In May, Florida Governor Ron Desantis signed Senate Bill (SB) 1718 into law, a sweeping anti-immigrant legislation that has caused both panic and uncertainty among the state’s immigrant community. The law, which went into effect July 1st of this year, could harm not only undocumented immigrants in the state, but also Florida’s economy.
SB 1718 imposes harsh fines on employers with over 25 employees who do not use E-Verify in an effort to crack down on businesses that hire undocumented workers. Furthermore, it provides additional funding for the state’s controversial “Unauthorized Aliens Transport Program,” which infamously flew asylum seekers from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard under false pretenses. The law even invalidates certain out-of-state drivers licenses, and criminalizes crossing state lines over to Florida with an undocumented family member as “human smuggling.” It is no surprise that the climate of fear fostered by this law has led some immigrants to leave the state entirely.
For a Spanish translation of this article, click here.
The above excerpt was originally published in La Opinión.
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