Posted July 23, 2026
On July 17, Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen (D-CO) led Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO), Senator John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Representatives Diana DeGette (D-CO), Joe Neguse (D-CO), and Jason Crow (D-CO) in again pressing the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for accountability following the announcement of a 5-year GEO Group contract to operate a new Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Hudson, doubling the capacity for immigrant detention in the state of Colorado.
DHS dodged answering the lawmakers’ questions from a February 24, 2026 letter which raised serious, and unresolved, concerns about the Hudson facility. The Department’s lack of response has deepened the lawmakers’ concerns about the Administration’s lack of transparency regarding this facility.
We strongly oppose any increase in detention capacity in Colorado.”
In the letter, the Lawmakers wrote: “The reports of this new facility moving forward are particularly concerning with the continued rise of deaths in ICE detention and at the hands of ICE agents acting with impunity in communities across the country. The agency’s documented pattern of unlawful detentions, failure to comply with Congressional oversight, and harm to our communities makes this expansion not just misguided, but dangerous. Against this backdrop, we strongly oppose any increase in detention capacity in Colorado.”
Pettersen has consistently voted against Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda, including opposing over $45 billion in funding for immigration enforcement in the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” and over $70 billion in the second partisan reconciliation package. As we have witnessed the surge in ICE killings nationwide, she has also supported legislation to require DHS and ICE officers to clearly identify themselves during enforcement actions. After reports of individuals being detained in short-term holding facilities for as long as 39 days, she introduced legislation to ensure detainees cannot be held in those facilities for longer than 12 hours.
See the full text of the letter here.
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