TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is calling for a special legislative session to help implement President-elect Donald Trump’s immigration agenda. However, the move has been met with resistance from key Republican lawmakers who deem the session “premature” and “irresponsible.”
Trump, preparing to take office with a series of executive orders, has emphasized swift action on immigration, with promises for strict border security, mass deportations, and a range of other policy reforms. But the details surrounding the execution of these policies, especially the deportation of an estimated 11 million undocumented individuals, remain unclear.
In an announcement made Monday, DeSantis said the special session will be scheduled for the week of January 27, shortly after Trump’s inauguration. The aim is to ensure that state lawmakers are ready to support the administration’s policies from the outset.
“State and local officials in Florida must help the Trump administration enforce our nation’s immigration laws,” DeSantis stated. “To do that effectively, we need new legislation to impose additional duties on local officials and provide necessary funding.”
The governor emphasized his readiness to remove elected officials who fail to comply with the new mandates, citing past actions in which he suspended two state attorneys for not prosecuting certain crimes. DeSantis also said he is prepared to allocate significant funding to expand enforcement efforts, including potentially deploying the Florida National Guard and State Guard to assist in immigration enforcement.
“There also needs to be measures to hold people accountable who are violating our anti-sanctuary policies,” DeSantis continued. “Florida needs to ensure there are no lingering incentives for illegal immigration.”
However, DeSantis’ call for a special session has sparked criticism from Senate President Ben Albritton and House Speaker Danny Perez, both of whom are Republicans. In a joint statement released Monday, the two leaders argued that without clearer guidance from the incoming administration and only “fragments of ideas” from the governor, it is too early for lawmakers to take action.
“It is completely irresponsible to act ahead of President Trump’s official announcements,” Albritton and Perez stated. “Uninformed or ill-timed state action could potentially hinder the success of his efforts to end illegal immigration.”
While DeSantis has the authority to call for a special session, the legislative leaders reminded that it is the Legislature’s prerogative to decide when and what legislation to consider. This marks a rare show of independence from the state’s Republican leadership, who have largely supported DeSantis’ initiatives in the past.
Democratic leaders, including Florida House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, also expressed concerns about the special session. Driskell questioned the need for such a session before the regular legislative period, which begins on March 4. She pointed out that special sessions restrict public input, especially on such a significant and divisive issue.
“During special session, there’s restricted ability for the public and stakeholders to have input, and this is a really big issue,” Driskell said.
In addition to immigration, DeSantis has called for legislative action on several other fronts. He is seeking approval for hurricane relief measures and reforms to the state’s condominium market, which has faced rising prices following the implementation of stricter safety laws after the 2021 Surfside building collapse. The governor has also proposed changes to Florida’s citizen ballot initiative process, citing concerns over alleged fraud in the petition drive for a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights in 2024.
Despite the pushback, Albritton and Perez have pledged to address these issues during the upcoming regular legislative session.
Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried criticized DeSantis for prioritizing immigration over other urgent issues like the state’s troubled property insurance market and rising living costs. She accused the Republican Party of focusing on “politics instead of solving problems.”
As DeSantis pushes for more action on the national stage, other states with Democratic governors are adopting strategies to resist potential federal policies from the Trump administration, particularly on issues like abortion and transgender rights. Some Democratic leaders, however, have taken a more cooperative stance, hoping to build productive relationships with the incoming administration.
