UNITED STATES NEWS

Florida’s new DeSantis-backed laws address immigration, guns and more

Jun 30, 2023, 10:47 AM

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Employers who hire immigrants in the country illegally will face tough punishments and gun owners will have more freedoms when more than 200 new Florida laws take effect Saturday, many of which Gov. Ron DeSantis will highlight as he seeks the Republican presidential nomination.

DeSantis has taken a hard line on illegal immigration as he campaigns, saying he’ll finish the Mexican border wall his one-time supporter, Donald Trump, promised to build. He’s also carried out political gimmicks like flying immigrants from Texas to blue states, supposedly before they can get to Florida.

The new employer penalties are a chance for DeSantis to show he doesn’t just talk tough on illegal immigration, but he’s put in place what some critics say the harshest state law in the country. DeSantis has largely echoed the border policy of Trump, whose endorsement propelled DeSantis to the governor’s office in 2018. DeSantis is now the former president’s leading competitor for the White House.

The new law expands worker verification requirements, among other provisions. The governor’s office blames the Biden administration for what it says is a crisis at the southern border.

“Any business that exploits this crisis by employing illegal aliens instead of Floridians will be held accountable,” said DeSantis spokesman Jeremy Redfern.

But in a state where the largest industries — tourism, agriculture and construction — rely heavily on immigrant labor, there are concerns that the economy could be disrupted when employers are already having a hard time filling open jobs. Florida’s unemployment rate is 2.6%.

Samuel Vilchez Santiago, the American Business Immigration Coalition’s Florida director, said there are 400,000 “undocumented immigrants” working in the state and far fewer applicants than jobs.

“We are in dire need of workers,” especially in construction, the service industry and agriculture, he said. “So there is a lot of fear from across the state … that this new law will actually be devastating.”

The law forces any company with 25 or more employees to use E-Verify to document new hires’ eligibility to work or face a loss of business license or fines of $1,000 per day per employee.

The law also forces hospitals that accept Medicaid to ask patients if they are citizens or legally in the United States and voids drivers licenses issued by other states to people in the country illegally.

Protesters have rallied around the state. Dozens of people on Friday waved signs and Mexican, Cuban and American flags in front of the historic Capitol. Rubith Sandoval, 15, helped organize the protest. Her family moved from Mexico and now owns a farm in Quincy.

“We work hard in the fields. We pick tomatoes, we pick strawberries, we pick watermelons, oranges, and who’s going to do that now?” Sandoval said. “My parents now have documents, but they still haven’t forgotten how it was not to have documents.”

Republicans have a supermajority in the House and Senate, and only one Republican opposed the legislation. Given DeSantis’ power and reputation for being vengeful, there has been little vocal opposition among GOP elected officials about the new immigration policy. But that doesn’t mean all Republicans are supporting it, either

Independently-elected Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, a Republican, said illegal immigration is a federal problem.

“Our state solutions are limited, not particularly effective, and have unintended consequences,” Simpson said in an email. “I think the Legislature’s work to tackle illegal immigration is necessary, whether or not it is effective is yet to be seen.”

DeSantis will also be able to tout expanded gun rights under a new law that allows anyone legally able to own a gun to carry it concealed in public without a permit. While concealed weapons permits will still be issued, those choosing to carry without one won’t be subject to a background check or training.

The law doesn’t ease background checks on gun sales that already require one. Another new law prohibits credit card companies from tracking gun and ammunition sales to prevent them potentially using the data to flag people who make large purchases.

Florida has also banned colleges from using state or federal funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs, a prohibited from requiring teachers and students to use pronouns that match someone’s gender identity.

Beginning Saturday, Chinese nationals will be banned from purchasing property in large swaths of the state. A new law applies to properties within 10 miles (16 kilometers) of military installations and other “critical infrastructure” and also affects citizens of Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, Iran, Russia, and North Korea. But Chinese citizens and those selling property to them face the harshest penalties.

