Gov. Ron DeSantis confirmed Florida officials are engaged in conversations about possibly closing Alligator Alcatraz.
Like a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) who gave comment to Florida Politics on a potential closure, DeSantis downplayed whether there was any tension between the state and federal government. He also pushed back on any question about whether the immigration detention facility stood up in the Everglades just last year had been effective.
“That center down in the Everglades airport, that has been responsible for almost 22,000 illegal aliens being processed and then deported from the state of Florida,” DeSantis said at a press conference.
“If we didn’t have that facility, DHS did not have room to put them anywhere, they would have been released back to the public. So, I have no doubt that that has made the state of Florida safer.”
But talk of closing the facility came following a report in The New York Times that estimated the facility’s operating budget at $1 million a day.
Before the federal shutdown last fall, DHS cut a check to the state for $608 million for Alligator Alcatraz. But the Times reporting said that money has yet to be delivered. Meanwhile, costs for the facility have continued and private vendors have said they were struggling to provide upfront costs.
DeSantis said he wasn’t concerned about reimbursement, noting it often takes time for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to pay Florida back for disaster response after hurricanes and other events. He said he discussed that issue the other day with White House Border Czar Thomas Homan.
“All the expenses are reimbursable by the federal government, and that will happen. I know the media’s made a big deal. It’s FEMA, it takes a while,” DeSantis said. “We’re getting it. And you will see that very shortly.”
Earlier in the day, a DHS spokesperson acknowledged the need for facilities was always under evaluation.
“Any reports that DHS is pressuring the state to cease operations at Alligator Alcatraz are false,” the spokesperson said. “Florida continues to be a valuable partner in advancing President Trump’s immigration agenda, and DHS appreciates their support. DHS continuously evaluates detention needs and requirements to ensure they meet the latest operational requirements.”
DeSantis took a shot at former President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, and said the expense of the facility was justified when President Donald Trump returned to office last year promising mass deportations of undocumented individuals.
“We’re doing this because Biden emasculated the agency. They didn’t have the resources they need. We knew they were working to get those resources in the reconciliation bill last Summer,” DeSantis said.
“We knew it would take some time for them to stand it up, but ultimately, our goal on this was for that facility to be a bridge to DHS being able to do this ourselves.”
But the need for the center, he said, was always temporary.
“If they (DHS) are able to handle that so that you’re not releasing thousands of people, if they can handle that, then yeah, that would be great for us to break that facility down,” DeSantis said.
“We’re working closely with them. We want to accomplish the mission. We stepped up when no other state stepped up to help in a really big way. It’s been very effective. And so we’ll see kind of what the vision is going forward.”
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