By Adam Edelman —
NBC News
The Florida state Congress approved this Friday a bill that expands an immigration program to transfer asylum seekers to cities and states governed by Democrats, thus giving Republican Governor Ron DeSantis a legal framework to relocate migrants in any state. And not just in Florida.
The bill formally creates
the Unauthorized Alien Transportation Program
, expanding on the policy DeSantis signed into law last year that allowed migrants to be moved to destinations in states
of
Democratic majority, considered
a sanctuary
for migrants and criticized for this by Republicans.
Republican state Rep. John Snyder argued in the House debate on Thursday that the program is "humanitarian" because it offers a "free charter flight" to migrants who want to move to another part of the country.
[This is how Perla Huerta and DeSantis' office organized the migrant flights to Martha's Vineyard]
But Democrats and human rights advocates have criticized the expansion of the program, which some have compared to human trafficking.
And in Thursday's debate, Democratic lawmakers questioned why Florida taxpayer money should be used to transport immigrants to other states.
Two Venezuelan immigrants sent to Martha's Vineyard by the Florida governor seek support at a local church.
The Washington Post via Getty Images
The bill was approved by both chambers, with a Republican majority, with the Democratic opposition, and it only remains for DeSantis to sign it.
Jeremy Redfern, his spokeswoman, said the governor will review it "in its final form and make his decision."
DeSantis sent two planes with 49 migrants from Texas to Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts in September, saying the funds to pay for these trips came from his budget.
The move drew harsh criticism from Democrats and immigrant advocates, who helped many of the immigrants sue DeSantis and other state officials
alleging they were victims of political fraud
.
Some transferred migrants said they were not clearly told where they were going.
[A makeshift immigrant camp outside the Watson Hotel in Manhattan is evacuated]
A Democratic state senator sued DeSantis over the move, saying they violated state law because the immigrants were being brought from another state, not Florida.
The new law addresses that problem, allowing the governor to bring migrants in from anywhere in the country, which would nullify those lawsuits.
The bill also authorizes the governor to develop the program through contracts with companies to execute it,
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The bill is one of several being debated in the two-week special session of the Florida Legislature aimed at raising the reputation of DeSantis, a possible 2024 presidential candidate, within his party and nationally.
The approval of the bill comes as hundreds of Cuban and Haitian migrants will arrive in the Florida Keys, many of whom will take the dangerous journey in handmade boats.
Republican leaders in the Florida Legislature have said the expansion of the program is designed "
to respond to the influx of immigrants arriving in the Florida Keys
."
The measure "will facilitate the transportation of inspected unauthorized aliens within the United States," according to the bill.
In addition, it defines them as people who have "documentation from the federal government indicating that it processed and released them into the United States without admitting the individuals pursuant to the federal Immigration and Nationality Act."
This refers to people who have been admitted to the country pending a decision on asylum.
The law explicitly targets the Joe Biden administration, and includes language stating that
it has "failed to secure the nation's borders"
and has "demonstrated that it is unwilling to address this crisis."
“Without such action” by Florida legislators, detrimental “effects” could occur, including “increased crime, decreased economic opportunity and wages for American workers, and increased pressure on the education and medical care," he added.
In September, DeSantis said that "it's better" for migrants "to be able to go to a sanctuary jurisdiction" and that the program would "help facilitate the transportation" of migrants
to "greener pastures."
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The governor has more recently defended that the measure had a "deterrent effect" on immigrants arriving in Florida.
“People are sick of having an open border with no rule of law in this country,” he said last week.
“We can sit back and do nothing about it or we can get up and say, 'Whatever tools we have, we're going to use them.'
Republican governors across the country, including Greg Abbott of Texas and former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, have for months bussed immigrants into liberal strongholds to draw attention to what they say are the failed border policies of the Biden administration.
Since then, thousands of migrants have arrived in New York, Washington, Chicago and elsewhere, and officials in those cities are rushing to provide support services.
Texas alone has sent nearly 15,000 migrants to other cities since April, according to NBC News.