Dozens Of FL Cities Haven't Signed 287(g) Agreements. Does That Make Them Sanctuary Cities?

By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix

July 15, 2025

The Key West City Commission’s vote last week to reverse itself and agree to once again enter into a 287(g) agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) came in response to a threat made by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier that failure to do so could lead to their removal from office.

But several critics of the agreement told members of the commission in public comment prior to their vote that they should defer any action, saying they were under no legal obligation to authorize the Key West Police Department to work with ICE.

“287(g) agreements are not mandatory in this state,” said Berbeth Foster, senior staff attorney with Community Justice Project, a Miami racial justice and human rights organization.

“Key West and any city in the state of Florida does not have an obligation to enter into this agreement. So instead, what we’re seeing is the governor and the attorney general using fear and intimidation to force cities across the state to engage in conduct that far exceeds Florida state law requirements.”

After Key West commissioners voted to void the previously agreed-upon contract with ICE on June 30, Uthmeier declared in a social media post: “Key West has made itself a sanctuary city,” which are illegal in Florida. He went on to warn that failure to take corrective action would result in the enforcement of “all applicable civil and criminal penalties, including removal of office by the Governor pursuant to section 908.107, Florida Statutes, and the Florida Constitution.”

Uthmeier also threatened members of the Fort Myers City Council with removal earlier this year after they opposed having their police department from cooperate with ICE. Like Key West officials, they promptly turned around and voted to implement a 287(g) agreement.

However, in dozens of Florida cities, police have not entered into 287(g) agreements. ICE has links on their website showing the number of participating law enforcement agencies in Florida and the U.S. with such agreements, although it is not completely up to date.Among those that have signed on but are not yet listed on the website is Miami, which enacted its agreement with ICE last month.

Alana Greer is the director and co-founder of the Community Justice Project in Miami.

“Despite the tremendous pressure exerted by the governor and AG to strong-arm cities into joining ICE’s deportation machine, over 100 agencies have not signed up,” she told the Phoenix. “No federal or state law requires them to join. But that legal truth is not enough; we need courage from elected officials to hold the line for their communities.”

Florida banned sanctuary cities in 2019. The law defines a sanctuary policy as “a law, policy, practice, procedure, or custom adopted or allowed by a state entity or local government entity which prohibits or impedes a law enforcement agency from complying with 8 U.S.C. s. 1373 or which prohibits or impedes a law enforcement agency from communicating or cooperating with a federal immigration agency …”

(8 U.S.C. s. 1373 is a federal statute that prohibits local and state governments and agencies from enacting laws or policies that limit communication with DHS about “information regarding the immigration or citizenship status” of individuals).

Section 908.104 of the law says that “[c]onsistent with all duties created in state and federal law, state and local law enforcement agencies and any official responsible for directing or supervising such agency shall use best efforts to support the enforcement of federal immigration law.”

Another city in Miami-Dade — South Miami — is involved in a lawsuit against the Ron DeSantis administration regarding the legal requirements for municipalities to participate in such agreements. The city seeks a declaration that not executing a 287(g) agreement does not constitute adopting or having in effect a sanctuary policy.

“The fact that the Legislature required county-level agencies to enter into 287(g) agreements shows that it knew how to enact that requirement if it wanted to,” reads the lawsuit, which was filed on March 27.

“As compelled by applicable interpretive canons … the Legislature’s express specification that a failure to enter into a 287(g) agreement by only operators of county facilities can constitute a sanctuary policy, while failing to make any mention or requirement of municipalities, shows a contrary intention as to municipalities.”

South Miami Mayor Javier Fernández says the purpose of the lawsuit is to allow cities “to have an honest conversation without the fear of retribution and duress.” It’s important, he said, to talk about the implications of such agreements from monetary, liability, and policing perspectives.

“Right now, cities aren’t free to have those conversations without running afoul of what is a very vague statute,” he told the Phoenix last week.

Fernández adds that while he was disappointed Key West City Commissioners opted to execute a 287(g) agreement, he hopes that, if the Second Judicial Court rules in favor of his city, “other cities can weigh the choice Key West was forced to consider without fear and free of duress.”

Among the multiple immigration bills filed in the first special session that Gov. DeSantis called for in January was a measure by Hernando County Republican Sen. Blaise Ingoglia (SB 14-A) directing that along with each state and county law enforcement agency, “any other law enforcement agency with more than 25 sworn officers or certified law enforcement officers” must enter into agreements with ICE.

However, that particular bill never made it to the floor — it died once House Speaker Daniel Perez and Senate President Ben Albritton immediately gaveled out of that special session.

“That bill language was never reconsidered in the course of any subsequent session,” Fernández said.

What did make it into statute this year was Statute 908.11, which says that the “sheriff or chief correctional officer operating a county detention facility must enter into a written agreement with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement to participate in the immigration program under s 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. s 1357.”

It’s not clear what the attorney general’s opinion is of the Florida cities whose police departments haven’t signed a 287(g) agreement. His office did not return a request for comment.

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