TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis wants the power to suspend or criminally charge local officials who don’t train at least 10% of their law enforcement staff to detain and deport undocumented immigrants or follow other tough new immigration rules he’s proposed.

In a four-page memo to legislative leaders, DeSantis said he wants to make it mandatory for all law enforcement agencies and local governments to cooperate with the Department of Homeland Security to help enforce federal immigration law. It is now voluntary.

That includes training at least 10% of state and local law enforcement staff to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement round up, detain and deport immigrants who entered the country illegally.

Elected officials and law enforcement officers who refuse to cooperate would face criminal charges and possible suspension.

The memo details the governor’s proposals for the upcoming special session of the Florida Legislature he’s scheduled for the week of Jan. 27 and was obtained by the Orlando Sentinel late Thursday. DeSantis provided some details Wednesday, but the memo offers a clearer look at what he wants lawmakers to approve later this month.

Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, D-Orlando, was outraged by some of them, especially the suggestion to suspend or charge local officials if they fail to take actions that aren’t even part of their core duties.

“It’s one thing to update someone’s job description,” Smith said. “It’s another thing to say if you don’t meet this job description and perform said activities you will be slapped with a felony and thrown in prison.”

During his campaign, President-elect Donald Trump called for the “mass deportation” of undocumented people in the United States, estimated at about 11 million. About 1.2 million undocumented immigrants live in Florida, the third largest undocumented population in the country, according to The Pew Research Center.

DeSantis wants state lawmakers in the special session to pass measures to help with Trump’s plans.

Some Florida sheriffs — Broward County Sheriff Tony Gregory, a DeSantis appointee, and Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, for example — have said they wouldn’t participate in Trump’s deportation roundups, worrying that it would distract them from their duties and generate distrust in the community.

Others are taking a wait-and-see attitude.

“We will see what the Legislature decides to do with the governor’s proposals and proceed from there as an agency,” said Bob Kealing, a spokesman for the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office. “Until we see the Legislature’s direction and policy outcomes, these are all hypothetical questions that are too premature to answer at this time.”

DeSantis wants to require all local governments to participate in what is currently a voluntary federal program that has been on the books since 1996. It allows the Department of Homeland Security to deputize state and local law enforcement officers to enforce immigration laws.

A related proposal would require law enforcement agencies to identify noncitizens who are charged with a crime and subject to deportation.

Failure to comply with the new mandates could lead to first degree misdemeanor charges for sworn officers and third degree felony charges for elected officials.

DeSantis also wants to create a statewide immigration enforcement officer who would coordinate with federal immigration officials and oversee the state’s undocumented immigrant relocation program, which would be amended to include flights to other countries.

Undocumented immigrants would also be denied bail upon arrest under the assumption that they are a flight risk. Immigrants sending money to families in their home country would need to show identification or face a 25% penalty — an effort to make working in Florida less desirable.

Smith questioned the legality of those proposals and said they could divert limited resources meant to protect citizens from violent crimes.

“Local law enforcement officers are here to protect us, not enforce immigration laws,” Smith said. “What critical law enforcement will be cast aside to be part of the immigrant deportation force?”

The proposals could also hurt local budgets if those governments had to set up detention camps across the state, Smith added.

DeSantis said Thursday the state would make sure they had enough money.

He also said the state would be willing to help with building new facilities. “We’re going to coordinate… I don’t anticipate you’re going to see the locals necessarily doing that. It may be temporary and then immediate transfer to the feds or to the state.”

DeSantis called the special session on Monday after meeting with Trump and other governors last week at Mar-a-Lago. Trump endorsed DeSantis’ action Tuesday on social media and urged other governors to follow suit.

Given the urgency of the issue and that so many Republicans campaigned on immigration, DeSantis said he was “honestly surprised” by a critical letter from fellow Republicans Senate President Ben Albritton and House Speaker Daniel Perez several hours after his announcement.

Albritton and Perez have said for months that immigration is a federal issue and that the call for a special session a week after Trump is sworn in as President “premature” and “irresponsible,” and could potentially interfere with whatever action Trump takes on the issue.

“Of course the governor wants to rush this through without looking at what anyone is asking of us,” Smith said. “He is so hellbent on rushing through proposals where they wont get proper attention, scrutiny or public input. He is expressing his intent to obscure what he’s doing from the public.”

_______

©2025 Orlando Sentinel. Visit orlandosentinel.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.