DeSantis calls for special session to help Trump with immigration

Romy Ellenbogen, Tampa Bay Times on Jan 13, 2025

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis is calling lawmakers back to Tallahassee later this month for a special session to help boost President-elect Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.

DeSantis, during a news conference at the state Capitol on Monday, said Florida needed to help Trump’s expected “ambitious policy changes” on immigration enforcement and deportation.

To do that, DeSantis said Florida needs more money for local governments and legislation to make clear that it’s the job of local and state officials to assist the federal government on immigration.

“If those duties are clear in law, I have the authority with respect to certain officials to suspend them from their office if they are neglecting their duties,” DeSantis said.

He said he plans to call the Legislature back beginning Jan. 27. The regular legislative session is set to begin on March 4.

“We don’t have the ability to just sit around and wait with a new president taking office,” DeSantis said. Trump’s inauguration is Jan. 20.

Florida will work with the Trump administration to figure out what facilities they plan to use for migrant detention, DeSantis said, and to see if the National Guard or Florida State Guard need to be called in.

DeSantis also said it was time to do away with Florida’s decade-long practice of providing in-state tuition for immigrants who were brought to the country illegally as children.

Florida Senate President Ben Albritton has said he would like to see that program phased out‚ and Sen. Randy Fine, R-Melbourne, said he plans to file a bill to that effect. DeSantis’ lieutenant governor, Jeanette Núñez, had championed that law when she was in the Legislature.

DeSantis said his call for a special session will also seek legislation on condominium relief, hurricane relief and reforms to the citizen initiative process to amend the state constitution.

Neither Albritton nor House Speaker Danny Perez responded Monday to requests for comment about the special session.

In November, Florida’s Legislative leaders said that dealing with condo reforms in a special session was unrealistic and that the issue would be better dealt with during Florida’s regular two-month-long process.

DeSantis said he doesn’t think there’s an agreement between Florida’s legislative chambers on condo reforms, but said “we’re doing this because people have asked us to do this.”

Condominium associations had a Dec. 31 deadline to complete safety and budget studies and figure out how much they needed to set aside for repairs. DeSantis had urged lawmakers to intervene before that point but declined to call a special session to force their hand.

Nikki Fried, the chairperson of the Florida Democratic Party, criticized DeSantis' call for a special session as a publicity stunt.

“For what seems like the thousandth time, he’s doing everything he can to remain relevant, instead of taking steps to make life more affordable for the people of Florida,” Fried said in a statement.

DeSantis on Monday floated the idea of requiring people signing petitions to show ID, saying he was concerned about fraud in the ballot initiative process. He also suggested requiring that petitions be notarized and said any legislative changes made should also apply to petitions to qualify candidates for the ballot.

DeSantis' administration last year released a report that accused the organizers of the Amendment 4 effort to protect abortion access of “widespread petition fraud.” Amendment 4 organizers denied any wrongdoing and said the state’s actions were part of their attempt to “silence voters.”

DeSantis campaigned against the abortion amendment as well as the other citizen-proposed amendment on 2024 ballots, which would have allowed for recreational marijuana use. Both amendments failed.

DeSantis said the petition process should be changed during the special session so all the rules are set for the next election cycle.

“Our Constitution should not be for sale to the highest bidder, so reform is needed,” DeSantis said.

DeSantis also said he thinks constitutional amendments should only be voted on in standalone elections.

“Because at least people know that’s why they’re going,” DeSantis said. “I think what happens is people go to vote for president, they’re going down and they just kind of make a decision, oh does that sound good or not good, and there’s not as much debate as there needs to be.”

Florida is one of only a handful of states that allow citizens to amend the constitution, but it’s a process that has become more costly and difficult thanks to changes made by lawmakers over the years.