Florida is taking significant steps to bolster its immigration enforcement efforts. Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed Senate Bill 2C, establishing a new Board of Immigration Enforcement and a State Immigration Enforcement Council to advise it. Four Florida sheriffs, including Grady Judd of Polk County, Bob Gualtieri of Pinellas County, T.K. Waters of Jacksonville, and Bill Prummell of Charlotte County, have been appointed to the council. They will join four police chiefs, including Douglas Goerke of St. Cloud, to form the advisory body.

This council will play a key role in guiding the board's collaboration with the Trump administration on enforcing federal immigration laws. One of their primary responsibilities will be to seek training and strategic guidance from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), particularly regarding the 287(g) program. The council will also offer recommendations on allocating financial resources to local law enforcement, improving information sharing between state and federal agencies, and increasing the availability of detention beds for ICE.

Governor DeSantis has emphasized Florida's commitment to leading the nation in immigration enforcement, aiming to support the Trump administration's objectives of halting illegal immigration, deporting undocumented individuals, and ensuring the safety of American citizens. He stated that the new legislation makes Florida the "strongest state in the nation" for immigration enforcement.

Larry Keefe, known for his involvement in the Martha's Vineyard migrant flight during the Biden administration, has been appointed as the board's executive director. The board itself comprises Governor DeSantis, Attorney General James Uthmeier, Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, and Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson. The Cabinet has also passed resolutions to ensure compliance with the state's initiatives to detain and deport undocumented immigrants.