Transcripts For CSPAN House Hearing On Oversight Of ICE Detention Facilities During Coronavirus... 20240712

Today, the subcommittee meets to examine the response to covid19 by four of the contractors responsible for managing facilities. As coronavirus cases continue to spike nationwide, we must ensure the contractors our government relies on are taking every step they can to minimize the spread of covid19 among workers and detainees. Facilities. As coronavirus cases continue to spike nationwide, we must ensure the contractors our government relies on are taking every step they can to minimize the spread of covid19 among workers and attain these. For fiscal year 2020, congress appropriated 3. 1 billion approximately in more than 45,000 adult and family i. C. E. Beds. Ion over 80 of these beds are operated daily by private contractors, some of whom are at this hearing today. That is a large amount of taxpayer money. It demands oversight and accountability. Detention facilities must be held to a High Standard at all times. Within this moment, it is of vital importance. Yet over the past few months, it is feared that ice am a and its contractors have not taken the outbreak seriously and have not i. C. E. And its contractors have not taken the outbreak seriously. At least 405i. C. E. Employees assigned to detention facilities have just a positive. Least twost at detainees, a potential third today in florida, and five contractors, due to complications from covid after exposure at detention facilities. Despite these horrific losses, ice is continuing normal operations and contractors are following in lockstep. I. C. E. Continues to transfer detainees between facilities and contractors continue to accept them. There is a looming evidence that these transfers have likely contribute to multiple outbreaks inside detention facilities across the u. S. We have also read reports and heard from current and former employees that the guidance issued by the four companies here today suggested rationing of p. P. E. Documents provided to the committee showed that management are attempting to practice social distancing. The clearest way to prevent the spread of the disease is to pursue an alternative to the tension and release those detainees who dont pose a threat to the community. Exposure tok of covid19 at these facilities is further exacerbated by lack of medical care. Prior to the pandemic, Health Services in detention facilities were severely lacking and proved to be the source of most detainees. By it is no surprise that the Public Health crisis has only compounded the situation. Some facilities are put on a waiting days or weeks to test individuals, including the most honorable. The bottom line is much more needs to be done to stop the spread of the coronavirus at these facilities, to protect the health of both the detainees and the american people. Guidance to facility personnel must be clear and explicit. Transfers must be done immediately. Adequate medical care must be provided. Covid19 does not distinguish between a u. S. Citizens and noncitizens, and neither should we in our approach to protect against it. I look forward to hearing from our Witnesses Today about what steps they will take to address the pressing issue going forward. The chair now recognizes the Ranking Member of the subcommittee, the gentleman from louisiana, mr. Higgins, foreign Opening Statement. Rep. Higgins thank you, madam chair. It is wonderful to join you here today on this very important topic. I thank the witnesses for being here today. I sincerely appreciate chairman thompson for opening the hearing room to members to conduct official business. As you know, it is my humble opinion that we should be conducting our important oversight and legislative missions here in washington, d. C. In person, and i look forward to the return for regular order. I find it disappointing that the majority did not invite i. C. E. To a hearing that focuses on i. C. E. They could have updated as on the measures they take to address covid19, the implementation of c. D. C. And prevention recommendations, and further guidance they provided to facility contractors who will be joining us today. Under president trumps administrative direction, i activated the pandemic workforce Protection Plan in january of this years in response to covid19. The plan provides an additional layer of Safety Measures on top preventionbased standards. I. C. E. Also convened a working group of professionals, Disease Control specialists, detention experts and field operators to identify further steps to protect detainees. Thatresult, the population ice dedicated to the facilities was reduced to 70 capacity. The cbc recommendation is 75 . This reduction included the review of nearly 34,000 detainees in custody nationwide, to identify those with high risk of severe illness, potentially due to covid19. As a result, more than 900 detainees will post a low risk to Public Safety were released. We can all agree that these are unprecedented times. While i commend ice for going above and beyond c. D. C. Guidance , there is earning more than is to be done. 7, 3. 7 of those in i. C. E. Custody are 835 individuals who have tested was active for covid19. Hearing,today in the while we will heavily discussed agencys response to covid19 and the threat thereof, i. C. E. Was not invited to testify. They should be here to update us on what further measures are being taken to address covid19, what additional improvements could you made. I. C. E. Should be here to tell us what issues have arisen and how they have overcome them or not. I. C. E. Should be here to answer questions about information we received from these contractors as a result of the chairmans very professional document production request. I. C. E. Should be before us today, but they are not here. Quite frankly, todays hearing topic is, i respectfully submit, is outside our committee jurisdiction. Today we have the president s and ceos from four Government Contractors will have to respond to repeated document production request and testify before a committee with tertiary jurisdiction at best. In the legislation related to this topic, immigration detention and immigration laws, would not be referred to this subcommittee. On its face, it seems the ispose of this hearing perhaps politically driven, perhaps it is important to get the message out. I agree with the substance of what we seek, madam chair and i. Chairman, respectfully, just i believe i. C. E. Should be here to speak for themselves. We create ever moving goalpost for hardworking federal employees and contractors for simply doing their job and abiding by the laws as prescribed by congress. The truth is, nearly half of those in i. C. E. Custody on this day have final orders of removal, nearly half. The majority of individuals still in custody have either criminal convictions or charges pending, ranging from aggravated assault to homicide. In therimes committed United States are not taking lately, and they shouldnt be, yet some of our colleagues across the aisle seem to prefer that anyone detained by i. C. E. Should be released, no crime that individual has committed or how much of a Public Safety risk they represent. It is completely righteous for us to question i. C. E. s treatment in response to covid19, but let us not go too far. I hope we can cut through politics, and the chairwoman and i have attempted to do so in the past. We shall continue that endeavor today. I look forward to speaking and listening and i thank you, madam chair. I yield back. Chairwoman thompson i think the Ranking Member and add that its it appears that the d. H. S. Component are referring to an omb guidance about remote hearing which is why i believe they would not respond but i would be more than happy to put the question directly to them. We have been informed that they are refusing to participate based on the guidance of omb in any remote hearing but i thank you for raising that issue. Are reminded that the subcommittee will operate according to the guidelines laid out by the Ranking Member and chairman in their july 8 document. With that i ask unanimous consent to waived Committee Rule 882 for the subcommittee during remote proceedings and the designated by the speaker under House Resolution 965. Without objection, so ordered. Without objection, members not sitting on a Sub Committee will committed to participate in todays hearing. The chair recognizes the chairman of the whole committee from mississippi, mr. Thompson for an Opening Statement. Chairman thompson thank you very much madam chair. , good afternoon to the members present. Im glad to have this opportunity to speak with our witnesses about this important topic, immigration detention contractors response to covid19. The covid19 pandemic has to communities across our country, with more 135,000 americans losing their lives to coronavirus. My state is not exempt. Over 1200 of my fellow mississippians have tragically succumbed to the pandemic, and cases continue to increase. This suffering has failed disproportionately on minority communities who often lack access to inadequate healthcare. Those who reside in congregate settings, including detention facilities, are also particularly vulnerable. Even before the pandemic, many i. C. E. Detention facilities had with numerousord, complaints lodged about health and safety issues, poor living conditions, and inadequate inspections. These issues combined with a risk of infection in any crowded spaces lead to outbreaks inside detention facilities. Thousands of i. C. E. Detainees across more than seven detention facilities have tested positive for covid19. It is unfortunately including 35 detainees at a Family Residential center in current city, texas, operated by the geo group. Situation cannot continue. I. C. E. And its contractors must spreadr part to slow the of covid19 in the interest of saving lives and protecting our country. Frank the witnesses for i thank the witnesses for the replies to my april 2019 letter requesting information on how they are mitigating the spread of covid19 in their facilities, however, i would note that they have only been partially responsive. I move today to get a clear commitment from each company to be more transparent about their practices and what they are seeing in their facilities throughout this Public Health crisis. I. C. E. Has been publicly reporting on the numbers of infected detainees and federal employees, but a major gap in the reporting remains the number of Contract Personnel who tested positive for covid19. The public deserves to know this information. The d. H. S. Inspector general also recently issued an initial report informed by surveys distributed to facilities across i. C. E. s detention network. Facilitiesys