Gov. Ron DeSantis has no doubt the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) will continue to pay Florida back for housing suspected illegal immigrants at Alligator Alcatraz.
“We’re now already seeing reimbursements flowing down, and so that’s going to happen,” DeSantis said in Davie.
DeSantis was speaking during an event in which he highlighted prior immigration enforcement operations, including 25,000 287(g) arrests through coordinated state and local efforts.
While Florida has been approved for $608 million in reimbursement, so far just $58.2 million has been disbursed.
“We’ve gotten some, we’ll get more. And so that whole talking point will just vanish,” DeSantis predicted.
DeSantis doesn’t expect the media to report the reimbursements, the slow pace of which he attributes to the “timetable” when “dealing with FEMA,” which can take years to pay back money fronted by state governments for emergency response.
DeSantis doesn’t know what the future holds for federal immigration enforcement. But he continues to defend the state taking on the federal obligation.
DeSantis argued that if the detainees had been released, it would have cost taxpayers money.
“I think they’re working through how they’re going to do it. But I do know that they’re committed to making sure there’s enough space. I know that they’re committed to making sure that the mission continues. So we’ll continue to lead the way at the state level. And if every state has done what Florida has done, the problem would be that much closer to finally being solved.”
Asked Friday if costs were closer to a billion dollars, DeSantis hedged, but would not provide an actual number. He again reverted to talking points about money saved, floating a speculative scenario about costs incurred if an undocumented immigrant is at fault in an auto accident.
He also isn’t sure if and when Alligator Alcatraz will close, he told reporters, but deemed the situation to be “in flux.”
DeSantis also said it was a “mistake” for the Supreme Court not to hear Florida’s case against California and Washington related to driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas were the only two on the nine-person court compelled to adjudicate Florida’s claim.
Regarding the aforementioned $608 million from FEMA, Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a court filing that the full amount may not actually “materialize.” The Department of Justice said any reimbursement would cover “operational costs,” not the estimated $245 million spent on “construction or facility modification,” suggesting that the infrastructural costs will come at the expense of the state.
Vendors may have to be patient, DeSantis said earlier this month.
“Talk to the Division of Emergency Management about that. I mean, you know, I’ve got bigger fish to fry than cutting checks to vendors. It’s just not anything I’ve ever been involved with. I know that they’re involved with doing that stuff and I’m sure they’ll figure it out.”
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