Community advocates say Florida's new immigration law already putting strain on state
TAMPA, Fla. - Florida’s new immigration law is already making waves one month in, and the state agriculture commissioner said in a recent podcast that there could be unintended consequences of the law.
Numerous rallies warned against Florida’s new immigration law that went into effect on July 1. Now a little over a month later, Florida’s agriculture commissioner Wilton Simpson recently shared his thoughts with the News Service of Florida in a podcast episode.
"So I think farmers are introducing themselves, a lot more farmers are introducing themselves to the H2A program where you have seasonal workers come in and out of the state. But I do think there are unintended consequences, in our construction industry, in our hotel, restaurant and lodging association, and I don’t know that we fully understand the downside to the new law," said Simpson on the Deeper Dive with Dara Kam podcast.
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Simpson went on to say it has good intentions, but it's a federal issue. Community advocates and immigration attorneys said the strain is already beginning.
Many rallied to warn against the new state law.
"I've had clients tell me they are leaving, they have left. And this is just because when you look at the way that the law targets employers, they're no longer able to hire," said Jamila Little, an immigration attorney at Little Law offices in Tampa.
Little said Florida’s agriculture, tourism and construction industries will feel impacts the most.
"I've had a lot of my clients actually coming asking how can I get a work permit now? And I think that's just part and parcel of what's going on, because they can't work without a work permit now. And it will mean if they can't do that, they'll go to another state," said Little.
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Some undocumented workers already have left the state for work in other states. Ana Lamb is an advocate within Hillsborough County's immigrant community and shared how businesses are adjusting.
Different industries will be impacted by the new law.
"We have business owners sharing their stories. Some of them were taking their people to different estate, to different projects," said Lamb.
It will soon be time for migrant workers to return to Florida from northern states, but some community advocates are concerned about whether enough of them will.
"We know that they don't want to come back is what we know. But we haven't seen anyone coming back," said Lamb.
There is a lawsuit filed suing the state over the new immigration law, calling the law unconstitutional and vague. Little said the immigration system was already backlogged, and the new law will make the process for getting work permits even longer.