allow to selfassess their preparedness and response to the there appears to be a disconnect between issued guidance and implementation of the guidance. Similarly, my staff found serious implementation gaps when reviewing the documents each of your companies provided in response to my requests. We have seen public reporting and heard from whistleblowers across the aisle concerned with how i. C. E. Private contractors are managing this situation. I ask for unanimous consent to enter into the record a letter from the Government Accountability project, which represents multiple whistleblowers who are alarmed by the operations at the ridgewood Correctional Center in louisiana. The Government Accountability subjectalso represents to theignored by d. H. S. Employed by d. H. S. To advice on detention Health Issues but whose input seems to have been ignored. The letter describes extremely concerning mismanagement that, no doubt, has made the crisis unfolding in i. C. E. Detention facilities that much worse. This is not the end of this committees oversight of conditions at i. C. E. Detention facilities during covid19. Even before the pandemic, the committee was actively examining thosetent problems at facilities. That work will continue. Today i urge each one of i. C. E. s detention contractors to be more aggressive in their response to covid19. I also hope that as the tragic accounts crisis continues, that i. C. E. Will maximize the use of alternatives to their detention program, which the geo group has managed for years, to limit the spread of covid19 in detention. I urge our witnesses to reexamine how they approach the problem of covid19 within their facilities, and to continue their engagement with us to improve these conditions. Thank you, madam chairwoman and i yield back. Mr. Rwoman rice , thank you, chair. We now recognize the full committee Ranking Member, from alabama, mr. Rogers for an Opening Statement. Mr. Ranking member, you need to unmute. Rogers thank you, madam chairwoman. I want to thank chairman compton again for the use of the Committee Room. During this congress the majority has made it a habit of declining to invite or refusing to accommodate critical governmentbacked witnesses. Today is no different. We reached out to d. H. S. To find out why they were not here and they said that they did not know about the hearing until we called them last week. The majority failed to invite i. C. E. To answer questions about its detention facilities. Im increasingly concerned that this is a concerted tactic to avoid having experienced senior officials to counteract our increasingly leftwing narrative. I remained the majority that just last year, they called the migrant surge of the border a fake emergency. Even as the crisis reached its peak. , House Democrats waited more than a year and a half to vote on muchneeded emergency funding for the border crisis, and what they did send came up short, not one single dollar for Immigration Enforcement facilities was included. I have requested over 300 million to modernize and improve the detention capacity to meet the spike in demand, and the majority did not send a dime. Meanwhile, customs and Border Protection is forced to release migrants straight into the border communities. The goal of the majority, i dont know. It is becoming increasingly clear that calls for the open borders are streaming into the democratic mainstream that form. Contractors like the ones here today have helped to meet the governments detention needs, and are often derided for simply partnering with the federal government to carry out the laws of this land. These contracts have existed under both democratic and republican administrations. During the covid19 crisis, i. C. E. And its potential partners have worked together to reduce the number of individuals in custody. They have taken measures that go beyond c. D. C. Guidance to adapt to the new safety protocols and cleaning procedures. They have also provided safe accommodations for those with final removal orders or criminal convictions, whose release would endanger other communities. The border crisis and covid19 crisis are two sides of the same coin. I question how the majority can continue to neglect its duty to to fund i. C. E. Last year and again this year. Its lackr crisis and of funding for sure foreshadow the covid19 crisis. Willfully underfunding i. C. E. To make a political point will have profound impacts on migrants drawn here by a broken immigration system. Failing to invest in agencies that enforce our immigration laws has brought consequences. I hope the majority will realize their continued efforts to defend i. C. E. Have lasting consequences, to defund i. C. E. Have lasting consequences , before we have a repeat of this year and again next year. Thank you, madam chair and i go back. Thank you, Ranking Member. Chairwoman rice i will now welcome our panel of witnesses. He joined the company in 1982 as a correctional officer based in kansas and served in a number of roles until he was named ceo in 2009. Our second witness is mr. George zoley, chairman of the board, ceo and founder of the geo group. He founded the company in 1984 and has served as ceo since it went public in 1994. He also served as director of the geo group variouss subsidiary. Our third witness is mr. Scott the president is and ceo of the Management Training corporation. He has been there for 30 something years. Our final witness is mr. Rodney cooper, executive director for Lasalle Corrections. Mr. Cooper retired from a 30 year long career at the Texas Department of criminal justice before joining lasalle in 2009. Hes also been a member of the american corrections association. Without objection, be inserted in the record. I now ask each witness to summarize their statement for five minutes, beginning with mr. Hininger. Mr. Hininger thank you, and good afternoon. Chairwoman rice, Ranking Member higgins and members of the subcommittee, my name is damon , and i am president and ceo of corecivic. For over 35 years, corecivic has worked with our federal and state partners to provide respectful and humane environments for those individuals at our facilities. I have been with the company for more than 28 years and i began my career as a correctional officer with the company in leavenworth, kansas, where i was born and raised. I have worked in nearly all areas of corrections. My experience informs my actions everyday. At corecivic, we take our responsibility to ensure that our careterested in are safe and treated in a humana manner. The covid19 pandemic is an unprecedented situation that has presented challenges to every correctional system in america. Just as it has for every organization such as hospital or Nursing Homes where individuals are housed together or share, accommodations. During this time, our number one priority is the health and safety of those entrusted to our care, our employees, and our communities. Throughout the companys history, you implemented industry best practices to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. Since the pandemic began, we have worked quickly to execute the guidance of the c. D. C. And our partners. I believe these practices and the measures corecivic has implemented has reduced development of covid19 nationally and in our facilities. In march we activated our Emergency Operations center, or eoc, which functions 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It serves as a Central Point to help coordinate hours ones and support our facilities. Coordination and communication across the company has been critical, and a guidance from the c. D. C. And or partners has evolved over time, as we have learned more about covid19. We also formed a covid19 task force comprised of Senior Operations and medical leaders, to monitor the pandemic and develop facilities for response and medical action plans. We quickly pushed out guidance on good hygiene practices, and our facilities, our staff works constantly try to get those in our care about how to combat the spread of covid19. snsistent with the c. D. C. Recommendations, our staff are required to wear masks. We provide masks to both our staff and detainees at our i. C. E. Facilities. These masks are replaced as necessary, and have an adequate supply of masks stopped at our facilities. Corecivic screens all individuals and employees before entry into our facility. These screenings include temperature and covid19 symptom checks. The realities of the pandemic have required us to make certain operational changes at our facilities. For example, working closely with our government partners, we suspended inperson visitation in march. Following the guidance of the c. D. C. And i. C. E. , corecivic separately houses from the general population, any detainee who tests positive for covid19 or who is exposed to a positive case. We have also adjusted how we serve meals and provide other services to promote social distancing and reduce irregular the risk of transmission. Our staff understands that while these steps are necessary to stop the spread of the virus, these changes can be stressful to the detainees and their families. To address this, we have provided additional virtual communication through phones and other means, including call minutes. Where it is safe to do so, we have reserved activities. Behold town Hall Meetings to share information with the detainees, answer their questions. Corecivics website has a dedicated section for families with information about c. D. C. Guidance and visitation. Ourhealth and wellbeing of nearly 14,000 corecivic employees is a top priority. We have expanded paid leave to those who have to miss work for covid19related reasons. Tooffer accommodation is employees who may face an elevated risk of complications from covid19, and wish to take extended leave. To recognize corecivic Employee Service during the pandemic, each facility employee, including parttime employees, received a 500 bonus and additional time off. Covid19 continues to threaten our nation and affect americans in every region and working in every industry. We continue to work every day to transmission,k of to care for those who live and work in our facilities, and make every effort to improve our practices and procedures. I thank you for the opportunity to testify today, and i look forward to your questions. Chairwoman rice thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Toow recognize mr. Zoley summarize his statement in five minutes. Chairwoman rice, Ranking Member rogers, ramking member higgins, and distinguished members of the subcommittee. Thank you. , was born in 1950 eigh located on the northwestern border of the country, with no plumbing or electricity. In the house where i was born, were greek soldiers spending the night from fighting communist parties in albania. 