PHOENIX — A Phoenix congresswoman paid an unannounced visit Wednesday to an ICE facility that called 911 multiple times earlier this year for medical issues.
U.S. Rep. Yassamin Ansari walked up the Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in midtown Phoenix on Wednesday morning and asked to inspect the facility.
“There is so little visibility to the average American of what’s going on, and when so much of our taxpayer dollars are funding these facilities, it is incumbent upon members of Congress to keep conducting oversight,” she told reporters after her tour.
The field office, which has a detention capacity of 155, had only 29 people in custody, Ansari said. The facility is not designed for long-term detention.
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She said she was told a Department of Homeland Security waiver giving ICE facilities permission to break limits on capacity and holding time has been removed.
“I do think that is a good step because nobody should be held longer in a place like this longer than 12 hours,” she said.
Ansari said her visit was sparked by reports of “alarming conditions” at the field office. ICE agents made 11 different 911 calls between December 2025 and March 2026, the Arizona Mirror reported last week.
“We will continue to fight to make sure that there are basic standards of human dignity met in anywhere that our taxpayer dollars are funding,” she said.
Ansari told ABC15 she thinks constant oversight is needed.
“I think the way that immigration enforcement is happening under the Trump administration is a moral stain on this country,” she said.
The congresswoman, a Democrat who represents Congressional District 3, said she doesn’t support the $250 billion in funding for ICE passed by congressional Republicans, adding the money was allocated “while ripping away healthcare and food assistance from millions of Americans.”
Just over 400,000 people, including nearly 167,00 children, have lost SNAP benefits since President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill into law in July 2025.
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