Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is pushing back against the Department of Homeland Security’s latest recruitment push, accusing federal officials of “poaching” deputies from local and state agencies to fill positions with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Speaking Friday at Florida Highway Patrol Headquarters in Orlando, DeSantis said ICE’s aggressive hiring campaign—which includes a maximum $50,000 signing bonus and other lucrative federal benefits—is undermining state law enforcement efforts by enticing experienced officers to jump ship.
“Sheriffs [are] losing deputies who are in this fight to just wear a different jersey, basically, but still be in the fight. That doesn’t necessarily add to what we’re doing. It’s just moving someone over,” DeSantis said.
Federal Incentives Spark Frustration
ICE’s new recruitment effort is offering what it calls a “robust package of federal law enforcement incentives,” including:
Up to $50,000 in signing bonuses Enhanced federal retirement benefits Student loan forgiveness programs 25% Law Enforcement Availability Pay (LEAP) for Homeland Security Investigations agents Administratively Uncontrollable Overtime (AUI) for Enforcement Removal Officers
While DHS says the plan is part of its strategy to “find, arrest, and remove criminal illegal aliens” using “significant new funding through the recently signed One Big Beautiful Bill,” DeSantis argues that the federal government should be recruiting new agents, not stripping personnel from already understaffed local agencies.
“You guys got to defend your agencies and your people,” DeSantis told sheriffs. “This isn’t my policy. It’s coming down from ICE. But they shouldn’t be pulling from our ranks when we’re already stretched thin.”
Recruitment Efforts Expanding Nationwide
According to DeSantis, ICE recruitment letters have been sent to many Florida deputies with 287(g) immigration enforcement training, as well as state-level officers. Federal agents are also making recruitment pitches in major cities, on college campuses, and at job fairs nationwide.
Local sheriffs have reportedly expressed concern that losing trained deputies to federal agencies could worsen long-term staffing shortages, leaving local communities underserved while the federal government fills its own ranks.
DeSantis says he’s urging local law enforcement leaders to push back, adding that Florida has made significant efforts to assist federal immigration enforcement and shouldn’t have to “compete with D.C. for its own officers.”
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