Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat from Illinois, has expressed "grave concerns" about the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) plan to award monetary bonuses to private bounty hunters as part of its proposed new enforcement strategy.
Under the proposal, ICE would deploy privatized investigators to track down immigrants residing in the US, who would be tasked with conducting surveillance and pinpointing their home addresses. The bounty hunters could earn bonus payments based on how many immigrants they help apprehend, and how quickly. However, Krishnamoorthi fears that this system of performance-based financial incentives would lead to abuses, secrecy, and corruption.
In a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, Krishnamoorthi warned that outsourcing law enforcement powers to private contractors raises concerns about accountability, discipline, and transparency. He noted that these contractors are not subject to the same scrutiny as federal officers, which could result in an enforcement apparatus that functions beyond checks and balances.
Krishnamoorthi's objections to the plan also highlight his fears of blurring the line between federal authority and the private sector, adding corporate profit motive to the government's immigration operations. He believes this would lead to mistakes being made due to pressure to hit quotas, rather than relying on judgment, training, and accountability.
ICE has stated that its Request for Information (RFI) is solely for planning purposes, but Krishnamoorthi is seeking clarification on how the private bounty hunter system would work, including whether contractors will be required to identify themselves as federal agents.
Under the proposal, ICE would deploy privatized investigators to track down immigrants residing in the US, who would be tasked with conducting surveillance and pinpointing their home addresses. The bounty hunters could earn bonus payments based on how many immigrants they help apprehend, and how quickly. However, Krishnamoorthi fears that this system of performance-based financial incentives would lead to abuses, secrecy, and corruption.
In a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, Krishnamoorthi warned that outsourcing law enforcement powers to private contractors raises concerns about accountability, discipline, and transparency. He noted that these contractors are not subject to the same scrutiny as federal officers, which could result in an enforcement apparatus that functions beyond checks and balances.
Krishnamoorthi's objections to the plan also highlight his fears of blurring the line between federal authority and the private sector, adding corporate profit motive to the government's immigration operations. He believes this would lead to mistakes being made due to pressure to hit quotas, rather than relying on judgment, training, and accountability.
ICE has stated that its Request for Information (RFI) is solely for planning purposes, but Krishnamoorthi is seeking clarification on how the private bounty hunter system would work, including whether contractors will be required to identify themselves as federal agents.
I don’t usually comment but... isn’t it wild that politicians are so concerned about accountability when we have corporations running our immigration systems? Like, what’s next? Private prison guards getting bonuses for catching the "bad guys"? 
It just seems like a recipe for disaster to me. Those bounty hunters sound like they could be anywhere, doing whatever they want... it's like a real-life version of 'Mission Impossible' 
. And don’t even get me started on the idea of people being tracked down based on their home addresses... that’s just creepy 
. I guess you can understand why Rep Krishnamoorthi is speaking out, but can we imagine if he said this about, say, a private healthcare company? 
. What's next? Are we gonna let private security firms take over border patrol? It just seems so... shady 
. And Rep Krishnamoorthi is right, accountability is super important when it comes to law enforcement. We need to make sure that whoever is enforcing the laws is doing so in a fair and transparent way 
. What if these private contractors start making mistakes because they're more interested in getting paid? It's like we're outsourcing our problems instead of solving them 
.
. I mean think about it, we're talking about people's lives here, not some game where you get paid for catching someone. It's just so wrong on so many levels. And what really gets me is that they're trying to do this under the guise of "enforcement" but really it's just a way to outsource our security and accountability to private companies 
. The idea of bounty hunters being rewarded financially for catching people just seems like a recipe for disaster - what about human rights? What about accountability? It's not about the money, it's about doing what's right for our country and its people 
. Let's hope ICE reconsiders this proposal before it's too late 
this is wild imagine a whole new level of privatization in our immigration system already we got corporate profiteers gettin paid 2 track down ppl & now they wanna add a bonus system 4 it?!? like what if these bounty hunters are just tryin 2 make a quick buck & dont care bout the consequences? or worse, whats stoppin them from sellin out our info 2 the highest bidder?!? 
gotta stand w/ @RepKrishnamoorthi on this one accountability & transparency matter!!! 
- what's next? a whole team of private security guards patrolling our neighborhoods 
but apparently, in the US, it's a whole different ball game. what's going on with our government? shouldn't we be focusing on solutions that bring people together, not making them pay for being human 
and i was wondering what happened to it lol anyway im still not sure about this idea of paying private bounty hunters to catch immigrants its just so sketchy i mean whats next gonna be like a wild west vibe in our country 
ICE says its for planning purposes but Krishnamoorthi is all like "nope thats not good enough" and i gotta agree with him basically its like giving corporate profit motive to law enforcement which can lead to some bad decisions being made especially if theyre under pressure to meet quotas. just dont wanna see anyone gettin lost in the system or worse 
i mean, what's next? private security firms patrolling our streets? 
... if you're gonna outsource law enforcement powers to private contractors, at least make sure they gotta follow some kinda guidelines, ya know? Like, what's to stop them from just making up their own rules and doing whatever they want? 
i dont think its a good idea at all, the thought of private bounty hunters tracking down immigrants and being paid based on how many people they apprehend makes my skin crawl 
ICE thinks it's gonna make things more efficient by letting private contractors do the heavy lifting, but Raja Krishnamoorthi is all like "no way, that's a recipe for disaster!" 
I mean, it's not like we don't already have enough problems with immigration and border control... 
we gotta stand up against this! what if these bounty hunters start getting paid 2 point out ppl who r just minding there own biz? that sounds super fishy 
... and wat if they get away w/ all sorts of shady stuff 'cause nobody's watching their backs? that's just not good, fam