Q&A of the Day – What’s in Florida’s New Illegal Immigration Legislation?
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Today’s Entry: @brianmuddradio What’s in the NEW FL legislation? Please break it down for us.
Bottom Line: You’ve got it. It was an interesting process to arrive at the compromised bill(s) that Governor DeSantis and the Florida legislature agreed to this week, but after two recent special sessions (one called by the governor and one by the legislature) resulted in no new policy – Florida will have new immigration law this week. Florida’s legislature convened another special session, called by Governor DeSantis, to pass newly proposed legislation aimed at combating illegal immigration and assisting the Trump administration with deportations.
The legislation is a compromise between Governor DeSantis’s initial proposal, which wasn’t taken up by the legislature, and the so-called Trump Act proposed by the legislature, that DeSantis vetoed. The key change in the legislation is that a newly created State Board of Immigration Enforcement will be established with oversight by the entire Florida Cabinet which consists of the governor, agriculture commissioner, attorney general and chief financial officer. DeSantis’s original proposal called for direct reporting to the governor for the position while the legislature’s proposal would have moved all immigration enforcement to the agriculture commissioner. But of course, there’s more than just the establishment of a new immigration enforcement office, so about that...
Three bills were introduced in the session.
The primary policy, a 51 page Immigration bill, alters 11 immigration related processes within the state. They include these changes:
- Non-citizen voting is an automatic 3rd degree felony offense (no excuses)
- Anyone who aids/solicits non-citizen voting commits a 3rd degree felony
- Government ID may not be issued to any unauthorized alien or undocumented immigrant
- The establishment of a “Dangerous unauthorized alien offender” (organized criminals/gangs) with enhanced sentencing requirements
- The establishment of “Transnational crime organizations” (international trafficking of drugs, humans, or weapons)
- Defines all unauthorized aliens as posing a substantial flight risk restricting prison releases during prosecutions
- Mandates that all law enforcement agencies work with federal immigration agencies, including notifying ICE of the immigration status of all inmates
- Bans local governments from obstructing immigration enforcement
There’s also the section pertaining to the establishment of a State Board of Immigration Enforcement. As is noted:
- The Governor and Cabinet shall serve as the agency head of the board. The board shall be a separate budget entity. All board action shall be by unanimous vote. The board shall not be subject to control, supervision, or direction of the Department of Law Enforcement in any manner. The board is the chief immigration enforcement officer of the state and shall: (a) Serve as a resource for the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Coordinate and cooperate with the Federal Government. The enforcement of federal immigration laws and other matters related to the enforcement of federal immigration laws.
So, a couple of important points about this. Rather than the establishment of a single official who will serve as the Chief Immigration Officer, the Governor and his cabinet will be the “Officer”. Also, there’s unanimous consent required for actions to be taken by the board, which is a unique and potentially interesting dynamic. Especially if, in the future, there’s a politically divided cabinet. The Board will also have an appointed advisory council consisting of law enforcement professionals chosen by each of the board members, the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House.
The Secretary of Homeland Security bill was only three pages and mandates participation by county law enforcement agencies in ICE’s 287(g) program. This was a key point of emphasis in Governor DeSantis’ original proposal and will have implications locally as well. There are 48 fully participating law enforcement agencies within Florida as of now. That includes the Florida Department of Corrections and most sheriff’s offices across the state including Broward, Martin and Indian River County. Among the agencies that aren’t fully participating... Four of the five largest sheriff's offices in Florida. Those four agencies are... Hillsborough, Miami Dade, Orange and Palm Beach. Although, ICE lists Hillsborough, Miami-Dade and Orange as having already submitted 287(g) Program Applications. The bills take effect once they’re signed into law so these changes will be taking place right away.