| | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard and Isa Domínguez | | Presented by |  | | | | 
The governor has been previewing a possible deal for more than a week. | Rebecca Blackwell/AP | Good morning and welcome to Tuesday. Gov. RON DESANTIS and legislative leaders have gotten over their differences on illegal immigration and are barreling toward passage of three bills in a special session that starts at noon today. The governor has been previewing a possible deal for more than a week. At $250 million, the latest bill package is half the price tag of what the Legislature passed in the last special session, and merges ideas from the Legislature and governor’s office. It would provide funding to train local law enforcement and also make it a crime for an undocumented person to enter Florida. The two sides also threaded together a solution to one of the biggest areas of dispute: where the power to coordinate immigration efforts should be. The Legislature wanted to hand the responsibility to Agriculture Commissioner WILTON SIMPSON, but DeSantis wanted to keep the authorities under his office’s domain. Ultimately, they created a “State Board of Immigration Enforcement” that’s made up of the governor, the agriculture commissioner, the state attorney general and the Florida chief financial officer. The board’s decisions would also have to be unanimous in order to move forward. (DeSantis, you’ll recall, will soon appoint a new chief financial officer as well as JAMES UTHMEIER, his chief of staff, to the spot of attorney general.) DeSantis did renege on a push to stop undocumented immigrants from sending money to family members back home. A senior official in the governor’s office said that they recognized “more discussion” was needed on the topic and noted that federal officials would be taking a look at the issue. (Read more about the changes from POLITICO’s Isa Domínguez.) The Legislature is expected to pass a final package by Friday. A statement from legislative leaders stressed that Florida wanted to help President DONALD TRUMP with his immigration plans. But the president has stayed silent on the dispute even as some state lawmakers visited the White House to discuss illegal immigration with senior White House officials last week. Without Trump weighing in, they’ve been left to work out the details on their own. The coming together was hard to envision two weeks ago, when legislative leaders closed the governor’s special session and called their own. Back then, DeSantis dragged the bill they were writing — called the TRUMP Act — as “toothless” and threatened to primary lawmakers and gubernatorial candidates who backed the legislation. But DeSantis shifted last week. He said during a stop in Miami that everyone was “working together” and predicting they’d land on a “really strong product.” Regardless of this first hurdle, there’s still plenty of uncertainty about the relationship between DeSantis and the Republican-heavy Legislature moving forward. Starting today, the state House is planning to hold work groups to look at DeSantis’ summer budget vetoes on health care, criminal justice and the arts to recommend “legislative action.” That means lawmakers could consider overriding more budget items DeSantis nixed. DeSantis also has some things working in his favor. He can dangle the position of lieutenant governor before lawmakers as he works to fill it with an ally, perhaps even leaving it vacant for months. The fact that Florida first lady CASEY DESANTIS is being floated to run for governor, per NBC News’ Matt Dixon, also will help to shed some of the lame-duck status that has been hanging over DeSantis, given that she would be likely to govern similarly. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com
| | A message from Alibaba: U.S. businesses are succeeding globally by expanding sales to over one billion consumers through Alibaba's online marketplace. Alibaba helps American companies do business abroad, generating more jobs and wages back home. In just one year, sales from U.S. businesses contributed billions of dollars to the U.S. GDP and supported hundreds of thousands of jobs. Learn how Alibaba helps drive global success for U.S. businesses. | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | PARKS BILL — Environmental groups on Monday asked legislators to strengthen a bill that would restrict amenities that can be built in state parks. The Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources is holding a hearing today on the bill, SB 80(25R), which was filed in response to Department of Environmental Protection proposals last summer to allow golf courses, lodges and pickleball courts in state parks. DeSantis last August said park officials were going "back to the drawing board" after a bipartisan outcry against the proposals. The legislation would require DEP to manage park lands for "conservation-based" recreational uses that specifically do not include golf courses, ball fields and pickleball courts. The bill also would require a public hearing with at least 30 days' notice for changes to park management plans. More than 60 environmental groups on Monday signed onto a letter to the House and Senate bill sponsors that calls for strengthening the legislation. Among the requested changes are expanding the requirements to other state lands including state forests and wildlife management areas. — Bruce Ritchie
| | | | We’ve re-imagined and expanded our Inside Congress newsletter to give you unmatched reporting on Capitol Hill politics and policy -- and we'll get it to your inbox even earlier. Subscribe today. | | | | | TODAY — The Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability will focus its 1:45 p.m. hearing today on a bill that would ban the display of certain flags at government buildings, state Sen. RANDY FINE (R-Melbourne Beach), who chairs the committee, told Playbook. Fine initially planned to have an oversight hearing today looking at the social media practices of the governor’s staff and added he “absolutely” is still planning to do that hearing. But Fine said he wanted to focus on the legislation first. TESTING SCORES DECLINE — “Florida middle schoolers’ math and reading scores continue a decline that preceded the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Department of Education data released in January show,” reports the Florida Phoenix’s Jay Waagmeester. Florida Education Commissioner MANNY DIAZ JR. criticized the data’s results in a letter for its exclusion of private schools, but MARTIN WEST, vice chair of the NAEP governing board, said that, while the U.S. Department of Education would “love” to include private schools, not enough agree to participate. The Florida Education Association said the scores reflected the “long-term consequences of underinvestment, overburdened educators, and bad policies that fail to support students equitably.” GRANTS TO HARDEN HOMES — DeSantis is asking the Legislature to set aside an additional $590 million for the My Safe Florida Home Program that provides state grants for people to harden their homes against natural disasters, reports Ron Hurtibise of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. The application portal has been closed since July 17, 2024, leaving 45,000 homeowners on the waitlist. LEGISLATION ROUNDUP — State Sen. JOE GRUTERS (R-Sarasota), who is running for chief financial officer in 2026, filed legislation that would make it easier for the CFO to invest state funds and other assets in Bitcoin, reports Florida Politics’ Andrew Powell. … State Rep. MONIQUE MILLER (R-Melbourne Beach) is planning an open carry bill for firearms, reports Florida Politics’ Jacob Ogles. DeSantis has said he’d want to sign such a bill into law, but Senate President BEN ALBRITTON indicated in November he would be opposed. State Sen. BLAISE INGOGLIA (R-Spring Hill) and state Rep. MONIQUE MILLER (R-Palm Bay) filed legislation to ban artificial intelligence from being used to detect firearms.