The American Civil Liberties Union is suing in federal court to stop the law, but a judge won’t consider an injunction until nearly three weeks after it takes effect. The U.S. Department of Justice provided a brief to the court saying it believes the law is unconstitutional.

“DOJ has weighed in because Florida’s law is blatantly unconstitutional and violates the Fair Housing Act. Their brief underscores just how egregious” the law is, ACLU lawyer Ashley Gorski said in an emailed statement.

DeSantis defended the law using his campaign Twitter account, saying President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland are siding with the Chinese Communist Party.

“I side with the American people,” the tweet said. “As governor, I prohibited CCP-tied entities from buying land in Florida. As president, I’ll do the same.”

One new law Democrats and Republicans agreed unanimously on is a sales tax exemption on baby and toddler products, including diapers, strollers, cribs and clothing. The tax package also includes exemptions for dental hygiene products and gun safety devices, such as trigger locks.

United States News

Associated Press

New York can enforce laws banning guns from ‘sensitive locations’ for now, U.S. appeals court rules

NEW YORK (AP) — New York can continue to enforce laws banning firearms in sensitive locations and require that handgun owners be of “good moral character,” a federal appeals court ruled Friday in its first broad review of a host of new gun rules passed in the state after a landmark Supreme Court ruling last […]

17 minutes ago

Associated Press

Missouri lawmakers propose allowing homicide charges for women who have abortions

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Some Missouri lawmakers are renewing a call for the state to take an anti-abortion step that goes further than prominent anti-abortion groups want to go and that has not gained much traction in any state so far: a law that would allow homicide charges against women who obtain abortions. Republicans […]

32 minutes ago

Associated Press

Vessel owner pleads guilty in plot to smuggle workers, drugs from Honduras to Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A Pennsylvania man described by authorities as the lead defendant in a drug distribution and human smuggling case has pleaded guilty to federal crimes in Louisiana. Court records show that Carl Allison, 47, of Pittsburgh pleaded guilty Thursday before U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon in New Orleans. Sentencing was scheduled for […]

42 minutes ago

Associated Press

2 nurses, medical resident injured in attack at New Jersey hospital, authorities say

NEWARK N.J. (AP) — Two nurses and a medical resident were stabbed Friday inside a New Jersey pediatric intensive care unit, suffering cuts, and a woman has been arrested and charged in the attack, authorities said. It unfolded about 7 a.m. Friday at Newark Beth Israel Hospital in Newark, New Jersey, arising from a “domestic […]

1 hour ago

Associated Press

Man freed after 11 years in prison sues St. Louis and detectives who worked his case

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A St. Louis man who spent 11 years behind bars for a killing before his conviction was overturned is suing the city and detectives who worked on his case, claiming the conviction for a crime he didn’t commit violated his constitutional rights. Lamont D. Cambell’s lawsuit claims that a faulty investigation […]

2 hours ago

Associated Press

Michigan State selects UNC-Chapel Hill chancellor as next president

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan State University named the chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as it’s next president Friday morning, ending a search that began last October after the previous president quit amid tension with the school’s governing board. Kevin Guskiewicz, who has served as chancellor at UNC-Chapel Hill for […]

4 hours ago

Sponsored Articles

(KTAR News Graphic)...

KTAR launches online holiday auction benefitting Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley

KTAR is teaming up with The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley for a holiday auction benefitting thousands of Valley kids.

Follow @KTAR923...

The 2023 Diamondbacks are a good example to count on the underdog

The Arizona Diamondbacks made the World Series as a surprise. That they made the playoffs at all, got past the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Wild Card round, swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS and won two road games in Philadelphia to close out a full seven-game NLCS went against every expectation. Now, […]

...

SCHWARTZ LASER EYE CENTER

Key dates for Arizona sports fans to look forward to this fall

Fall brings new beginnings in different ways for Arizona’s professional sports teams like the Cardinals and Coyotes.

Florida’s new DeSantis-backed laws address immigration, guns and more