(PENNSYLVANIA, UNITED STATES) The Moshannon Valley Processing Center in rural Centre County has emerged as a key hub of ICE detention in 2025, with the privately run site operating at or near capacity and producing growing revenues for GEO Group under the Trump administration’s expanded deportation drive. As Congress approved a historic enforcement budget on July 1, 2025, the facility’s daily population rose with transfers from across the Northeast and mid‑Atlantic, mirroring national trends of record federal spending and intensified arrests. Advocates, attorneys, and local officials describe a system straining under overcrowding while the company at the center of it sees its financial outlook improve.
At the core of this shift is money and scale. Lawmakers authorized $170 billion for immigration and border enforcement this fiscal year, including $45 billion for new detention centers and $29.9 billion for enforcement and removals. Vice President JD Vance cast the tie‑breaking vote in the Senate, delivering the largest allocation for immigration detention in U.S. history and aligning federal resources with President Trump’s plan to ramp up interior arrests and deportations. The administration’s projections show the daily population in ICE detention rising to at least 116,000 people, far above past records.
Moshannon Valley Processing Center, converted from a federal prison to civil immigration use in 2021, is now one of the top 10 largest ICE detention centers in the country. As of January 2025, the site averaged 1,173 detainees per day. By mid‑year, transfers from Pennsylvania raids and nearby states pushed occupancy to the ceiling, according to local legal clinics and community groups who field calls from families trying to locate detained relatives. Under its federal contract, GEO Group receives payments tied to beds filled, a business model that scales directly with the increase in detentions.
National detention picture and capacity trends
The numbers across the system are stark:
- 86% of people in ICE detention are held in for‑profit facilities.
- The top 20 sites—all privately operated—report record occupancy.
- On April 13, 2025, ICE listed 48,056 people in custody nationwide, against a contractual capacity of 62,913 beds.
- Federal data show 84 out of 181 detention facilities exceeded their contractual capacity at least once between October 2024 and April 2025, with 45 sites above capacity at some point this spring.
For GEO Group, which runs Moshannon Valley and several other large centers, higher headcounts translate into rising revenues.
Funding surge reshapes detention landscape
The July budget marked a policy turn from the Biden years, when the White House reduced reliance on detention, closed some facilities, and ended family detention by 2023. In early 2025, the Trump administration signaled a hard reset:
- Restoring and expanding family detention.
- Seeking to end the Flores Settlement Agreement that limits the detention of children.
- Using broader enforcement to move non‑citizens into custody more quickly.
That approach was backed by money for detention beds and $46.6 billion for border wall construction and related infrastructure.
Local effects in Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, the effects came swiftly. ICE conducted high‑profile workplace and community operations in Norristown and Bethlehem in June, detaining dozens of people—most transferred to the Moshannon Valley Processing Center.
County officials who had adopted policies to limit cooperation with ICE detainers said their measures did little to slow federal transfers. People arrested by ICE are moved into federal custody that bypasses local jails.
Advocates report a steady pipeline:
– Brief bookings at local facilities.
– ICE detainers holding individuals up to 48 hours (excluding weekends and holidays).
– Transport to Moshannon or other federal sites.
This approach has complicated relationships between federal and local authorities. About half of Pennsylvania counties have set boundaries on civil detainer holds, citing legal risk and strain on local resources. Yet federal enforcement and contracting power remain decisive. By using federal sites, including Moshannon, ICE can operate beyond county policies, leaving local leaders with limited influence over conditions or operations.
For families, the practical hurdles are immediate and personal. Loved ones often learn about transfers after they happen. Attorneys urge families to try the official ICE Detainee Locator to find relatives and confirm locations and inmate numbers, since access to phones and language services can be inconsistent. The government advises checking the ICE Detainee Locator with the person’s full name, country of birth, and date of birth for the most accurate search.
Conditions, oversight, and the business of detention
While the detention system expands, reports of crowded housing units, limited medical care, and language barriers have risen in Pennsylvania and nationwide. Detainees and advocates have reported:
- Wrongful solitary confinement.
- Delays in medical treatment.
- Insufficient interpretation services at Moshannon Valley.
Legal clinics and civil rights groups warn that higher occupancy increases risks, particularly in for‑profit facilities where cost controls can affect staffing and care.
GEO Group’s position and oversight:
– GEO Group says it operates under federal standards and oversight and that Moshannon Valley is used for civil ICE detention rather than criminal incarceration.
– The company notes it follows ICE’s detention guidelines and that federal monitors inspect sites regularly.
– Independent attorneys counter that rapid expansion and high occupancy make consistent oversight hard, especially when transfers spike.
Human impacts inside the facility
Small operational failures can have severe consequences:
- A diabetic detainee missing insulin due to delayed intake processing.
