Florida’s special legislative session begins on Monday, Jan. 27, which means counties are having to postpone their appointments with lawmakers about their legislative priorities.
Franklin and Gulf County were supposed to present their ideas to state lawmakers on Monday, but things changed once Florida Governor Ron DeSantis made it abundantly clear that he wants lawmakers back in Tallahassee the week of the 27th.
“State and local officials in Florida must help the trump administration enforce our nation’s immigration laws," DeSantis said during a recent press conference.
As Governor, I have proposed and signed into law the strongest anti-illegal immigration policies in the country to protect Florida from the Biden Administration’s border crisis. Now that President Trump is back in office, I want Florida to be equipped with everything we need to… pic.twitter.com/vcpw0YjU56
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) January 23, 2025
The governor urged the Florida Legislature to help President Trump "stop illegal immigration." But DeSantis’ decision presents a challenge for state lawmakers in Franklin, Gulf, Brevard, and Polk counties, as they were scheduled to hold their delegation meetings next week.
The Polk County Legislative Delegation meeting was originally scheduled for Jan. 28. It has now been rescheduled for Feb. 27.
State House Representative Jason Shoaf, R-Port St. Joe, announced on Thursday that he has no choice but to reschedule his Jan. 27 delegation meeting with Franklin and Gulf counties for Feb. 6.
"Some legislative delegation meetings are being rescheduled due to the Special Session being called in Tallahassee next week," Shoaf said in a Facebook post.
Florida House Majority Leader Tyler Sirois, R-Merritt Island, who chairs the Brevard delegation, has yet to set a new date for the delegation meeting.
The regular legislative session begins on March 4.