Why Merrimack Matters

The Merrimack fight produced the single most important disclosure in the detention expansion story: the New Hampshire state government released internal ICE planning documents that explained the Detention Reengineering Initiative for the first time publicly. These documents revealed:

• The 34-facility plan (16 processing centers + 8 mega-centers + 10 turnkey purchases)
• The September 30, 2026 deadline
• The “reengineering” language and hub-and-spoke model
• The capacity targets (1,000-1,500 for processing centers, 7,000-10,000 for mega-centers)
• The $38 billion nationwide price tag

The American Immigration Council’s definitive analysis of the program was based largely on these documents.

See merrimack-nh-warehouse for the facility entry.

The Fight

Community opposition paused and then killed the project. Key dynamics:

• Christmas Eve bombshell: Washington Post reported the plan on Dec 24, 2025, catching the town of ~30,000 off guard
• Town manager blindsided: Merrimack Town Manager Paul Micali said he was “surprised” to learn of the plans
• Bipartisan opposition: Both Republican Gov. Ayotte and the all-Democratic congressional delegation opposed the facility
• ACLU document release: ACLU-NH obtained and released internal ICE planning documents on Feb 3, 2026, proving state officials had known for weeks
• Governor forced disclosure: Ayotte released the full DHS “Detention Reengineering Initiative” documents on Feb 13
• Scrapped Feb 24, 2026: Ayotte announced DHS Sec. Noem agreed not to move forward

NOT Over: The Conditional Victory

Despite the Merrimack scrapping, the fight continues:

• March 18, 2026: DHS Secretary nominee Markwayne Mullin refused to rule out NH facility during confirmation
• March 25, 2026: Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons in writing: “ICE is assessing a variety of locations throughout the country”
• April 2026: State Rep. Wendy Thomas monitoring the Merrimack warehouse AND a Hudson warehouse as potential alternative sites
• Congressional response: NH delegation introduced legislation requiring ICE to get written community approval before building facilities; Sen. Hassan introduced separate bill requiring state/local approval

Legislative Responses

• HB 1609 (Rep. David Meuse): Would prohibit NH and its subdivisions from spending money on immigrant detention facilities or property for such use. Public hearing held Jan 15, 2026. Would NOT affect 287(g) agreements.
• Federal legislation: NH’s four-member congressional delegation introduced bills requiring ICE community consultation and state/local approval

Sources

• American Immigration Council: ICE’s Warehouse Purchases Herald New Model (Feb 24, 2026)
• NPR: ICE’s detention expansion meets resistance (Mar 17, 2026)
• DHS Won’t Rule Out ICE Facility in NH — InDepthNH (Apr 10, 2026)
• Trump’s DHS Nominee Won’t Rule Out NH — InDepthNH (Mar 20, 2026)
• Local activists claim victory — Maine Beacon
• ICE to ditch plan — NEPM
• NH Dems attempt to prohibit state funds for detention — NH Bulletin (Jan 20, 2026)