Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis calls special legislative session on immigration, condo relief
TALLAHASSEE - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has called for a special legislative session to address immigration issues, hurricane recovery, condominium problems and the ballot initiative process.
DeSantis said President-elect Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated Jan. 20, will make major changes in immigration policy, and the state needs to take action to help carry them out.
"I hear what he's saying; I'm very disappointed," a woman who only identified herself as Sarah reacted to what DeSantis said Monday.
"We got to make sure that we're there as a willing partner with the Trump administration to be able to accomplish what the voters sent President Trump to accomplish," said DeSantis.
Trump is preparing more than 100 executive orders starting Day One of the new White House administration, in what amounts to a shock-and-awe campaign on border security, deportations and a rush of other policy priorities.
The president-elect has promised a swift crackdown on immigration.
DeSantis announced Monday he's scheduling the special session for the week of Jan. 27, the week after Trump is sworn in, so that state lawmakers will be poised to help implement the incoming president's policies immediately.
"State and local officials in Florida must help the Trump administration enforce our nation's immigration laws," DeSantis said.
"Our community is tired of hearing all these messages now. The undocumented immigrants are the ones who go to clean the dirt and the mess after hurricanes; they are the ones who clean the dirt everywhere," said Sarah.
"We are going to need legislation to impose additional duties on local officials and provide funding for those local officials," said DeSantis.
The newly elected sheriff in Miami-Dade County released this message Friday on social media before the governor spoke:
"As a long-established starting practice, I will continue to assist all of our local, state and federal partners when they request our assistance in matters within our jurisdiction. Furthermore, my deputies will arrest anyone who has committed a crime regardless of their immigration status."
Last week, Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz clarified her office's stance on immigration, emphasizing that while they will not inquire about detainees' residency status, it will support federal authorities in local operations that could involve deportations.
The sheriff's office does not have the authority to deport individuals. Deportation is a federal matter handled exclusively by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a branch of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The sheriff's office can also cooperate with ICE or other federal agencies when requested, such as sharing information or transferring custody of individuals with immigration detainers, according to ICE's website.
DeSantis said Trump's policy changes are "ambitious."
"There's going to be some ambitious policy changes that are going to be instituted on day one, particularly with respect to illegal immigration, and major, major executive orders that are going to unwind the bad policies of the Biden administration, but then also provide a level of empowerment for states and local governments to help facilitate the policies against illegal immigration," he said.
The governor also pointed out that Florida is not a sanctuary state.
"We banned sanctuary cities in my first year as governor," he said, adding, "There also need to be measures to hold people accountable who are violating our anti-sanctuary policies."
"The governor has been passing anti-immigrant laws since he's been in office since 2019," said Tomas Kennedy of the Florida Immigrant Coalition.
When Tomas is asked who those immigrants are that the state will go after?
"We don't know because Trump says something and his czar says another thing," Kennedy responded.
Florida Democrats slammed the special session as just another stunt by DeSantis.
"Ron is addicted to publicity stunts that don't actually do anything to help Floridians. For what seems like the thousandth time, he's doing everything he can to remain relevant, instead of taking steps to make life more affordable for the people of Florida," said Florida Democratic Party Chair FDP Chair Nikki Fried. "It's not surprising that this special session won't do anything to address the property insurance crisis or our skyrocketing cost of living. This is what the Republican Party does—play politics instead of solving problems."
DeSantis' plan to back Trump immigration policies
The Republican governor said he's prepared to suspend elected officials from office if they are "neglecting their duties" under the new immigration mandates and that he would consider activating the Florida National Guard and the Florida State Guard to carry out in-state enforcement measures. DeSantis said he anticipates allocating tens of millions of dollars in new funding to help state and local officials expand their enforcement and detention efforts.
"There also needs to be measures to hold people accountable who are violating our anti-sanctuary policies," he said. "Florida needs to make sure that we don't have any lingering incentives for people to come into our state illegally."
DeSantis is also calling on Florida lawmakers to pass hurricane relief, work on reforms for the state's condominium market, which has seen rising prices following a safety law passed by state lawmakers in 2022 in the wake of the Surfside collapse, which killed 98 people in June 2021. The governor also wants legislators to overhaul Florida's citizen ballot initiative process for proposing constitutional amendments, after claiming a 2024 measure that would have expanded abortion rights was plagued by fraud.