253, my familya received approval to immigrate so we United States, traveled by ship, landing in new york city where we were processed to ellis island. We settled in background, ohio, where i learned to speak english and began my education that eventually took me to Penn State University in 196869. My own immigrant story has shaped the core values that have guided my entire life and career , which includes the principle of never placing profit above the value of people. I am chairman and ceo and founder of the geo group, which i established in 1984. Board ofur nine directors are either female or members of a minority group. Employees in0 locations in the u. S. , the u. K. , australia and south africa. 60 of our employees are members of minority groups, reflecting our companys diversity. Who work inmployees our secure services division, earned 15 an hour or more. I would like to address something is our company does not do. We dont manage any shelters or facilities run accompanied minors for unaccompanied minors. We dont manage any facilities with chain linked been seen in units. We dont play a role in people assigned to our facility and our management and we dont lobby for stricter criminal justice or immigration laws. In may written submission, i have chronicled numerous steps taken to fight the virus. Here i will summarize my response. We believe he acted quickly and effectively to protect the health of those in our care and our employees. Thatpleased to report there have been zero covid19 eomanagedg facilities for i. C. E. Further, there is only one detainee and one employee who is presently hospitalized. In early february, we began posting information throughout our facilities on social distancing proper handwashing , and sanitizing practices. Covid19specific cleaning supplies and Hygiene Products have continuously available in all Housing Units. All detainees and employees are supplied with masks. Highrisk residents who are identified are placed in separate Housing Units with Specialized Health care protocols. Improved social distancing has been made possible to our i. C. E. Facilities operating at less than 50 occupancy. An ongoing covid19 Testing Program for residents and employees, which will expand in september, when we expect to receive 45 covid19 test machines. We will continue to apply best practices to improve our effectiveness in fighting this virus. This concludes my opening remarks. I appreciate the opportunity. Chairwoman rice thank you, mr. Zoley. Toow recognize mr. Marquardt summarize his statement in five minutes. Mr. Marquardt thank you for the opportunity to appear in todays hearing. My name is scott marquardt, and i am the ceo of Management Training corporation. My name is scott and im the ceo i would like to share my companys experience responding to covid19 and a detention facilities we operate in california, new mexico and texas. Since the start of this pandemic our Top Priorities have been to take action that protect the detainees and our staff from this virus. Mtc began in 1981 as a operator of residential job corps centers. We provide low income youth with academic instruction and Technical Training as well as wraparound services, including food, shelter, medical care, mentorship, and job placement. We have made a positive difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of vulnerable youth. In 1987, mtc took our National Job Corps knowledge and experience, and began operating correctional facilities with the goal of helping incarcerated individuals change their lives and reducing recidivism. A 2006, mtc began providing services to another vulnerable population, the men and women detained pending immigration proceedings. Mtc again adopted the job corps model of support, service, training, and respect. Mtc operated detention facilities, provide access to healthcare, legal, programming and faithbased services and in safe, clean and secure facilities. As of today there are a total of six active covid cases at our facilities. Covid19 has proven to be highly contagious, and medical guidance has been fluid since the start of this pandemic. We have acted with urgency to implement the guidance from i. C. E. , the centers for Disease Control and prevention, and state and local health departments. We have a deep concern for the people at our facilities, and our highest priority is the safety of our staff and detainees. Evolvingsponsive to federal, state and local guidelines. We currently screen all and entrants to our facilities by placing them in a two weekquarantine. Individuals who test positive are placed in medical isolation and provided with care. Employees and those entering the facility are screened prior to entry. Staff and the teenys receive training to identify symptoms, and to help them and detainees, received training to identify symptoms, and to help them understand prevention behaviors by hand sanitation, maskwearing. Cleaning and sanitation is enhanced and social distancing practices are in place. We have learned a lot about containing the spread of covid19 the past few months. While there still is a lot that we and the entire medical community dont know, there are some things that guide us. First, testing is a Good Management tool that gives us Important Information to act on. It is not a panacea. Changing behavior is the differencemaker. Frequently educating detainees and staff on prevention behaviors is essential. Limiting movement of detainees into facilities and having space to isolate, cohort, and quarantine helps significantly. Stopping inperson visits except for legal visits and screening those entering the facility make a difference. Finally, cleanliness and good sanitation and insistence on social distancing, mask wearing and handwashing is critical. We will continue to evaluate and apply Lessons Learned in managing covid19 at our facilities. I would like to close by thanking the people who work day in and day out on the front lines of this pandemic, risking their own lives to keep the men and women in our care safe and healthy. It is officers, doctors, nurses, counselors, chaplains, food service workers, facility administrators. They are heroes, and we could not have managed this unprecedented pandemic without them. Thank you for allowing me to speak about our shared interest in successful outcomes for the people in our detention facilities. Rice thank you for your testimony, mr. Marquardt. Cooper tognize mr. Summarize his statement in five minutes. You, chairmanank thompson, Ranking Member rogers, and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify regarding our covid19 response. It is a privilege to discuss the efforts or company is taking to mitigate the impacts of this unprecedented pandemic. We have been providing corrections Industry Solutions to Law Enforcement agencies, federal agencies, and government municipalities for decades. Facility Solutions Include design and construction and operations management, along with inmate detainee services that cover security, education, rehabilitation, immigration and healthcare. It is a fullservice corrections and integration attention management provider, Lasalle Corrections specializes in the prisons, jails and detention facilities as well as inmate and detainee transportation services. Reports ofnset of covid19, Lasalle Corrections has been tracking the outbreak, updating protocols, and issuing guidance. We implemented or pandemic contingency plan, and encourage treatment,testing, education, and Infection Control measures. Planssultation of existed all the existing plans, we from related revisions to our strategic plans to include a covid19 response plan. Our companys Strategic Planning ensures continuity of operations and a sustainable Healthcare Delivery system. Emergency services and advance medical care is included in our pandemic planning. Also, comprehensive protocols are in place for protection of staff and detainees, including appropriate use of p. P. E. In accordance with c. D. C. Guidance. As you are aware, correctional detention facilities can include custody, housing, education recreation, healthcare, food service, and workplace components in a single physical setting. Integration of these components presents unique challenges for control of covid19 transmission among incarcerated persons, staff and visitors. However, our companys consistent preparation in prevention and management measures have served as a foundation to reduce the risk of transmission and severity of illness from covid19. Our care ore in custody has succumbed to covid19. Our employees have access to the most current c. D. C. And dhs and full support and access for a rapidly changing averment. General guidance for each facility has congressional detention settings include , operational and communications preparations, and has cleaning, disinfecting and hygiene practices, social distancing strategies, how to limit transmission from visitors, Infection Control including recommended p. P. E. , and potential alternatives during p. P. E. Shortages. Screening and temperature protocols for incoming individuals, staff and visitors, medical isolation of confirmed and suspected cases, including considerations for cohort in individuals with spaces are evaluationslth care including testing for covid19, Clinical Care for confirmed and suspected cases, considerations for persons at high risk for severe disease from covid19. We are working closely with the center for Disease Control, and the department of homeland security, as well as other state and federal agencies on our pandemic planning. Lasalle corrections reviews c. D. C. Guide us routinely and continues to update protocols to remain consistent with c. D. C. Guidance. We will continue to incorporate the cdcs covid19 guidance, coupled with a rapidly changing adaptation of state and local health departments. Also, Lasalle Corrections continues our focus on operational and Communications Planning reinforcing hygiene , practices, intensifying cleaning and disinfecting of facilities, and monitoring of potential cases. Continue to increase social distancing, having staggered males and relocations in order to limit large gatherings. Those in oury to custody is paramount, and Lasalle Corrections is firmly committed to the health and welfare of artane population. Lasalle corrections will remain diligent in operating our facilities at the highest level of safe, secure and humane settings for our staff, those in custody. I assure you that our team will continue to work very hard every day to ensure facilities operating under the safest and most tactical conditions to reduce the risk of exposure and prevent further spreading of covid19. Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you today and for your support. I remain committed to working with congress and my colleagues to ensure the continued welfare and safety of our detained populations. Rice thank you, mr. Cooper. I will remind the subcommittee, we each have five minutes to question the panel. I recognize myself first and ask questions. Detentioner, in the center in arizona which your company operates, at least 250 detainees have now tested positive for coronavirus among an average population of about 1100 people. Thats nearly 5 of the detainees at the facility. There are also reports indicating that employees have been pressured to keep working after showing signs of the coronavirus, and that staff are not told what other workers or detainees have tested positive for the virus. Will you come it to launching an investigation into these reports of potential negligence at the facility . Hininger thank you for your questions. Let me first say that since the beginning, we have been working , and alsoth i. C. E. The c. D. C. , receiving their guidance on exactly how we should adjust and calibrate our observations appropriately. That has informed our planning process during that period of time. As it relates to the facility in arizona, have had individuals test positive that you just noted, both staff and detainees. The numbers i think you indicated are year to date, or during a. Of time. They are lower today. Fact, i would say there is about 90 employees to do who are positive with covid19. Rice i just wanted to ask, yes or no, would you agree to open up an investigation into those allegations . Mr. Hininger we dont have to wait for an investigation, we are looking at these in realtime. If appropriate, we need to make a change or a tweak or and has or processes, we are doing those in realtime. Chairwoman rice one of the first pieces of guidance issued by the c. D. C. Was, if you feel sick am a stay home. They said that every single american. I just want to ask all the witnesses, yes or no, because i have very limited time, will each of you commit here today that you will let your staff say home if they are experiencing symptoms . Yes or no. Yes. Yes, we did that weeks ago. Yes. Yes. Yes. Chairwoman rice thank you. We know that i. C. E. Detainees are still being transferred between facilities around the country, which is inevitably continuity to the spread of this virus. Or no, has any of your companys ever requested that i. C. E. Holds transfers to your facilities due to safety concerns . No. Chairwoman rice everyone else . Mr. Marquardt for mtc, we are in constant communication on safety concerns of inmates being transported but we have a dialogue back and forth. If we get someone with the temperature or anything we immediately stop the transfer , and we are regularly in dialogue about that issue. Chairwoman rice so, if you get someone who actually appears to be having symptoms, you immediately put them in isolation, you dont refuse them once you take them from i. C. E. . Mr. Marquardt if they show up on the bass, they are held in isolated, until we get on the phone with i. C. E. And determine the proper course of action, whether they go to the hospital or go somewhere else. That happens on a regular basis. Yes, we are constantly in communication about the subject. Mr. Hininger yes, corecivic is consistent with other operators with medical staff going to the bus and doing screenings on the bus before they walk into the facility, to determine if they are showing symptoms. And we do the same. Chairwoman rice anyone else . Lasalle does the same as what was just mentioned. Chairoman rice the recognizes mr. Thompson, from mississippi, to continue his questions. Rep. Thompson thank you very much, madam chair lady. Mr. Hininger responded to my question, and i will go to mr. Zoley. Mr. Zoley i honestly forgot the question. [laughter] rep. Thompson we were talking about the number of employees that you have had impacted by covid19. Mr. Zoley sure. Um, we have approximately 3700 employees at i. C. E. Facilities. We have tested 991. 167 or positive. 69 have recovered. Negative. There was only one geo staff member in hospital at this time. There have been zero covid19 deaths among staff. All staff receive wellness training upon arrival to the facility. Any staff not cleared or denied entry into the facility are then sent home and advised to be tested. Rep. Thompson thank you very much. Mr. Marquardt. Mr. Marquardt we have 1200 employees at the facilities we operate, and 73 have tested positive. Rep. Thompson mr. Cooper . Mr. Cooper sir, we have just over 3000 employees, and the number of staff at tested positive was 144. Rep. Thompson thank you very much. We will go back around again for the questions. Does testing positive impact your ability of staff to facilitate, or do you have a plan in place to manage covid19related shortages . Mr. Zoley that has not impacted our ability for adequate staffing, primarily because we are at 50 occupancy or less, so the staffing necessary is less. Hininger . Son mr. Mr. Hininger yes, sir, similar answer. The range of is in 50 70 5 occupancy, so that has affected staffing in a positive way. We also have facilities in close proximity that give us flexibility to move staff between facilities also. Rep. Thompson mr. Marquardt . Mr. Marquardt similarly, we have not had problems with staffing in our facilities. Rep. Thompson mr. Cooper . Gov. Cooper i would say the same as the others. That areacilities close enough that we can pull staff if needed from other facilities. Rep. Thompson ok. The fact that you have a population that you are managing highly and potentially contagious, how do you determine which employees get tested . First. Inger mr. Hininger yes, sir. So we do testing every day, every shift, for every employee in the institution, both in temperature and also a symptom check. If an employee is not cleared when they enter the facility, they are asked to be sent home. No worries about their job or their salaries. Stay home. It does appear you potentially have symptoms for covid. Typically within a day or two, they get tested. If they are positive, we follow the guidance of the c. D. C. , which is 14 days of being self isolated at home, again with no adverse impact to their employment or salary and benefits. Rep. Thompson thank you. Mr. Zoley . My response is similar, mr. Chairman, with the exception that would have, at nine facilities, done saturation testing, that is testing all facilities and all staff. And we are asking for permission from i. C. E. To do the same at our other facilities. Rep. Thompson thank you. Mr. Marquardt . Do similardt we screening of our employees entering the facility, temperature checks, asking if they have traveled anywhere or have had symptoms. The same questions. Tests,s of covid19 tests would be available to employees who exhibit symptoms, who have had exposure to someone with covid19, and the availability of test for employees in the community varies greatly, but in many communities, it has been very is a. Anybody does not have to have a reason, they can just go into a a parking lot, wherever they are, and get tested. So there has been good availability. We are following the guidance of i. C. E. And the c. D. C. In testing. Rep. Thompson i understand that. I thought that for your employees will come to work, do you have a specific protocol for them . Not out in the communities, but mr. Marquardt we do the same screening. So they would be screened at the entrance to the facility. They cannot enter the facility until they have tested and had their temperature check. If they are at 104 and above, they cannot enter the facility. We go through a variety of screening questions every time they come to the facility to check that. Rep. Thompson mr. Cooper. . Mr. Cooper yes, sir. Rep. Thompson i beg pardon . Mr. Cooper can you hear me now . Yes, sir. We do the same sort of screening with every employee that comes in and makes sure they are not allowed in if they do not pass the screening. We have done employees saturation testing at one facility, but that was just last week, and we dont have all those results back. Rep. Thompson thank you very much. I yield back, madam chair. Chairwoman rice thank you, mr. Chairman. I recognize the Ranking Member of the whole committee, the gentleman from alabama, mr. Rogers. Rep. Rogers thank you, madam chairwoman. Can you hear me . Recall thewe tremendous challenges organizations in our country and around the world were facing due to shortages of personal protective equipment back in april. Nd in fact, Many Organizations are still facing the same challenges. I understand that you were able to deploy p. P. E. To all staff and detainees at your facilities very early during this pandemic. Can you share with us how you at the time were able to work with your suppliers to make sure you had enough for all of your detainees and employees early in the pandemic . Mr. Zoley i think it is primarily because we are potentially a largescale user, so we were able to place very large orders of hundreds of thousands of masks with vendors who rented our business, frankly. And they give it to us before they give it to somebody else. Rep. Rogers i have heard reports of that around the country. Mr. Marquardt, we are constantly learning new information and updated guidance throughout the pandemic. When new guidance is issued, what processes or procedures do you have in place to address the new guidance or the problems . Mr. Marquardt in terms of covid procedures . Rep. Rogers yes . Mr. Marquardt it is a weekly if not daily occurrence of that new information has been coming out, and we change procedures accordingly. We have an incident command structure similar to what mr. Hininger explained is going on at corecivic. In early march, we implemented a system at all of our facilities and as a corporation. Is on a daily basis but we are making sure that supplies are available to all of our facilities, that there is a command structure in place for any issues that come up. That we have a plan, an action plan for what needs to be accomplished that day or that week. So, that is how we monitor. Medicala director of monitoring the c. D. C. Every day on what new guidance comes out. We relay that to all of our facilities. They have done a phenomenal job in reacting. We havent really had any problem with staff or detainees in terms of this is an inconvenience to everybody, but everybody, through education and training, we explain the importance and how critical this is. People pitch in and go the extra mile to do whatever we ask and what ever c. D. C. Guides us to do. Rep. Rogers this would be for each panelist. I have heard the word overcrowded used or misused to relate to i. C. E. Facilities during the pandemic, but it is i. C. E. Rstanding