Florida is receiving about $28 million, with local law enforcement agencies getting an additional $10 million, to help pay for illegal immigration enforcement.
The funding comes from President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.”
“This is funding that can go straight to equipment, to the work that’s being done out on the street, and to other supplies and resources that our officers need,” said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Deputy Director Madison Sheahan. Sheahan called it “historic” and said Florida’s piece was part of $1.7 billion in funding from Trump’s bill.
Sheahan, alongside Gov. Ron DeSantis, announced the funding Friday during a press conference.
The boost in funding will help reimburse statewide and local law enforcement that signed 287(g) agreements this year to give them authority to work alongside ICE and enforce federal immigration laws. Sheahan said “Florida has truly put up historic numbers of support,” with more than 4,700 law enforcement officials getting involved to help.[1]
DeSantis said his critics doubted the state would ever get reimbursed for its expenses to enforce federal immigration law and called the checks “ just the beginning.”
“Some people tried to say that that wasn’t going to happen,” DeSantis countered about the repayment.
DeSantis didn’t sound worried[2] about reimbursing Florida’s costs for Alligator Alcatraz which appears to exceed $350 million[3]. The Governor contended that the state “will get reimbursed eventually.”
“We have a great working relationship with both the Trump administration writ large, but particularly DHS and ICE, and they’re doing what they said that they would do to be able to support all these agencies,” DeSantis said. “The mission continues on this. I think we’ve got a lot of momentum.”
Hours earlier[4], Lt Gov. Jay Collins held a press conference about a recent Florida Highway Patrol investigation sting that led to 354 undocumented immigrants being detained.
“What we want people to know is we take this serious. Florida will lead from the front,” Collins said.
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References
- ^ 287(g) (www.ice.gov)
- ^ didn’t sound worried (floridapolitics.com)
- ^ appears to exceed $350 million (jasongarcia.substack.com)
- ^ Hours earlier (floridapolitics.com)