniform, established ruler to hold contractors accountable. If a facility fails to meet the FPBDS metrics—say, related to medical access or food quality—it’s a clear breach of contract, making it easier for the government to enforce compliance or terminate the agreement. This shift provides a much clearer operational baseline for both the government and the contractors, cutting down on ambiguity about what constitutes acceptable performance (Sec. 2).