DeSantis wants to make it harder for undocumented immigrants to work and go to college in Florida

• DeSantis is accelerating his clamp down against undocumented immigrants in Florida.
• Last year DeSantis orchestrated flights carrying migrants from San Antonio to Martha's Vineyard.

Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida rolled out a series of proposals on Thursday that would impose major restrictions on career and educational opportunities for undocumented immigrants in the state.

The governor wants state legislators to repeal a state law that allows children of undocumented immigrants to get in-state college tuition rates. The sweeping changes would also ban localities from issuing IDs to undocumented immigrants, increase criminal penalties for human smuggling, and require all employers to use e-verify — a system that checks prospective workers' residency status.

Under the proposal, hospitals would be required to collect data on how much they spend providing healthcare to undocumented immigrants.

DeSantis framed his latest plan as a direct response to President Joe Biden's immigration policies. A historic number of people have crossed the border during Biden's presidency, many of whom are seeking asylum from violence in their home countries.

Last year Border Patrol arrested almost 2 million people who were crossing the border illegally, and an estimated 11 million people are living in the US while undocumented.

"We need to do everything in our power to protect the people of Florida from what's going on at the border and the border crisis," DeSantis said at a press conference in Jacksonville, Florida, standing behind a lectern that read "Biden's Border Crisis." The sign featured Biden's 2020 presidential campaign logo.

It's unclear how the policies will be received by residents in certain parts of Florida, such as Miami, that have a Latino majority population.

The law on college tuition the governor wants to repeal was originally introduced by his lieutenant governor, Jeanette Nuñez, when she was a state lawmaker representing Miami. Sen. Rick Scott, DeSantis' predecessor in the governor's mansion, signed the bill into law.

DeSantis wants the legislature to write the bill and send it to his desk following Florida's session that begins March 7. The governor has a GOP supermajority in the legislature and lawmakers are expected to be deferential to his requests, particularly given the spotlight on the governor as he appears to be revving up for a 2024 race for the White House.

A presidential run would pit DeSantis against former President Donald Trump, whose hard line, anti-immigration rhetoric and actions whipped up his base and led to numerous lawsuits and public backlash.

The bipartisan American Business Immigration Coalition Action denounced the DeSantis proposal in a statement on Thursday, saying it would "not only sow widespread fear among the state's immigrants and their employers but would be so repressive and restrictive as to devastate critical business industries across the state that rely daily on immigrant labor."

DeSantis' latest immigration announcements come after controversial actions last year, when the governor authorized sending two planes filled with Venezuelan and Colombian migrants to Martha's Vineyard, the vacation island in Massachusetts, as part of a political stunt aimed at opposing Biden's border policy.

Last week DeSantis signed a bill into law that will expand the state's ability to move migrants to Democratic-led states and "sanctuary cities." These cities limit their cooperation with federal immigration authorities by refusing to report or hand over certain undocumented immigrants for deportation.

Under the new law, Florida officials could move migrants from any state and keep the details of the transportation companies secret.

DeSantis' Martha's Vineyard move was viewed by critics, including the Biden administration, as a cruel stunt that misled vulnerable migrants.

Defenders of the transport programs have said that the considerable costs of supporting migrants with food, shelter, and medical care should be borne not just by states along the US-Mexico border.

Biden announced a crack down on illegal immigration in January, saying the federal government would deny entry to people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela if they bypass official ports into the US from Mexico.

February 23, 2023: This story has been updated to include a response from the American Business Immigration Coalition Action.