Oneida Nation Reservation sign. PC: Fox 11 Online
ONEIDA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Amid recent Native American opposition to Indian tribes profiting from President Donald Trump’s immigration plans, a joint venture business under the Oneida Nation has received two recent contracts to work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — including on a project in Texas.
An online database for government contracts shows Oneida-Stantec JV LLC was awarded a $3.9 million contract last Friday and a $2.6 million contract Sept. 19.
Native Americans across the country have voiced backlash to these types of deals, pointing out their ancestors were once the subject of government-forced removals.
Online documents show Oneida-Stantec is based in Milwaukee and was formed in 2024 to receive government contracts in the environmental market.
In addition to the two recent ICE contracts, Oneida-Stantec has received six other contracts from the U.S. Department of Defense since September 2024, totaling more than $27.6 million.
Stantec dubs itself as a “global leader in sustainable engineering, architecture and environmental consulting” with six Wisconsin offices, including in De Pere and Sturgeon Bay.
The $3.9 million contract awarded last week is to perform construction and design quality assurance services through Aug. 28, 2026, to support ICE’s office of asset and facility management on a project in El Paso, Texas, according to the online database.
The $2.6 million contract is to provide facility condition assessments and property inventory information for ICE over a three-year period ending in September 2028.
The Oneida Nation says, “The Oneida Nation was made aware of this issue (Monday) and cannot comment until we have the full scope of the contracts and report from OESC.”
On Tuesday night, Oneida Nation posted a statement on Facebook that reads:
Late yesterday, the Oneida Business Committee became aware of a contract between the Nation’s holding company OESC Group, their subsidiary and the federal government, that may be associated with ICE facilities. Since becoming aware of this issue, the Nation has been completing its due diligence to address the issue in a legal and transparent manner. We are working in compliance with our corporate charter to take the steps necessary to ensure alignment between the Nation’s values and OESC group. The Nation has taken preliminary steps on this issue, and we ask for your patience as we navigate legal processes. More information is forthcoming over the next several days.
OESC stands for Oneida ESC Group, LLC, which was “formed in 2012 as a holding company to house subsidiaries to conduct business with the federal government, state and municipal governments and commercial and industrial customers throughout the world”, according to a 2024 quarterly report.
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