Overview
- The project remains in an early exploratory stage with no final decision scheduled.
- Preliminary Justice Department studies project a full-scale reconstruction exceeding $2 billion, with smaller-scale and private-concession alternatives under review.
- Justice Secretary Pam Bondi and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum toured the island this month to evaluate its dilapidated infrastructure and logistical hurdles.
- Border czar Tom Homan has said feasibility hinges on available bed counts and detainee stay lengths, delaying any definitive timeline.
- Environmental authorities warn that added maritime traffic could threaten San Francisco Bay wildlife, and Democratic leaders have dismissed the plan as impractical.