Alligator Alcatraz closes with FEMA reimbursements still unresolved
Florida received a $608.4 million grant to fund the center, but only a little more than $134 million had been disbursed by early October.
The Alligator Alcatraz immigration detention center closed and was dismantled in the Florida Everglades. The amount of federal funding that the state will ultimately be reimbursed remains unresolved.
The federal grant awarded to Florida through the Federal Emergency Management Agency totaled $608.4 million. Federal data cited by WPTV showed that a little more than $134 million had been disbursed by early October.
Two federal reports examined aspects of the operation. One cited deficiencies in environmental health, security, medical care, food and hygiene. Another, prepared by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement had not formalized an agreement with Florida before the first detainees arrived.
The GAO set a rate of $249 per detainee per day for the center, compared with a median of $92 at ICE facilities during fiscal year 2026. Neither report concluded that Florida violated the grant conditions, and no federal decision has definitively rejected the pending reimbursements.