Immigration bill sails through committees toward Jax Council vote

A bill that would set new local penalties, including imprisonment, for undocumented immigrants and fund 25 more mobile fingerprint scanners for Jacksonville police has cleared three City Council committees despite attempts by a few members to alter, defer or withdraw the legislation.

Ordinance 2025-0147, introduced by Council Vice President Kevin Carrico, will likely go before the full City Council next week.

Carrico convinced two of the committees to add language to the bill that would require all city departments and agencies to support federal and state immigration laws.

The Neighborhoods, Community Service, Public Health and Safety Committee voted 4-3 on Monday to support the bill, which could result in up to 60 days in jail for undocumented immigrants who enter the city.

The Rules Committee advanced the measure in a 5-3 vote Monday, and the Finance Committee signed off in a 5-1 vote on Tuesday.

The opposing view

Carrico pushed back during the bill’s Rules Committee hearing against assertions from opponents that it could lead to racial profiling and that JSO would use it to do neighborhood sweeps for immigration enforcement.

“That’s not the case. That insinuates that we think that all of our JSO officers are inherently racist, which is not true. … If there’s a complaint filed, the sheriff will look into that and make sure that his officers aren’t doing anything wrong and aren’t racially profiling anyone. That’s not going to stand in our community,” Carrico said.

During the Rules Committee hearing, a JSO patrol chief said officers would only seek to verify someone’s immigration status, including using the fingerprint scanner, if they had a reasonable suspicion or probable cause to detain someone for another crime.

In a statement emailed to news media on Tuesday, Carrico said supporters on Council are “doubling down” on his bill, which he’s named the Jacksonville Illegal Immigration and Enforcement Act. Carrico also made claims, without providing evidence, that opposition to the bill is coming from outside Jacksonville.

”Radical leftists and out-of-town agitators are fighting this bill with baseless lawsuits and misinformation. They refuse to confront the real issue — so we’re giving them their answer. Instead for backing down, we are doubling down,” Carrico said. “Every city department will be required to enforce the law — just as they do every day in countless other ways.” 

Can it be enforced? 

Even if the bill passes next week, lawyers with the city are concerned that it may be unconstitutional. 

Jacksonville General Counsel Michael Fackler says pending federal litigation over local enforcement of immigration law could make Carrico’s bill unenforceable. 

The bill would take $76,250 in unused Economic Development Grant fund money for JSO to add more fingerprint scanners to the 150 already deployed, which Carrico says officers would use in the field to identify the immigration status of someone suspected of committing a crime. 

Beyond the scanners, the legislation would mandate jail time for people entering or reentering the city with undocumented status — 30 days for the first offense and 60 for the second. The bill also would require local law enforcement to inform ICE and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement of the arrests.

Mayor Donna Degan’s Administration had declined to take a position on the bill’s merits. But its Council Liaison Bill Delaney says the administration wants the city to instead apply for scanner funding through a recent $289 million state appropriation for local law enforcement related to immigration.

Carrico told Rules Committee members that, according to the Sheriff’s Office, the majority of the state dollars will be used to ensure there are enough beds in the state to detain unauthorized immigrants. 

Who says yes, who says no

The bill did not gain a unanimous vote from any committee, and there were efforts by opponents on council to delay and withdraw the legislation from consideration. In total, nine Council members voted in favor of the bill this week to six who voted against. That leaves four who have not had a chance to record a vote, including Carrico.

Yes:

• Randy White
• Nick Howland
• Terrance Freeman
• Mike Gay
• Chris Miller
• Joe Carlucci
• Ron Salem
• Rory Diamond
• Raul Arias

No:

• Michael Boylan
• Jimmy Peluso
• Matt Carlucci
• Tyrona Clark-Murray
• Ju’Coby Pittman
• Rahman Johnson

Council President Randy White joined the three committees this week to vote in favor of the measure.

Council member Michael Boylan, who represents the Mandarin area, said Monday that no one has provided his office with “any credible evidence” that the additional layer of enforcement is warranted “over and above what the federal and state offices have already enacted.”

Council member Ron Salem, whose parents immigrated to the U.S. from Ramallah, said there are “a lot of people in this city who came over the right way.”

“The point I’m trying to make is becoming a U.S. citizen should be a difficult process,” Salem said. “You shouldn’t be able to just cross a border and become a U.S. citizen.” 

Jimmy Peluso, whose district includes Downtown, wanted to strip nearly all language form the bill except for funding for the fingerprint scanners to support JSO’s equipment needs. 

He addressed Salem’s comments during the Neighborhoods meeting, arguing that immigration is a federal issue. Peluso also discussed his family’s Italian and Irish immigrant heritage.

“There was no right way [to immigrate to the U.S.] for many, many years. The requirements on immigration have changed drastically. And in the past 25 to 30 years, it’s become so restrictive and nearly impossible for a lot of individuals to come in,” Peluso said. “You talked about how many of your family members came in from Ramallah. I ask you now, and I want you to sincerely think about it, how many people from Ramallah could probably come to the United States today? I deem that it would be very, very few, especially given the conflict that’s over there right now.” 

What’s coming next

A second bill, Ordinance 2025-0138, is aimed at ensuring no city-appropriated grant funds support people with undocumented status. That one was introduced by Council member Rory Diamond and has been deferred for two weeks to allow focus on Carrico’s bill first. Carrico’s ordinance will likely be put on the full Council’s agenda for a final vote on March 25. Diamond’s bill could start committee debate as soon as March 31.