Florida’s economy could suffer from Trump’s mass deportation plan, experts say

President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to mass deport undocumented immigrants could have widespread repercussions across the country, especially in Florida. But for now, the state’s new leaders have said it’s not their problem.

During the campaign, the former president regularly vowed to carry out mass deportations “on day one.” At rallies, he often argued for the criminality of migrants.

“When I get re-elected, we will begin to remove these criminals, these terrible people from our midst,” President-elect Trump said at a recent MAGA rally in Wisconsin. “And we will do it immediately.”

There are less than two months left until January 20th. If President-elect Trump is successful, the changes to Florida’s workforce and economy could be widespread, and some even expect them to be devastating.

Despite this, Florida House Speaker Danny Perez (R) and Senate President Ben Albritton (R) dodged questions about the potential fallout earlier this week.

“Any immigration policy emanating from the federal government remains at the discretion of the federal government,” said Speaker of the House of Representatives. “That’s a question you should ask the president.”

President Albritton said something similar: tell reporters on Tuesday: “The federal government is the federal government. A state government is a state government. This is a federal issue.”

When Albritton pressed for further efforts to address potential disruptions from mass deportations, he redoubled his efforts.

“It’s up to the federal government,” the Senate president said. “We’ll see what they do.”

What exactly they will do is still unclear. Trump has confirmed he will use the army. Texas has proposed land along the border for “deportation points.” Trump’s advisers even said he will seek to again repeal DACA, the Obama-era program that protects undocumented people who came to the country as children.

Florida Democrats like Rep. Marie Woodson (D-Pembroke Pines), a Haitian migrant herself, have been warning for months what these mass deportations could mean for Florida. She is concerned about the rise of bigotry and racial profiling.

“For those who are afraid, I will tell you this: Fear Trump because he has proven to you who he is,” Woodson said. “Okay, mass deportation. During a mass deportation, you do not know who will be in this “mass”. But we know for sure that he does not need people who came from the Biden program. Our brothers and sisters in Ohio. He doesn’t want them here. He doesn’t want Haitians involved. general.”

There is also a serious economic problem. Last data Florida has one of the highest numbers of undocumented people in the country, at about 1.1 million, according to the American Immigration Council. They make up about seven percent of the workforce here—working in agriculture, hospitality and construction, bringing in about $2 billion in state and local taxes alone.

Brookings Institution recently proposed mass deportation may also lead to a reduction in the employment of citizens. Researchers found For every half million deported, the number of U.S.-born jobs fell by about 44,000.

“Occupations common among unauthorized workers, such as construction workers and cooks, are essential to keeping businesses running,” the report reads in part. “The deportation of workers in these occupations also affects US-born workers.”

Florida’s governor and legislators have already passed immigration laws in several states with strict work screening rules for employers. They said they were more concentrated about making the labor market inhospitable, not about mass deportation.

“We protect Floridians in every way possible,” DeSantis said last May before signing immigration reform bill. “But it’s sad. It’s sad to see what happened. It’s sad to see these pictures of lawlessness.”

However, a new era may be just around the corner. For now, Florida legislative leaders seem content to wait to see what happens next before moving forward.

This story was originally published by Forrest Saunders on Scripps News Tampa.