- A detainee unable to get a Spanish interpreter for a medical complaint.
- Long waits for mental health evaluations.
These moments can shape both health outcomes and legal cases. As detention time stretches, limited access to counsel can erode the chance to prepare asylum claims or gather documents for relief. University clinics and pro bono lawyers say they are juggling growing caseloads as transfers to Moshannon rise.
Financial incentives and political arguments
The broader financial picture is notable:
- With 86% of ICE detainees in private hands and historic funding for beds, analysts describe a “windfall” for the largest contractors.
- GEO Group’s revenue is closely tied to occupancy and long‑term federal agreements.
- VisaVerge.com reports private detention operators have seen multi‑year contract extensions and per‑diem rate adjustments that track upward with capacity expansions.
Supporters of the administration’s approach argue:
– Firmer detention policies deter unlawful entry.
– Enhanced enforcement speeds removals and moves cases forward after years of backlogs.
Critics counter that mass detention:
– Is costly in both dollars and human terms.
– Increases the chance of abuse.
– Sweeps up long‑time residents with deep family ties, including people with no criminal records.
Flores litigation and potential shifts
The Flores litigation could reshape part of the policy landscape:
- If the court allows the government to end or narrow limits on detaining children, family detention could expand further, affecting interior arrests that result in whole family units being held.
- If Flores protections hold, federal agencies may lean more on adult detention while releasing some families with monitoring.
Either path keeps Moshannon and similar sites central to the detention map.
Legal community response and transparency calls
Pennsylvania’s legal community is preparing for sustained demand. Groups expanding services include:
- ACLU of Pennsylvania
- Statewide coalitions
- University clinics
Their actions:
– Expanding know‑your‑rights workshops.
– Building referral networks for detained immigrants.
– Advising families to keep identity documents, proof of residence, and emergency contact information ready.
They also recommend:
– Answering phone calls from unfamiliar numbers that might be detention centers.
– Asking for language help when communicating with facility staff.
Some state and local leaders press for more transparency. They want detailed reporting on:
– Occupancy.
– Medical staffing levels.
– Grievance outcomes.
– Solitary confinement use at private sites.
They also support more funding for legal representation, arguing that stable counsel reduces court delays. Federal officials say they meet oversight obligations through audits and inspections, but watchdogs urge the Department of Homeland Security to strengthen unannounced inspections and publish more data.
What to expect short term — and practical advice
In the short term, Moshannon will likely remain full. With record funding in place and federal enforcement priorities set, Pennsylvania’s largest ICE detention center is positioned to keep receiving transfers. That reality carries concrete costs: the system depends on bed space that can scale quickly, and private operators deliver that scale. But the pressure of high occupancy can worsen conditions and limit due process unless oversight keeps pace.
Practical advice from attorneys for families in Pennsylvania:
- Keep a folder with:
- Passports, birth certificates, and copies of any prior immigration papers.
- Memorize at least one attorney or family contact number; detainees may not have phone access immediately after transfer.
- Ask for an interpreter in your language; detainees have the right to language access for medical and legal matters.
- If a loved one is missing after an ICE operation:
- Check the ICE Detainee Locator.
- Call nearby detention centers, including the Moshannon Valley Processing Center.
The daily reality in Centre County reflects national trade‑offs: a surge in funding has delivered more arrests, more transfers, and fuller dorms. For GEO Group, it has delivered higher revenue tied to each occupied bed. For those inside, it has produced longer waits, tougher conditions, and the need for legal help that can be hard to find.
The coming court rulings on family detention and federal oversight decisions will shape what happens next. On the ground in Pennsylvania, however, the era of expanded ICE detention has already arrived.
This Article in a Nutshell
In 2025, the Moshannon Valley Processing Center emerged as a key ICE detention hub as Congress approved unprecedented immigration enforcement funding on July 1, 2025. The budget included large allocations for detention expansion and removals, contributing to a national push that raised ICE daily population projections to about 116,000. Moshannon, converted to civil immigration use in 2021, averaged 1,173 detainees daily in January and reached near capacity by mid‑year after regional transfers. About 86% of detainees nationwide are held in for‑profit facilities, boosting revenue for contractors like GEO Group whose payments depend on occupied beds. Local raids in Pennsylvania led to rapid transfers despite some counties limiting cooperation with ICE detainers. Advocates report overcrowding, limited medical care, language access problems, and increased use of transfers that complicate family communication and legal representation. Legal clinics, civil rights groups, and local officials are expanding services and calling for greater transparency, better oversight, and more legal assistance. Ongoing litigation over the Flores settlement and federal oversight decisions could change detention practices, but in the short term Moshannon and similar private sites are likely to stay full while pressures on conditions and due process increase.
