Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2019	Mar. 31, 2018
Income Statement [Abstract]
Revenues	$ 610,667	$ 564,917
Operating expenses	456,997	426,709
Depreciation and amortization	32,469	31,926
General and administrative expenses	46,424	41,832
Operating income	74,777	64,450
Interest income	8,396	9,099
Interest expense	(40,280)	(35,869)
Income before income taxes and equity in earnings of affiliates	42,893	37,680
Provision for income taxes	4,840	4,755
Equity in earnings of affiliates, net of income tax provision of $359 and $706, respectively	2,596	1,995
Net income	40,649	34,920
Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interests	56	67
Net income attributable to The GEO Group, Inc.	$ 40,705	$ 34,987
Weighted-average common shares outstanding:
Basic (in shares)	118,774	121,768
Diluted (in shares)	119,496	122,304
Basic:
Net income per common share attributable to The GEO Group, Inc. - basic (in dollars per share)	$ 0.34	$ 0.29
Diluted:
Net income per common share attributable to The GEO Group, Inc. - diluted (in dollars per share)	0.34	0.29
Dividends declared per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.48	$ 0.47