Florida still owes at least $603 million to 27 companies that helped build the state鈥檚 migrant lockups and carry out an undocumented immigration crackdown, according to dozens of contracts reviewed by the Phoenix.
This means the majority of immigration contracts remain unpaid 鈥� even after the DeSantis administration鈥檚 emergency managers spent half a billion dollars on vendors and other immigration costs. The outstanding agreements 鈥� all active at the time of publication 鈥� were signed over an 11-month period beginning last June.
Among the largest looming bills:
- $122 million to a portable toilet company.
- $79 million to a detention center operator.
- $65 million to a security contractor.
The tab offers the clearest picture yet of the cost of Florida鈥檚 immigration operations, and reveals that reported spending estimates represented but a fraction of the state鈥檚 commitments.
In charge of detention center operations, the Florida Division of Emergency Management鈥檚 contract obligations appear to hover somewhere between $991 million 鈥� as the Miami Herald 鈥� and the Phoenix鈥檚 $1.01 billion calculation.
The remaining dollars pledged to contractors are nearly equal to the $608 million federal grant promised to Florida for operating the so-called 鈥淎lligator Alcatraz鈥� lockup in the Everglades and the 鈥淒eportation Depot鈥� jail in Baker County.
The figures don鈥檛 include isolated immigration costs like supplies, travel, or food 鈥� which cost FDEM roughly $25 million through February alone. They also exclude contracts paid out of the state鈥檚 emergency response fund that don鈥檛 explicitly spell out immigration activities 鈥� totaling around $20 million.
FDEM did not respond to questions about how many additional one-time costs exist, how much they would total, or when contractors would be fully paid. The agency鈥檚 internal projections from September, however, showed that officials $1.7 billion on the two facilities.
Despite the high costs, Florida鈥檚 leadership has maintained the expenses are warranted because they outweigh the costs of undocumented immigrants residing within the state. Gov. Ron DeSantis has claimed it鈥檚 necessary because some of the captured migrants are violent criminals.
READ MORE: Another $90 million for illegal immigration enforcement teed up for Florida
鈥淲e鈥檝e saved taxpayers from medical care and schooling [of undocumented immigrants] and all these different things,鈥� he . 鈥淚鈥檇 rather do what鈥檚 right, and I鈥檇 rather protect the people that I was elected to serve.鈥�
As for unpaid vendors, DeSantis noted that he鈥檚 for paying them 鈥� FDEM is. The agency did not respond to the Phoenix鈥檚 questions.
This hardline, no-holds-barred crackdown on undocumented immigration is an initiative DeSantis has proudly led over the past year and a half. Since President Trump took office in January 2025, DeSantis has been in lockstep with the president at every turn in the immigration sphere 鈥� from constructing the nation鈥檚 first state-run detention center to slashing in-state tuition for undocumented college students, DeSantis has often touted that Florida 鈥渓eads the nation鈥� in immigration arrests.
But those novel policies have produced novel costs.
These mounting invoices come weeks before Florida鈥檚 new fiscal year begins, and as the state鈥檚 emergency fund 鈥� originally designed for disasters like hurricanes but later morphed to include immigration enforcement 鈥� is running low on money.
According to Florida鈥檚 government accountability website, the fund has $47 million left, down from $199 million in late April. During the legislative session, lawmakers agreed to pump another quarter of a billion dollars into the fund pending DeSantis鈥� signature on a bill to recreate the trust.
The fund expired in February, meaning all payments made from it so far exclusively cover immigration activities through Feb. 17.
It鈥檚 the only bill from the 2026 session not yet sent to the governor.
The state still owes 27 of them money.
The vendors range from Canadian security firm Gardaworld to three local sheriff鈥檚 offices, all of which were asked to assist in early operations or build-out of either 鈥淎lligator Alcatraz鈥� or 鈥淒eportation Depot.鈥�
Lee County, Nassau County, and Hendry County were paid a combined total of nearly $332,000 for their help, which included sending patrolmen or helping with internet set-ups. Active contracts on Florida鈥檚 accountability website show that Nassau County is still waiting for nearly half a million dollars from FDEM. Officials there did not respond to a request for comment.
DBT Transportation, a California company specializing in airport weather monitoring services, was awarded a contract worth a little more than $64,000. Director Remus Zaharescu confirmed to the Phoenix that he鈥檚 still waiting for $1,500 from FDEM.
鈥淚t鈥檚 marked as 60-90 days overdue,鈥� in their system, Zaharescu said. His company repaired the weather system at the Everglades facility, contracts show.
The largest war chest, however, belongs to Doodie Calls 鈥� a portable toilet and sanitation company contracted for at least $219 million for immigration activities. Although FDEM has paid it $96 million so far, it鈥檚 still owed an additional $122 million.
When a Phoenix reporter asked Doodie Calls鈥� billing department whether it had been paid in full, a spokesperson repeatedly declined comment.
The next-largest contract totals belong to disaster response company IRG Global at roughly $112 million and detention operator GEO-CDR Baker at about $100 million. Neither responded to requests for comment.
Security company Gardaworld, promised $78 million, referred questions to FDEM 鈥� which did not respond.
Overall, FDEM has paid about 40% of its immigration contracts. This comes as reports emerge that 鈥淎lligator Alcatraz,鈥� which began as a temporary facility in June 2025, may be scaling back.
Although both state and federal authorities organizing the center have denied any official conversations about shutting down, DeSantis has maintained that the facility was always designed to be short-lived. U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost said following a recent visit that staffing levels had been slashed and detainee numbers had fallen sharply.
So far, Florida has received $58 million of the $608.4 million federal reimbursement grant. It remains unclear where those dollars will be specifically applied, though federal rules prohibit using the money for construction or facility modifications.
is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