that all dedicated facilities have been operating at 70 or less. Good each of you address the issue of capacity at your facilities and share how your facilities are abiding by c. D. C. Guidance based on that capacity . I will start with mr. Zoley. Mr. Zoley as i said previously, our facilities are less than 50 capacity. That permits us to have improved social distancing in dormitorystyle housing, as well as cellroom style housing, as well as rooms for occupancy of four or eight individuals. We can separate people into alternating bunks and rooms, alternating Housing Units. So it has worked very well. Rep. Rogers mr. We have about 17,000 beds we have available on any given day, but operational from 9000 to 11,000 historically. To occupancy and consistent with cdc guidelines. It allows us greater flexibility. Before the pandemic began, there were already very rapid declines in populations underway, and that has continued every month of this year. Our populations are at 34 of occupancy. We have quite a bit of room first for isolating individuals or groups who come in on different days and on different esses. We have not had on different buses. I have taken detainees out of the population. Today any detainee over 55 years old who has chronic conditions will not come into one of our facilities. All of these things have added to help us in dealing with the pandemic. My time has expired. Thank you mr. Rogers. I now recognize the gentleman from new jersey. I now recognize i am here. Thank you. Thank you. Madam chair, i appreciate the opportunity to speak today. This is a timely topic for the committee to explore. Say before the pandemic, detainees had reported troubling , someces of use of force solitary confinement and. Unishment, and retaliation in at least one of your detention facilities, since covid19, such retaliatory action has grown more frequent, including at least 12 instances of use of tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets. Are your contract guards carrying pepper spray and teargas . You each to respond, please. I will respond. I am not aware of the incidents you are talking about. Our detention officers do not carry pepper spray. We have it on site, and we are prepared to handle it, but we or hadt discharged it that problem. I regularly visit the detention facilities and talk to the detainees, hundreds of them. I was asked, how are you doing . , how about their stories they have been treated, the food, the medical care. It is a positive story. They are appreciative. With respect and dignity, and they are appreciative of that. Thank you for that answer. Next, please. Spray or pepper gas is not carried on the individual. We follow it governs what our employees are able to carry. I have had staff onsite in real time for operations. Answer is similar to the our guards individually do not carry pepper spray. It is available in special locations, but only done so onsite. Thank you. Next. My answer would be like mr. Hinigers. Needed,it available if but we have standards in regards to the use of any chemical agent. Thank you. That according to , pepper sprays can increase a persons chance of catching a respiratory illness such as covid19 . Does anybody . I know we go through special health care protocols. When it has been used, everybody is taken to the Health Care Unit for examination if necessary. Some side may cause effects, and therefore we do proactively engage [indiscernible] aware it could have an effect on [indiscernible] no one is aware of any time bullets, pepper or teargas used by officers against detainees since the covid19 pandemic . Are you all categorically denying that . We have not used any of those devices since the pandemic began, no. Absolutely not. Thank you. Incident at our california facility where chemical agents were used. I am not aware of any use of chemical agents since covid19. One gentleman acknowledged there was an issue. I know i was not crazy or just making it up. They were on a days long Hunger Strike to protest the food, and their vulnerability to covid19 when guards reportedly corralled protesting detainees and issued pepper spray on them. There are similar accounts at facilities across the u. S. There has been a difficult issue with the definition of detainees. They are not convicts. They are being detained. I think what happens is the to one personred being a convicted criminal as a detainee, i would hope all of you can clarify to your staffs the difference between the two, and act accordingly. I do not think people are making these things up, something is happening. Maybe at times it gets blown out of proportion, or by the time it gets to the fifth person it gets exaggerated. Or maybe not. Maybe these things are happening. I suggest to you that you keep a strong oversight on these issues, because if and when we , there areherwise going to be repercussions that i do not think any of you would like to see or appreciate. With that, i yield back. I now recognize the gentlelady from arizona. Thank you, madam chairman. Ceos to say to the testifying today, we are in this together and it is difficult. It has been difficult for your companys and for hospitals, Nursing Homes, for all of them. It in your voice that you are doing everything you can to protect your employees and the detainees. Thank you. I want to ask a question or given opportunity to mr. Hiniger , who is with core. I went down to the facility a while ago precovid, and i thought it was run well. In the news recently, that facility has been in the news and brought up by the chairwoman. They said these are the allegations i am sure you are aware of them basically they said there was a shortage of masks and gloves, they are rationed. There is a shortage of staff. It detainees are saying they have one hour out of 24 hours that they are out of their cell. 127 outeen said before of 300 employees have tested positive. Immigrantsrted 242 tested positive since the beginning of the pandemic. I want to give you an opportunity to respond. Sometimes media are biased. If you would like to respond. Congresswoman, thank you very much, and thank you for your recent visit. We are proud of that operation and all our operations around the country. The eloy facility does have adequate supplies. We have as of last week, 152,000 mass nationwide in our facilities, plenty of masks innovatory. We have the flexibility to have , weer usage at one facility get that through our central purchasing program to get masks if there is a higher utilization. Adequate supplies are there. We had abouteloy, positiveur staff test for covid19. That was a point in time. As of last week, we have less than 100 positive, and we are going through the appropriate protocols to isolate. About 50 , we are occupancy. That gives us flexibility on staffing. At 95 , you are overstaffed as far as occupancy. Street, there is a nice contract, so we are able to move staff between facilities. Becauseelf isolating some were found positive through the test. We are comfortable with the staff levels, and changing staff between facilities if appropriate. Been anna there has uptick in positive cases within the state. Reflective of our staff, we are consistent with what we see in the general community. Thank you. I have another question quickly. Masks inquired to wear your facility . Just employees and detainees . Be our companyd policy along with i. C. E. Detention standards that all employees are required to wear masks, and it is recommended to detainees. Employees are required to wear masks, as our detainees. Same answer for the geo group. The same. Thank you, madam chairman. I yield back. I recognize the gentleman from california. Thank you, madam chair. I want to thank you and are Ranking Member for holding this most important hearing. I want to take a moment to thank our witnesses for taking time and interest to be with us for these important policy issues. A question for all four of you. You mentioned you had a rapid decline in population before covid. Is that correct, and what was the reason for that . You probably know more about that than i do. Differenceseasonal usually in detention facilities. The winter, christmas time, border crossings tend to go down. I do not think that is the entire reason. Changes. Arings same question for the other witnesses. I only have five minutes, my apologies. Similar answer by the geo group. Usyes, similar answer for too. We did see a change in the winter going into the spring months. Same. Thank you very much. There have been reports some of the detainees have been asked to , andfect their own cells they have been doing so without disinfectants. Can you answer the question, is that the case . Are detainees asked to clean their own selves, disinfect their own cells, and or they given proper equipment and disinfectant to do so . All employees and detainees are part of the hygiene and sanitation process. Everybody has a role to play in that, disinfecting their own areas. It is a group effort. We have been careful to have adequate supplies of disinfectant and cleaning materials, and have not had any shortages. Same question for the other witnesses. Request detainees clean up their general housing area, their bunk and desk and general area of where they reside. There is adequate cleaning supplies. They do not require any protective equipment, they are wellknown cleaners you would see in any health care or social setting. You provide them with the proper disinfectants . Yes, sir. Same question for the other witnesses. Approved i. C. E. Disinfectants that are continuously available to staff and residents to clean all Hard Services in the housing areas. I would say we do the same thing. They are required to clean their own cell and are given the appropriate equipment to do so. Do you have any supervision to make sure they are doing an adequate job disinfecting themselves . Infectious, and our goal whether in the u. S. Or other countries is to make sure we minimize the spread of covid19. We do notinees. Ant to spread covid19 anymore we want to minimize the spread. Do you have any supervision to make sure those detainees are doing an adequate job disinfecting their own cells . The question is for all of you. Yes, sir. We absolutely have staff in the actual housing areas that regularly walk along the cells and go inside the cells to check for cleanliness. That is a practice you do outside of a pandemic like this. With the cleaning supplies, they are in the unit or right outside the unit but within close proximity so they are available. We are doing a lot of town Hall Meetings in the unit to reinforce the message about hygiene and cleanliness within the unit and a housing areas, and reinforce that education. Yes, we have maintenance supervisors that assist and supervise detainees