| | | | A message from Alibaba:  
| | | | | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | FAU LEADER NAMED — “Florida Atlantic University trustees unanimously named former GOP state Rep. Adam Hasner as the school’s new president Monday, ending a leadership search that began in 2023,” reports POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury. “Currently private prison operator The GEO Group's executive vice president for public policy, Hasner comes to FAU with eight years of experience in the state Legislature, including two terms as House majority leader, where he represented the university as part of Palm Beach County. Hasner becomes the latest former legislator to lead a university, as more schools turn to candidates with ties to Tallahassee in hopes of scoring more clout and coveted state funding.” THE FIGHT AGAINST IMMIGRATION — Florida is not the only state filing bills in conjunction with Trump’s immigration directives, reports Natanya Friedheim and Ella Thompson of Statehouse Reporting Project and Fresh Take Florida. Out of 223 immigration bills filed in 35 states, the Statehouse Reporting Project at the University of Missouri found that 76 percent “sought to aid the Trump administration’s efforts.” — “What will Vanderbilt campus in WPB look like? Here are the first renderings of the project,” by John Bisognano of the Palm Beach Post.
| | | | A new era in Washington calls for sharper insights. Get faster policy scoops, more congressional coverage, and a re-imagined newsletter under the leadership of Jack Blanchard. Subscribe to our Playbook Newsletter today. | | | | | | | TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP | | JUDGE RULES FOR TRANSPARENCY IN CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS CASE — “U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell said Trump’s election as president — which forced the end of the criminal case — combined with the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity mean Trump is effectively insulated from any criminal responsibility for his conduct,” reports POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney. “That means the FBI’s previous reasons for refusing to gather and disclose records related to the probe no longer apply, Howell wrote in a ruling in a Freedom of Information Act case brought by journalist Jason Leopold. She noted that while the dismissal of charges against Trump may have reduced his criminal exposure, it ‘ironically’ made him more susceptible to public scrutiny for his conduct.”
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | | SD-19 SPECIAL ELECTION FIGHT — The Department of State on Monday filed its response to the Florida Supreme Court detailing why it disqualified GOP state Rep. DEBBIE MAYFIELD from running for her old seat. The Department of State told Mayfield she couldn’t run because of term limits — she was in the Senate until last November but has been serving in the state House for a few months. Her old seat will soon be available because its current occupant, Fine, is expected to easily win his race for Congress. The department argued Mayfield should have sued in circuit court instead, so the case could be discussed back and forth in a hearing versus through documents, and contended it would create too much extra work for the department to add her name to the ballot at this juncture. They also argue she’d be violating eight-year term limits because she would be reelected to the state Senate in the year after leaving office. “‘Re-election’ doesn’t hinge on incumbency,” the office writes in the brief. “An incumbent can be re-elected, but so too can a previous officeholder.” The brief pointed to Trump’s election as an example. Mayfield sued to have her name placed on the ballot for the April 1 special primary election, saying the DeSantis administration targeted her because she publicly flipped her endorsement from DeSantis to Trump during the 2024 GOP presidential primary. LAST WEEK — Gov. SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS was in Miami for a private donor event. Spotted: consultant and podcaster GABE GROISMAN, tech CEO and Republican strategist ROBERT SALVADOR.
| | DATELINE D.C. | | | 
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna is holding a press conference with Oversight Chair James Comer on government transparency. | Angelina Katsanis/POLITICO | TODAY — Rep. ANNA PAULINA LUNA (R-Fla.) is holding a press conference at 3 p.m. with Oversight Chair JAMES COMER (R-Ky.) on government transparency. NASA JAMMING IN THE SPACE COAST — Florida politicians like DeSantis, Rep. MIKE HARIDOPOLOS and Luna have been pushing for NASA to move its headquarters to Florida’s Space Coast, a discussion that appears to be gaining traction, reports Florida Today’s Rick Neale. NASA’s DC lease is set to expire in 2028, and the agency has been on the lookout for a new headquarters locale since November. Although other states like Alabama and Texas are under consideration, Haridopolos is “optimistic that Florida's got a great shot.” — “Two planeloads of deported migrants from the U.S. headed back to Venezuela,” reports Antonio Maria Delgado of the Miami Herald.
| | A message from Alibaba: Alibaba's e-commerce marketplace is having a positive impact on Florida businesses. In fact, Fernando Tamez, CEO of FL-based DS Laboratories says "sales on Alibaba exceeded expectations by 50% in the first year," and added that Alibaba guided DS Laboratories through every step in the process as they prepared to enter the global market.
DS Laboratories is now hiring more employees at its headquarters in Miami, Florida, to keep up with the growing global demand for its hair and skin care products. In just one year, it is estimated that sales on Alibaba by Florida businesses contributed millions to the state's GDP and supported thousands of local jobs.
Learn how Florida businesses are achieving global success with Alibaba. | | | | | TRANSITION TIME | | — LAUREN CHOU is joining the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee as comms director, per DC Playbook. She most recently was comms director for DEBBIE MUCARSEL-POWELL’s Florida Senate campaign, and is an EMILY’s List and Mandela Barnes alum.
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