The Florida Senate approves a project that toughens immigration policy
Miami, March 4 (EFE) .The Florida Senate approved a bill late this Thursday that will further toughen the immigration policies promoted by the governor, Ron Desantis, and which have been criticized in recent hours by groups like that of the Venezuelan community residing in the state.
SB 1808, and its similar House bill HB 1355, seek to prohibit state and local government contracts with companies that provide transportation to unaccompanied minors.
In addition, it broadens the definition of “sanctuary policy” to avoid limiting or prohibiting local police from providing migratory information to federal authorities, who have exclusive jurisdiction in this matter.
If the bill is approved, law enforcement agencies that operate a detention center will have to sign an agreement with ICE to participate in the 287(g) program, whereby local agents perform immigration enforcement functions.
The Catholic Archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski, has also denounced that this law would force the closure of shelters that welcome immigrant minors who arrive in the country without the company of their parents or legal guardian by eliminating state funds to any agency, including Catholic Charities. , that provides services to these undocumented.
HB 1355 is still under debate in the House of Representatives, also controlled by the Republicans, so it would go to the governor, who has already declared his public support for this bill.
The American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC) condemned the approval in the Senate this Friday and considered that, if approved, this measure will harm employers in the state that face a “serious labor shortage and will create fear and uncertainty in a wide range of immigrants” in Florida.
“The governor’s shameful bill was crafted for political reasons. It hurts employers already facing dire shortages and innocent children cared for by religious institutions like the Archdiocese of Miami,” said Mike Fernandez, president of MBF Healthcare and co-chair of ABIC Action.
ABIC denounced that the bill, as it is written, can harm many of the 350,000 Venezuelans in Florida who have temporary protected status (TPS), by marking them as “deportable, even if they are authorized” to reside in the country. .
The organization recalled that Venezuelans can be a “key constituency with growing power in Florida.”
Precisely, a group of Venezuelan community leaders sent a letter to legislative leaders on Wednesday asking them to vote against SB 1808 and HB 1355, considering them “a direct attack on the Venezuelan community in Florida.”
“As written, this legislation would define us as ‘unauthorized aliens’ because our applications for work permits are delayed due to causes beyond our control,” claimed the signatories of the letter, who criticized that the measure “was made for reasons policies”.