NEW: DHS Broadcasts Surge In Deportation Operations As ICE Hiring Soars
Tricia McLaughlin, the Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, announced Sunday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is gearing up for a massive surge in immigration operations as newly-hired and trained agents begin to enter service.
While speaking with Fox News, McLaughlin stated that immigration enforcement operations have already resulted in 500,000 interior deportations, while an additional 1.6 million illegal aliens have opted to self-deport.
“But we have a lot more work to do. We want to really surge those arrest numbers, especially given that one big, beautiful bill that we’ve received the funding to do it. I think we’re going to be making great progress,” she added. McLaughlin went on to announce a massive surge in ICE hiring and deployments, as the agency has received 175,000 applications since the passage of the bill, which dramatically increased funding.
This will allow the agency to “really surge our workforce and get more brave men and women on the ground to do this great work,” McLaughlin said.
“But I do have to say, I think what Secretary Noem and President Trump have been able to do is really nothing short of extraordinary. They’ve faced — law enforcement has faced demonizations, the injunctions from these activist judges, these sanctuary city politicians trying to prevent us time and time again. “We’re not giving an inch, and we will deliver on the mandate for the American people.”
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, enacted in July, provides an additional $75 billion in funding for ICE over approximately four years, representing a roughly 300% increase over the agency’s prior annual baseline budget of about $10 billion. The multi-year allocation scales up to more than $100 billion total for ICE by FY 2029, making it the most funded federal law enforcement agency.
Increased funding provides $45 billion to expand ICE’s detention system, doubling capacity from about 41,500 beds to over 100,000. It also allocates
$30 billion for deportation operations, including hiring and retention bonuses for personnel, modernizing transportation assets hiring more immigration prosecutors and attorneys, upgrading IT systems and facilities, and expanding 287(g) agreements with state and local law enforcement for immigration enforcement.
In total, the bill is expected to increase ICE’s manpower by 10,000 additional agents with recruitment and onboarding to occur over five years, targeting full integration by FY 2029 to support expanded operations.
As of mid-2025, ICE employs approximately 20,000 law enforcement and support personnel across its operations (including enforcement and removal), with fewer than 6,000 specifically in the deportation (Enforcement and Removal Operations) branch, according to DHS.