Gov. DeSantis signs immigration bills after sending reinforcements to southern Florida

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed three bills into law designed to address crimes committed by illegal immigrants. Senate Bill 1036 increases the penalties for a crime committed by an individual who returned to the United States after being deported. Two House bills prevent local authorities from accepting ID cards issued to illegal immigrants by other jurisdictions and raise penalties for individuals who operate a vehicle without a license.

“In Florida, we don’t allow illegal aliens to get driver’s licenses, and we won’t recognize driver’s licenses that sanctuary jurisdictions give,” DeSantis said during a press conference. At the conference, DeSantis also said that Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers in February intercepted a boat carrying 25 men, women, and children from Haiti off the state’s eastern coast.

What else has DeSantis done to tackle immigration recently? The governor on Wednesday said he would deploy more than 250 state officers and National Guard members to the southern coast of Florida ahead of a possible influx of immigrants from Haiti. The U.S. Coast Guard on Tuesday intercepted a boat carrying 65 Haitians near the Bahamas and sent them back to Haiti. The Caribbean nation has seen a rapid spike in gang violence in recent weeks and is in the process of establishing a new government.

Dig deeper:  Read Josh Schumacher’s report in The Sift about U.S. Marines being deployed to the American embassy in Haiti.