in carrying out their housekeeping responsibilities. We have monitors in every housing unit that continuously Good Housekeeping practices regarding sanitation, taking healthds, care precautions. Sanitation could not be a higher priority for us. It is critical and everybodys job to do that. Every detention officer is trained in their expectations of maintaining Housing Units. Supervisory staff have roles to and in and do audits inspections. The facility administrator is on top of that as well. Everybody is focused on it. It is not an issue we are fighting people over. They understand how critical it is and it is a group effort, everybody is pitching in. I hate to sound like a broken record, but i agree, and i would covid,y covid or no detainees do clean their housing area. Our staff would move them to go in and clean that sell up. Clean that cell up. I am out of time, so i yield. I want to direct a question to mr. Hiniger. Incident use of force was referenced. You claimed there have been no use of pepper spray agents are rubber bullets at any of your facilities since the outbreak. A public reporting however, spokesperson acknowledged pepper spray was used. Would you like to address the statement of the spokesperson and amend your earlier statement . I am sorry, i understood the question was relevant to i. C. E. Detainees. Yes, we did have the use of a spray at a facility earlier. I now recognize the gentleman from pennsylvania. Thank you. I would like to thank all of the witnesses for appearing today. Additionally to think all members of i. C. E. And cpb for their continued work in this unprecedented time. Briefly, what i have been hearing, there are a lot of changing protocols, changing guidelines as we have learned more about this novel coronavirus. Can you give us a quick overview of how your company specifically has been able to implement new protocols and guidelines . Yes, they are not anything complicated. Ppe is a good example, at the beginning of the pandemic there were limited supplies, and the guidance was ppe should be reserved for those in medical fields. The Surgeon General in late other thanid people medical workers should not be using it. We were not at that point. Then that changed in march quickly. We artyuickly have supplies on hand, so we were never without it but we did not have supplies for every staff and detainee. We quickly mobilized and increased our orders. A number of correctional projects withrted offenders to make masks. We have made tens of thousands of cloth masks, which are primarily what employees are not dealing with covid positive detainees are wearing. We have made tens of thousands of cloth masks and use them for our own use as well as disturbing them in the community for Community Service projects. Testing procedures have changed dramatically from start to finish. Every component of this, we and haveng the way changed hygiene recommendations, ppe recommendations, testing recommendations. More is learned. , we haveponent of this a medical director on our corporate staff who is monitoring this and helping doctors give directions to our facilities about what changes they need to make on a regular basis. On yourgratulate you adaptability. As more testing becomes available, have your protocols changed on which detainees are tested . Relying on they guidance of the cdc and i. C. E. , more than coming up with our own protocols. We may make adaptations in terms of the layout of the facility and how we have to implement a specific recommendation, but we are not coming up with recommendations from what cdc and i. C. E. Are telling us what to do. We work with local and state officials, the health departments, new mexico has been interested in this topic, and we have worked cooperatively with them. They have a number of changes in how we do these things. There have been suggestions that are very welcome. You are following local, state, and cdc recommendations is imperative and what is necessary. You mentioned your on genuity making. What are the requirements for wearing face masks . Who has to wear them . Everybody does. All employees who work in the facility and all detainees have to wear a face mask at all times. Detainees do not have to wear a face mask when they are eating or sleeping. Movement inhat, any the facility, they have to have a face mask on, and our employees do as well. We are actively enforcing that. Changing behaviors is essential for safety. Really quickly, what are the consequences if employees or detainees do not follow the protocols . We have a progressive discipline process for employees which we can implement as we need. This has not been a disciplinary situation. Everybody is concerned about that. They welcomed the information we give them, and it has not been a problem to get people to buy into this. We have not been disciplining many people at all. Thank you for your concise answers. I yield the remainder of my time. I now recognize [indiscernible] thank you. Thank you Ranking Member. , as of july i. C. E. 10 in your Processing Center in the district i serve, there has cases, thesitive highest number in the country. Because i have several questions i want to ask, can you please list the top three reasons why they have seen nearly 150 cases of covid19 . Hastero Processing Center two positive cases currently. That number is true in the past, but it is not true today. We brought down the number significantly. To answer your question just to clarify on that point, more of the reason is they did a mask test in the facility, and the vast majority of people who tested positive were asymptomatic. There was a large number that came on as a result of testing. That is not the only reason, but the biggest reason. Through the course of the infection, it takes up to three weeks to tell a person is symptomfree and will test negative. That facility we have tested everybody. We are through the testing [indiscernible] i will move on from this question. Cases whether 142 symptomatic or not cause concern for me for the detention facility and the community that surrounds it. Asymptomatic or not, that provides the potential for the spread of covid19. I want to move on quickly to your contract with otero county. I appreciate the questions on capacity and the ability to reduce the spread of covid19. I wanted to followup on that conversation. On march 31, a letter was sent citing theunty of an of termination significant decrease in detainee population. To hope to noted keep the facility fall, and hope the population will increase that is a quote. It is my understanding they are negotiating a contract modification to continue operating the facility. Based on that letter, it seems depend on a high detainee population. Is that correct . Otero issues at the Processing Center is that the facility was designed for 1100 detainees. Detainees number of dropped to around 300. It is the terms of the contract i guess. Priority is the safety and health of the detainees, it has nothing to do with profits and we would never make a decision on profits. Short and i want to make sure i continue. I appreciate you answer my questions that your contract is determined based on the number of detainees in the facility. Thatreciate your statement you would never seek to have a higher population if it put detainees or staff at risk. During a pandemic, would you torease agree increasing precovid levels would put staff at risk . Could get her up at a variety of levels to keep people safe but i would not deny the beennt low levels have helpful in managing the pandemic because we have a lot of room for social distancing and keeping people safely apart. I think what happened is not bad at all. Increasingu agree the population to prepandemic levels could compromise detainee and staff health . I think it is more complicated question then yes or no. There are a number of factors. We could come up with different procedures to maintain distancing at higher levels. I do not think it is automatically because they are higher levels that facility is level, we whatever have to make sure we can ensure people stay safe. My time has expired. Thank you. Thank you. The gentleman from mississippi, mr. Goetz. Thank you. Youpreciate each of performing an Important Service for our country during a difficult time. Speaki am not able to about the facilities you each but i am able to speak about the one in mississippi. The administration at the facility has been in regular contact with my staff during the outbreak. I believe you have taken aggressive steps to protect the safety of detainees and employees. Core civic,s to when did your organization begin to monitor the pandemic . Early february we were monitoring the outside timeonment and during that we started taking proactive chainto check on supply and to see what additional things we needed to tweet to k to make surewea we were prepared. In the winter and spring we activated the Emergency Center which is consistent with the protocols used by fema and uses similar software. We activated that in march and it serves as a clearinghouse to digest information from cdc and that allows for realtime guidance hasecause changed during this time so we want to make sure we can quickly get information out. Forcerted a covid19 task with a leader that has experience in these types of events and they are providing realtime guidance, advice and medical direction to leadership within our facilities. Guidelines have changed from cdc. Flexible at to be your facility . Absolutely. Cdc and ice have provided us guidance and correction and feedback on policy and processes but we are watching closely with the governors and Public Health authorities and city and county leaders are doing. It has been a customized approach based on certain jurisdictions not just with steps that protocols and requirements, but also what is going on in the community. If we see an event in the community or state where you have a higher number of positive, we know it has an impact on us and might have changing guidelines from state or local officials. There was conversation early on about when inmates are transferred to a facility, about the processing of new detainees, transferred to one of your facilities. Can you speak on that and expand on that . Yes. Beenve a process that has endorsed and somewhat directed by ice that we do a protocol for every group of individuals leaving our facilities and we go through this document that has been endorsed by ice and we get by oural check done and depending on many stepshorities, we follow the appropriate direction provided by ice. Individual transfer into your facility if they are showing symptoms of covid19, what would happen to the detainee at that point . When the bus comes in we have medical staff go on the bus symptom andand do. Emperature checks if they show signs of covid19 they will be isolated. Beone outside will quarantined for 14 days before going into general population. Thank you. Madam chairman, i yields back. Recognize the gentle lady new york, ms. Clark. Thank you. Thank you to the panel for appearing before us today. More than 3000 immigrants in ice custody have tested positive for coronavirus. Given the lack of testing within the facilities, we know the true number is much higher. We also know much more could be done to protect immigrants in custody from covid19 but unfortunately, this administration and i believe your company has failed to put safety first. Today is about accountability. Many of these facilities are bought by private Companies Like yours. You do not just get to answer to your stakeholders. You must hold those answers to us. You must answer to the families of immigrants in your custody who right now are worried not only about the immigrants in they areody, right now also wondering if they will ever see their loved ones again once ice supports them. Whether they will catch coronavirus in one of the crowded cells that tend to be the case with your business model. So let me ask. Here are a few facts. Not enough is being done to stop the spread in your facility. 