A federal database confirmed this week that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will open a new call center in Nashville, Tennessee, after launching a process to accept proposals from the public last year.
The confirmation came despite the confusion that came after The Tennessee Lookout reported last Friday that a federal database indicated the call center would actually be established in Adams, Tennessee, despite ICE recruiting personnel in Nashville. According to the outlet, the database was updated by Friday to show the call center would be established in Nashville.
Adams is notably the first name to appear in an alphabetical list of all incorporated communities in Tennessee.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) first revealed that ICE may build a new facility in Nashville last year, when it estimated operations would begin in March 2026.
Once operational, DHS said call center would be able to receive 7,000 calls per day, with employees trained specifically to respond to law enforcement agencies that enter into 287(g) agreements with ICE. These agreements, which are now required for Tennessee sheriffs, allow local authorities to perform certain federal immigration law enforcement tasks.
Potentially indicating how many jobs may be created at the facility, DHS also said the ICE call center would “be organized around three eight-hour shifts and a seven-day work week.”
The federal database reveals the new facility will require about $17.5 million from ICE, and shows the contract was awarded to Alaska-based Koniag Services, Inc.
Federal immigration authorities received $170 billion under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 championed by President Donald Trump. Of the funds, $46 billion were used to finish the wall along the border with Mexico, $45 billion for new ICE detention centers to hold more than 110,000 illegal aliens, and funding to hire 10,000 new ICE agents.
In March, ICE confirmed that both Nashville and Knoxville were under consideration for new detention centers that were made possible through Big Beautiful Bill funding.
A report from the Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference found that state and local law enforcement recorded more than 11,000 charges or convictions against illegal aliens in 2025.
In June, ICE announced that 117 illegal aliens were arrested following a week-long operation in East Tennessee. Last year, nearly 200 illegal aliens were arrested during a similar law enforcement operation in Nashville.
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Tom Pappert is a 2025 recipient of the Dao Prize and the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star. He also reports for the Star News Network. Follow Tom on X. Email tips to [email protected].
