The White House has earmarked $152 million in its fiscal year 2027 budget proposal to begin rebuilding the currently closed down Alcatraz jail so that it can be transformed into a “state-of-the-art secure prison facility.”
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) would use the investment to cover the first-year costs of rebuilding Alcatraz, the plan states, following on from President Donald Trump’s call last year to reopen the Californian facility.
The request is part of a broader BOP funding push described in the budget as necessary to address “crumbling” federal detention infrastructure.
Why It Matters
Alcatraz, an infamous prison located on an island in San Francisco Bay, has been closed for decades, but the jail has been a key focus of Trump’s policy, as he has previously expressed his wish to incarcerate the nation’s “most ruthless and violent offenders” in the facility.
The facility, different to the newly built “Alligator Alcatraz” in Florida, was first used as a jail during the American Civil War, though it was initially intended to be used as a naval defense fortification, and was later transferred to the U.S. Department of Justice for use by the BOP.
It has housed notorious criminals, including Al Capone and George “Machine Gun” Kelly, but after it closed as a jail in the 1960s, it was then opened to the public in 1973 as part of the National Park Service.
What To Know
The White House’s fiscal report “affirms the president’s commitment” to rebuilding Alcatraz, as well as seeking broader BOP funding increases, totaling $1.7 billion. The administration positions reopening Alcatraz as part of a plan to “secure America’s prisons.”
The plan also would invest in the BOP to “ensure competitive pay, safe working conditions, and an end to longstanding correctional officer shortages.”
However, the budget proposal does not spell out how long the rebuilding of the jail would take, and what costs might follow the $152 million sum set aside for the “first year” of development.
It was also not clear what the sum would go toward, and what this will mean about the facility’s current status as a tourist site under the National Park Service.
Despite Trump’s determination to get the jail up and running again, reopening the facility has been met with notable skepticism, as the jail is particularly costly to run.
It reportedly costs $13 per day to house one prisoner in the prison, which is more than 2.5 times the $5 per day average in the entire federal prison system, according to The San Francisco Chronicle.
The lack of running water and sewage on the island, alongside the fact all supplies have to be brought in by boat, have been cited as reasons for why reopening the jail may not be the best use of taxpayer money.
What People Are Saying
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, wrote in a post on X: “The Trump administration’s budget proposal is absurd on its face and should be rejected outright. Rebuilding Alcatraz into a modern prison is a stupid notion that would be nothing more than a waste of taxpayer dollars and an insult to the intelligence of the American people.
“Alcatraz is a historic museum that belongs to the public, and San Franciscans will not stand for Washington turning one of our most iconic landmarks into a political prop. At a time when communities are demanding real investments in public safety, this administration is pushing a cartoonish throwback that does nothing to address the challenges facing working families. I will work with my colleagues in the Congress to use every parliamentary and budgetary tactic available to block this lunacy.”
Representative Sydney Kamlager-Dove, a Democrat from California, wrote on X: “‘It’s not possible for us to take care of day care, Medicaid, Medicare; – Donald Trump, just days before he requested: $1.5 TRILLION in defense spending, a 40 percent increase; $350 BILLION for his illegal war on Iran; And $152 MILLION to reopen Alcatraz. HELL NO to it all.”
Senator Adam Schiff, a Democrat from California, wrote on X: “Alcatraz has been a destination for tourists from across the world, and Trump’s continued push to reopen it as a federal prison is a wasteful exercise in futility. He should focus on lowering the cost of living for the American people, not raising the cost of our prisons. Alcatraz generates millions in revenue and reopening it as a prison would be prohibitively expensive.”
What Happens Next
While the White House has put forward this proposal, Congress still has to approve the plan for it to come into effect, meaning the budget is more of a suggestion to lawmakers than potential legislation.
It is likely that the proposal will face scrutiny over feasibility, total cost, and how a prison conversion would mesh with Alcatraz’s current role as a major public attraction and historic site.
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