TALHASSEE – Governor Ron DeSantis’ administration wants to set up temporary housing for immigrant detainees in Florida, but has yet to release details on what such a plan will entail or whether the idea has federal support.
Top Florida lawmakers have little or no details about the proposed plan. Senate Speaker Ben Albritton and House Speaker Perez said this week that they have not yet been covered in detail.
A spokesman for the Senate president said in an email Thursday. “I don’t even know if this requires state funding or what will happen if it’s a legislative role.”
Perez told reporters Thursday that he has no details yet, but he generally understands the ability of detained immigrants to detain is a top priority for the Trump administration.
“I’m sure we’ll be speeding up in the end,” said the Miami Republican.
The revelation that the state is trying to detain immigrants is because DeSantis and other state officials are urging local and state law enforcement officials to help the Trump administration identify and detain immigrants in the country illegally.
As state efforts increase, sheriffs raised concerns that there are not enough beds to hold the number of immigrants who could soon be taken into custody. The Florida sheriff had proposed a plan to allow immigrants to be transported to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement within 48 hours when deputies need to detain them, but the federal government refused.
The push to find alternatives to detain immigrants is also dealing with overcrowding issues as one of Miami’s Chrome North Service Processing Center, one of Florida’s four ice detention facilities.
The idea of the state intervening to support temporary housing first grew up at Monday’s meeting, where council law enforcement officials spoke about how housing and transport are two top areas where we can help enforce our immigration and customs as we intensify arrests and deportation.
At the meeting, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, who chairs the state Immigration Enforcement Council, said the state should be allowed to “set up temporary housing to create the additional detention capacity that is needed.”
Larry Keefe, executive director of the state’s Immigration Executive Committee, said Kevin Guthrie, head of the state’s emergency management department, was leading the idea and pitching it to the federal government.
“He’s really good about moving people and things safely in a high pressure emergency, such as soft side facilities, hard side facilities, and more safely in high pressure emergency,” Keefe said of Guthrie. “Whatever the cutting edge, there’s something on the planet about how to accommodate people, how to move people, feed people, and treat people safely and well.”
The Florida National Guard could help with security issues if the plan takes off, Keefe added.
Beyond these details, there is little else known about the plan. For example, the state doesn’t say where to install the home or what its capabilities are, if it costs Florida taxpayers, or if the state moves towards getting federal support.
Keefe had no updates on the Trump administration’s stance on the idea. But he can talk widely about “chalk points” at the federal level, ensuring that some of the state’s immigration enforcement ideas don’t happen. One of those “choke points” could be the horror of a lawsuit, he said.
“And if it turns out at the end of the day, ‘Oh, well, we might get sued,'” he said, ‘Well, that’s where we need to play.’
The Florida Emergency Management Department did not respond to repeated requests for comment. A spokesman for the Florida State Guard introduced the question to the Emergency Management Department, saying, “It’s their proposal and therefore outside of our scope.”
In an interview this week, Judd said Guthrie and Florida vice-commander John Haas “have made it clear enough that they are enthusiastic and want to help with housing and transportation issues.” Haas oversees the overall management of the Florida National Guard and serves as DeSantis’ senior military adviser.
In Tallahassee, the plan has not been formally presented to state lawmakers. The Republican leader responsible for setting the Emergency Management Department’s budget said he had heard nothing about the plans or whether the state funding would be needed.
Senate President Albritton said through a spokesman he trusts the council and the law enforcement officers who will lead the ideas they will consider.
“He trusts law enforcement so if there is a proposal submitted by the council about what they think they need, he would certainly want to learn more before making a decision,” the spokesman said.