280 six detainees at bluebonnet detention facilities tested positive. Detainees at montgomery Processing Center. The wynnnees at Correctional Center. Deloitte alsod at incidences ins which people that mightve been aposed are grouped together, dangerous practice known as cocourting which is directly linked to the spread in detention. So my question is for all of you gentlemen. Do you think your facilities were unable to control the spread, was it a lack of resource, what was it that that ino recognize facilities like yours, the spread would infect rapidly . Would you like to start, mr. Cooper . Mr. Cooper i would be happy to. Being responsible to you, that i feel like we are also responsible to the good lord and that is the one i care and how we treat anyone. So the safety of everyone is our concern. Itopping covid, am pretty sure my question was what do you do to control it, not stop it. Control it. To control it we follow the by guidelines handed down Public Health authorities and i think it has been very successful when we look at the numbers we had initially and the you do we have now, when mass testing you will get higher numbers. Staff has think our done very well to try to control fact best we can and the as i mentioned in my Opening Statement that we have not had any detainees succumb to covid19 speaks for itself. Mr. Honaker . Have a 24 7 operation and always thinking about the unexpected. If it is a natural disaster, a diseases,communicable we are thinking about how to prepare for the unexpected and i talked about earlier not only the investments we made in the but we have force, leaned on cdc and their guidance on what we should be doing proactively and also during the pandemic. Along with the guidance for mice. We have not been perfect but i feel confident in saying we have made deep investments in protective equipment and making sure we have the appropriate staff that they feel comfortable and safe when they come into our institution and we have also rewarded them with a hero bonus and given them extra time off and told them if they feel sick, do not come into work. Selfquarantine for 14 days. It has not been perfect but i feel good we have made the appropriate investments along the way. Heavilyve also invested in the protective equipment we have distributed to all of our employees and detainees. There is an importance on testing. We have tested almost 5000 detainees to date and we believe saturation testing, testing everyone, is the best thing you can do and that is why we are excited about getting 45 avid machines which are the most effective test because people talk about tests when do you believe that will be in full effect . September when we get the machines. Very well. Mr. Barnharts. Is no greater priority for us than the health and safety of detainees and staff. We will do all we can. There is no perfect solution and until there is a vaccine and a cure for this unfortunate infection, we will have the same problems that the community has. The big advantage we have is the ability to isolate and control and othersat schools dont. It gives us a big advantage in controlling the spread. The biggest thing we can do, i think testing is an important management tool but it is not a panacea. What will make a difference is controlling behavior and there were three things i apologize. I am over time but i appreciate your feedback. I know recognize the gentlelady from california. Thank you. Mr. Rizzoli about this question is for you. I am sorry. Texas,tlelady from jackson lee. I apologize. Thank you for yielding and for the hearing. Gentlemen, you are being asked questions over and over again. Please understand it is our responsibility to engage in oversight. With that in mind, i think it is appropriate because i am in one of the hotspots in your facilities located in a hotspot in texas. And 325265,000 cases people have died. This meeting and others i am dealing with about major testing is lifeanddeath. I would disagree with the gentleman who indicated testing was not important, you might want to correct his statement. It is one of the most important elements of stopping the spread, particularly as it relates to asymptomatic people. Of mylizing the shortness time, i just need quick answers. Mr. Henniker, what is social distancing to you . It is the guidance of six feet further apart and relates to the institution making sure areas like food service and medical are under other areas. Benefited from having to puty less than 50 greater distances between each other in dormitory housing. How are you dealing with the new information that covid19 is airborne . Secure are you using n95 asks . Masks . We are using surgical masks for the detainees which are replaced two or three times a week or at their request. And to be more solid than that. What do you do with asymptomatic people . Do you retest one test that shows negative and you might be positive within a week or two they have been exposed . That includes employees and detainees. I want to clarify. I did not say testing was not important. I said it was not a panacea and that behavior and controlled movements was the best way. What are you doing about asymptomatic . Asymptomatic so the most integral part of the equation because someone can be asymptomatic and we do not catch them during the screening procedure and once they take a virus, it takes an average of two to five days before they would test positive so even if we test everyone who comes in are you retesting . That is my question. It depends on the facility. The facility in new mexico we have retested everyone and other facilities there is not the availability of testing. Mr. Cooper, do you have medical teams on site . Do. Es, we does it include a doctor . At some locations, doctors are there every day. Sometimes, other locations, three times a week. Let me ask you to look into your facility on commerce street in texas. I would like to make sure you get back to me directly on that. The White House Task force, have they been engaging with each of you about particular ways to handle Detention Centers and your facilities . Cooper, have you been engaged with the White House Task force . I have not personally been engaged with the White House Task force but i see the guidance that comes out. Do you follow that . Yes we do yes follow cdc guidelines. Mr. Cooper, do you follow that . Cdces we follow the guidelines and dhs recommendations. We have been rigorous and stateing cdc, ice, and and local similar answer. Cbc, ice, and each county. Same answer. Thank you. Fauci dr. Fosse dr. Continues his work despite being demonized by important unfortunate conversations. I think it is important to note he is an integral part of the White House Task force. Ofy i will have a number issues i want to follow up on four extensive information and retesting and what they are doing with asymptomatic people. Thank you and i yield back. Thank you ms. Jackson lee. I recognize the gentlelady from california. Thank you. And mr. Hank, i serve the second vice chair of the hispanic caucus. Sent a our chairman letter to you both dealing with concerns the cdc has regarding treatment of individuals in ice and ice contracted facilities in regards to the pandemic and a bit ability of the facilities to contain the spread of the virus. Brieftter requested you the hispanic caucus on questions and concerns we have. Will you both commit to doing that, and if so, when . I think i would. I have been quite busy preparing for this meeting, so we would be sometime this month. Thank you. Mr. Kissinger . The letter was received late friday afternoon and will follow up with staff as appropriate. We have several facilities within a number of districts on alwaysmittee and not available for tours or opportunities to see operations firsthand. I notice you did not make a complete commitment but i hope you will meet with the hispanic caucus. We have a huge constituency and many of our members you have facilities in. Federal judges have found at least two facilities in Northern California and broward florida are creating unreasonable risks to detainees. A judge found a facility had created a massive risk of infection. Dhs Office Civil Rights and foundliberties recently fissures and leadership contributed to the lack of medical care that resulted in medical injury. Found conditions rose to deliberate indifference and recently raised concerns about a continued failure to provide detainees with the minimum necessities, tantamount to the inflection of infliction of cruel and unusual punishment. These are the words of the judge. How can we take your assurances today seriously when your facilities repeatedly did not live up to the basic standards . We think our facilities not only meet but exceed standards. We have onsite medical staff and onsite ice that helps oversee whether we are meeting andcontractual requirements have a sophisticated Health Services unit that oversees the Health Services at all ice facilities and i think it is really hard for any Health Care Organization in the world. You these are words from the court and the judge but in addition the finding of the civil rights and Civil Liberties youich i concurred with, if really do not see how that could concerns or you do not believe it is happening, i think there needs to be a sit down and they look into how theres such a huge difference between what these offices are saying and what the judges are saying, which is different from what we are hearing from you today. In april a group, group of