Florida House proposal would establish ‘Office of Secure Florida’ to oversee immigration issues

Via AP

A new bill filed in the Florida House for the Special Legislative Session, which begins Monday, seeks to oversee migrant activities in the state.

The proposed measure, HB 3-A, would establish the Office of Secure Florida. Rep. Mike Caruso, a Republican from Palm Beach County, proposed the bill. The new office would be supervised by FloridaCommerce and designed to “combat illegal immigration.”

The bill comes amid a flurry of proposed legislation ahead of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ call for a Special Session. While no formal agenda was stipulated for the Special Session, it’s assumed it will mainly address immigration issues.

The new bill proposes that the new state office provide regulation and enforcement for several elements of immigration for Florida.

The Office of Secure Florida would review immigrants’ E-Verify and employment authorization status, as well as their purchases and registration of property.

The bill would also establish $1.725 million in recurring funding from the state’s general revenue fund, which would be allocated to FloridaCommerce to establish the new office. The office will have 10 full-time employees, and $1.1 million could be spent on salaries and benefits.

The proposal for a new state office overseeing immigration issues comes amid other immigration proposals.

State Sen. Jonathan Martin, a Republican from Fort Myers, has submitted a proposed bill, SB 20-4, that would prevent any easing of tuition fees for state colleges and universities for the children of undocumented immigrants.

That measure comes nearly simultaneously with Florida’s Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez’s decision to back away from a Florida House of Representatives Bill she supported in 2014 as a state Representative. That measure, HB 85, provided tuition waivers for children of undocumented immigrants.