North Central Florida law enforcement agencies awarded funds for immigration enforcement

OCALA, Fla. (WCJB) - Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia announced funding for immigration enforcement in Cross City and Marion and Bradford counties.

The funding comes from a $250 million allocation approved by Gov. DeSantis last year to reimburse local agencies that participate in a federal immigration enforcement program.

“I don’t want anyone to think that we’ve forgotten about immigration enforcement,” Ingoglia said. “The men and women who are here and working in our communities have not forgotten about this. They come across illegal immigrants every day.”

The 287(g) Program was added to the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996. It allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement to partner with and delegate the authority to identify and remove undocumented criminals to local agencies.

Cross City received $20,000 while Marion County was awarded more than $69,000. Bradford County received the most funding at $77,000.

Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.