women held at the ice Processing Center came forward alleging they went several days without access to soap or cleaning supplies to protect them from the virus. Since these concerns were raised, at least 15 migrants at the facility have tested positive for the virus. Have these reports been investigated and determined if legitimate meant actions have yielded the spread in local communities . I am not familiar with that situation. I would find it surprising sanitation and Hygiene Products available continuously. I would like to get back to you after investigating. I would appreciate that. Can you help shed some light on what steps you have taken to respond when a detainee has concerns like this that they dont have access to proper Hygiene Products, and what your policy is with providing personal protective equipment to detainees . I know employees probably get it. What about detainees . Our policy is to make it continuously available, meaning they get it on schedule two or three times a week and they get it if they ask for it if they have run out of it and they need more. It should be available at all times. That is my desire and i think that is our policy. Respond today,t getting back on what steps you raisesen a detainee concerns about not having access to proper hygiene, that would be helpful. Never received such a request personally myself. But does your staff raise it to your level . I understand a detainee would not have access to you directly. But if my constituents call me, because of the chain and i hear about it. I get letters all the time and i refer them to the appropriate position within our company. I yield back. Gentlemannize the from colorado. For allowing me to participate in the hearings. The center in colorado is known for medical violations and these complaints are not unique to colorado. Poor conditions existed and have exacerbated by the failure of ice in the response to covid19. The Trump Administration has not stopped transferring detainees between facilities daily. Hundreds of detainees being moved in and out of the colorado facility with little notice. Would you commit today to providing at least 24 hours notice in advance to the families of the detainee and their lawyer upon notice of a transfer out of the colorado facility . I do not know if i have that ability. Do if iceextent you has given you time to provide the notice, will you do so . To look into our ice procedures of whether i am allowed to do something of that nature. The notion your facilities would not be able to provide a monocle of notice modicum of notice to me is a bare minimum requirement and disappointing that you will not commit to that today. Someve heard reports transfers could be in retaliation for speaking out against Inhumane Treatment or a lack of Hygiene Products. Into and out of your facility for retaliatory reasons . I do not. Are you aware of the transfer of 100 detainees out of the colorado facility to places such as the antijail . Geoeye am not county jail . No, i am not. I would be appreciating if respond to our inquiries in that regard as we try to obtain more information about these transfers. I want to ask about use of a powerful chemical disinfectant inside to some of the immigration detention facilities. Is understanding is it causing running noses, not shut, difficulty breathing. The manufacturer has requirements of their use. Their usereports of in arizona, including being sprayed while detainees are still in the room. Youyou commit today that will stop using those dangerous chemicals not in line with manufacturers instructions . No, i cannot. That cleaningng product, which is registered with the Environmental Protection agency and follows strict safety guidelines by the fda. Neutral cleaning product has been used at the atalanta facilities as well as other facilities for nine years. The question is not as to whether you will stop using the chemical, but making sure it is used in line with manufacturer instructions . Absolutely. I misunderstood your question. The last question regards performancebased National Detention standards. If you know the ice performance be ables that should to volunteer for work but otherwise should not be required to work, has geo ever used the threat of solitary confinement or segregation or other sanction to force individuals to clean common areas . Required by ice to keep their own personal areas clean. That is a requirement by ice. Im not asking about their personal areas, dr. Im asking about common areas. Forcedtainees ever been byo volunteering work threatening disciplinary segregation, administrative segregation, or solitary confinement . Absolutely not. As im sure youre aware, there are multiple lawsuits pending where allegations have been made or cicely on that basis and my understanding from a letter made public last year, your Senior Vice President of Business Development asserted to the extent in those plaintiffs alleged disciplinary segregation was a threat, that came from ice policy. We can find nowhere in ice policy where such conduct would be permitted so i would ask that officelowup with our in response to that ice policy. Back, madam yield chair and i thank you for allowing me to participate. For all fourstions of our witnesses. Will you each commit today to adding a page on your website to report daily the number of covid positive employees at each of your facilities used for immigration detention operations . Assuming if ice can do it, all of you can do it. To or no, would you commit adding a page to your website with that information . We would absolutely follow up with ice. If appropriate, we would absolutely do that. If they do it, there shouldnt be any objection to you doing it. Pra contractor so we need to follow the terms and conditions of our contract, but we will followup with them. Similar response. To doing that, assuming it is ok with ice and doesnt violate hit the standards of people involved hippa standards of people involved. Just the numbers, not the names. Mr. Coopers . Have said, wers would be happy to get with governor partners and discuss that. Mr. Higgins, do you have a final question you would like to ask . I do, madam chair. Tracing, mr. Tact hart, you took an Opening Statement that you have advised your detainees questioned in some manner to determine if they have been in contact with any other human being with covid19. How are you possibly accomplishing that . It is difficult to know, in a cooperative, free environment and you are dealing with children of god who have been detained for one reason or another by the decision of ice. Who they are communicating with, who their families are, who theyve been in contact with, including from other nations, how are you conducting Contact Tracing with your detainees successfully . He seemed to indicate you are doing so successfully. I think my comment earlier was detainees coming into the facilities and asking them if they have been traveling to any highimpact areas like china or other places. Other areas have been added since then. In terms of actual Contact Tracing, we would only be doing that within the facility if someone tested positive. Understood. I heard your answer incorrectly earlier. Madam chairwoman, with that, thank you very much for convening this hearing and despite the technological challenges, it was wonderful to see you all and i look forward to restored regular order where we can commune in person, and i yield. I also just want to see if we are in a position to do another hearing like this. I understanding is that the republican side did not ask to have a witness at todays hearing. I wish i had known that because i would have suggested you get someone from ice. Maybe they would have had a more affirmative answer to you than they would have had. Does the general lady yield . Yes. Let me say ive had some indirect contact with ice about their participation in a hearing like this and they are following guidelines. They are receptive to meeting and attending a hearing like this in the future, but their theelines call for at least chair of the majority to be present with they have to appear in person. That is my understanding and im up prepared to stand corrected and hopefully, we can Work Together as we always have. Absolutely, mr. Higgins. I would be more than happy to sit with you in the Committee Room if that will get ice. Word, good lady, that i will work with them and my friends at ice and my contacts and we will circle back with your office. Thank you, mr. Higgins. I all of the Witnesses Today, want to thank you so much for your patience, for your presence, and your patience. These are extraordinary times and i apologize for the Technical Glitch we had. I am cognizant of your time. We went a little over and i am very grateful for your patience with this process. I ask unanimous consent enter into the record statements from the watch network about ice detention policies at operations justiceonal immigrant center about another ice contractor, Immigration Centers of america, whose facilities in farmville, virginia raised concerns about its practices in light of the ongoing pandemic and in addition, statements from family members of those who have died while in custody. Members of the come subcommittee may have additional questions for the witnesses and we ask that you respond expeditiously in writing to those questions. Without objection, the committee record shall be kept open for 10 days. On cspan two at 10 45 a. M. Eastern, a House Oversight subcommittee on everest to develop a safe Coronavirus Vaccine which is followed by former Vice President joe biden talking about his Clean Energy Plan at a Campaign Event in wilmington, delaware. At 4 00 p. M. Eastern, dr. Anthony fauci speaks to students about the coronavirus and slowing the spread. On cspan3, Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette talks about his agencys response to the pandemic at noon eastern. The president s, from public affairs, available now in paperback and ebook. Presents biographies of every president , organized by their ranking, by noted historians, from best to worst. And features perspectives into the lives of our nations chief executives and leadership styles. Is it our website www. Cspan. Org the president s to learn more about each president and his story and feature and order your copy today wherever books and ebooks are sold. Joining us from las vegas is john ralston, the editor of the nevada independent. As you look at the Race Campaign in 2020 with 3. 5 month before the election, give us the political lay of the land between joe biden and president donald trump. Trump by two other half points, although that was closer than it looked because the race was over by early voting, which lasts two weeks, and the democrats had ed