TALLAHASSEE — The Trump administration is calling on all 50 states to assist the federal government in immigration enforcement. It comes just as Gov. Ron DeSantis is seeking to expand the authority of state and local law enforcement to detain, remove and deport immigrants living in Florida. The country is illegal.
The Secretary of Homeland Security released a memo Thursday that is almost certain to result in a lawsuit, saying there is a “massive influx of aliens” across the country and that state and local law enforcement officials are “not doing any of the following: “Regulations and laws that permit such acts to be carried out.” “Powers, Privileges, or Duties of Federal Immigration Officials.”
According to multiple legal experts who spoke to the Miami Herald, the memo means the Trump administration will extend local and state law enforcement powers similar to those normally wielded by federal agencies to control immigration. This shows that the foundations are in place to give authorities the authority to carry out crackdowns.
“This memorandum opens up Florida and has the potential to play a broader role than Florida can play,” said Emma Winger, deputy legal director for the Washington-based American Immigration Council. That’s no exaggeration,” Emma Winger, deputy general counsel for the Washington-based American Immigration Council, said in an interview with the Herald. on friday.
Immigration and legal experts say the scope of what states are allowed to do is unclear, and the legal powers cited in the Department of Homeland Security memo are unknown because they have never been invoked before. said that it is an area.
“Without the guidance accompanying this memo, it is difficult to understand the full impact or what specifically state and local officials will do,” Colleen Putzel Kavanaugh, associate policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, said in an email. “It’s difficult to know whether they have the authority to do so.”
The memo comes as Mr. DeSantis urges Florida lawmakers to dramatically expand the state’s role in federal immigration enforcement during a special session that begins Monday, with the aim of Mr. DeSantis claims this is to help fulfill his deportation pledge.
Thursday’s memo opens the door for state and local officials to have more legal authority over immigration, but states will be allowed to carry out deportations in the future, something DeSantis has said he’s eager to do. It remains unclear whether this will happen.
DeSantis said at a press conference Thursday that he is seeking the authority to deport and deport immigrants who “wash up” in the Florida Keys. The federal government is responsible for regulating, enforcing, and supervising immigration law, including implementing deportations.
“If we stop them before they get to the Keys, we turn them over to the Coast Guard, and the Coast Guard sends them back. But if they somehow reach shore, we Are we just going to be stuck forever? That’s not good policy,” DeSantis said. “So I think we’re going to have the power to accept or send back illegal aliens from wherever they’re coming from, like Haiti or the Bahamas.”
DeSantis did not cite any specific executive order or federal law that allows Florida to deport immigrants. DeSantis’ office also did not respond to the Herald’s request for clarification on the governor’s legal basis.
DeSantis has big ideas.
DeSantis last week announced immigration policies in anticipation of President Trump’s actions on immigrants, including restricting birthright citizenship, declaring a national emergency at the southwest border and ending the Biden-era parole process, which had allowed more than half of immigrants. The proposal was announced. One million Cubans, Nicaraguans, Haitians, and Venezuelans have entered this country.
The Florida governor said his proposed legislation is aligned with President Trump’s plans, based on his conversations with the president.
In support of President Trump’s immigration policies, Mr. DeSantis called on state legislatures to promote a state program called “Unlawful Enforcement” to facilitate “immigration enforcement consistent with federal law, including but not limited to detention, removal, and deportation.” They are calling for the expansion of the “Foreign Transport Program.”
Under the existing program, states can only remove immigrants who consent to be removed and who can show documentation that they have been processed and released by the Department of Homeland Security. Travel costs are paid for by Florida taxpayers and travel is only permitted within the United States.
A draft bill released by the governor’s office would allow the state to hire private companies to help implement the plan, in cooperation with the Florida National Guard and the Florida National Guard, a private military force under the governor’s jurisdiction. It is said that it will be done.
“Making sure that we expand the authority of the transportation program is really important,” DeSantis told reporters Thursday.
The governor is asking lawmakers to transfer $350 million from the state treasury to fund services for the program, according to a draft proposal released by the governor’s office. According to the proposed bill, state and local law enforcement agencies would use funding from the program to train officers to “perform or exercise the powers, privileges, or duties” of federal immigration officials in their communities. You will be able to do this.
For the past several years, the program has operated on an annual budget of $12 million. The governor’s office did not respond to questions about the significant increase in funding for the program and how the money will be used.
According to a draft bill posted on the governor’s website, the governor would also require all state and county law enforcement agencies to assign at least 10% of their personnel to “perform or exercise the powers, privileges, and duties” of federal immigration officers. ”. Website. He also wants the power to remove local officials from office who do not fully comply with state and federal immigration mandates. As of Friday evening, no legislators had introduced the governor’s proposal into the bill.
Florida already has 48 sheriffs participating in the federal immigration program, known as 287G, which allows officers to perform limited immigration work in county jails. This includes the ability to detain immigrants who are in the country illegally for up to 48 hours if federal immigration officials send a request to detain them. Miami-Dade County is not registered, but Broward County is, according to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement website.
Winger, deputy attorney general of the American Immigration Council, said state and local law enforcement must continue to comply with federal immigration laws approved by Congress.
Mark Arias, an Orlando-based immigration attorney, emphasized that while Congress makes immigration laws, it is the executive branch that enforces them. And in this case, the Department of Homeland Security is knocking on every state’s door.
“The twist here is that the federal government is asking the states for help, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out,” Arias said.
