When he ordered lawmakers to Tallahassee for a special session on immigration last month, they tossed out his ideas and gaveled in their own session — advancing a proposal that would have ceded much of DeSantis' power on immigration to the state's agriculture commissioner.
The ongoing debate has exposed a major rift between DeSantis and many of the state’s GOP legislators — and demonstrated lawmakers' willingness to go toe-to-toe with the powerful governor who previously wielded influence over the Legislature like no other governor in the state’s recent history.
The package of bills lawmakers offered this week includes many of their previous proposals, with the overall goal of boosting state and local participation in the federal government's work to arrest, detain and deport people in the country without legal authorization.
The new package also includes proposals that DeSantis had pushed lawmakers to include, such as making it a state crime to enter Florida without legal authorization.
A notable change in the compromise legislation includes doing away with the provision that would have created a new role of chief immigration officer to be held by the state's agriculture commissioner — an idea DeSantis vehemently opposed.
.png?trim=23,0,39,0&quality=75&auto=webp&width=1000)
