Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) made good on his campaign promise to stand against impractical and dangerous policies that promote illegal immigration and signed a bill into law Friday, effectively banning sanctuary cities in his state.
“Earlier this year, I made a promise that we would ban sanctuary cities in Florida and today we are delivering on that promise,” DeSantis announced in a tweet.
“I am proud to sign the bill presented to me by the FL Legislature to uphold the rule of law and ensure that our communities are safe,” he added.
At the beginning of the year, DeSantis asked the Florida Legislature to craft a bill that would “uphold the rule of law and ensure that no city or county jurisdiction can get in the way of Florida’s cooperation with our federal partners to enforce immigration law,” DeSantis spokeswoman Helen Ferre said, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
“Public safety is paramount and local law enforcement agencies can and should work with the federal government to ensure that accountability and justice are one in our state,” she added.
Both chambers passed the bill (SB 168) on May 2. It passed in the Senate 22-18 and House 68-45 after much deliberation and opposition from immigration activist groups.
The law effectively prohibits local governments from implementing sanctuary city policies and requires them to “honor federal ‘immigration detainer’ requests,” the Miami Herald reports.
“A state entity, law 113 enforcement agency, or local governmental entity may not adopt 114 or have in effect a sanctuary policy,” the bill states.
“A law enforcement agency shall use best efforts to support the enforcement of federal immigration law,” it adds.
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