President Trump is requesting $152 million to restore Alcatraz and return it to operation as a federal prison, according to a budget proposal unveiled Friday for fiscal year 2027.
The San Francisco Bay facility, shuttered decades ago, would house inmates once again under the plan detailed in Trump's budget submission. The president first floated the idea last May, when he directed the Department of Justice, FBI, and Department of Homeland Security to explore reviving the notorious lockup.
Trump praised Alcatraz's historical standing as a maximum-security detention facility in a social media post at the time, signaling his desire to capitalize on the prison's austere reputation and remote island location.
The $152 million allocation represents the administration's formal push to move the concept forward. Alcatraz, which operated as a federal penitentiary for 29 years before closing in 1963, has become a tourist attraction and historical landmark in the decades since.
The proposal comes as Trump focuses on criminal justice and border security themes central to his policy agenda. Whether Congress will approve the substantial funding request remains uncertain, though Republican control of both chambers may improve the administration's chances.
The prison's isolated setting on an island in the bay presented both security advantages and logistical challenges when it operated. Officials have not yet detailed what specific crimes or classifications of prisoners would be housed there under a new regime.
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