Link to bill: https://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Documents/loaddoc.aspx?FileName=_s1808__.DOCX&DocumentType=Bill&BillNumber=1808&Session=2022

Link to Analysis Sheet some of these talkers were inspired from

Talking points

• The Florida legislature is advancing a bill that would prevent unaccompanied migrant children from being brought to Florida for care and shelter and to be reunited with family or sponsors in our state.
• The bill targets private companies that transport unaccompanied children who are brought into the state through a fully-funded federal program.
• SB1808 would prohibit faith-based and non-profit organizations like ours to offer shelter and care for unaccompanied migrant youth, therefore intervening in our God-given mission to care for the vulnerable.
• This bill is anti-faith, anti-children, and ungodly.
• The most concerning part of the bill is that it targets individuals who are authorized to be here, but in the process of receiving work authorization. This includes:
  • People with Temporary Protected Status (TPS), including people from Haiti and Venezuela
  • People with pending applications for TPS, including people from Haiti and Venezuela
  • Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) recipients
  • People with pending asylum applications who have not received their employment authorization document, including people from Afghanistan, Nicaragua, Cuba, Haiti, and Venezuela

  • 3Anyone whose employment authorization documents have yet to be issued.

• SB 1808 goes after people who are lawfully present in Florida.
• SB1808 would affect millions of TPS recipients, tourists visiting Florida on a B-1/B-2 visa, victims of trafficking with pending T visa applications, fiancée(s) of U.S. citizens in the U.S. on a K-1 visa,  foreign college or university students, essential workers and more.
• Florida is home to the second largest population of TPS recipients nationwide.
• It is illegal for common carriers to discriminate on the basis of immigration status. This bill is essentially designed to pressure transportation companies into violating federal law.
• SB1808 is unconstitutional and politically and racially-motivated.
• Through SB1808, DeSantis is attacking children, faith leaders and immigrant children. He is playing politics with the lives of children as he positions himself for a future presidential run instead of tackling real issues facing Floridians like the housing and rent crisis.
• We applaud Miami Roman Catholic ArchBishop Wenski for his outspokenness on behalf of child refugees.
• We are appalled by the disgraceful rhetoric Governor DeSantis used when he basically called migrant children “disgusting”. What’s really disgusting is playing politics with the lives of children while ignoring Floridians real needs like affordable housing.
• As educators, we stand with our migrant students. There are approximately 620,000 K-12 undocumented students whose lives would be at risk should this bill pass.
• SB 1808/HB1355 has an incredibly broad scope that will harm Florida business and tourism because it does not acknowledge the complexity of the immigration laws it cites.
• The faith-communities are called to aid the most vulnerable amongst us, but this bill would put an end to our work in support of migrant children. We cannot allow the state legislature to pass a bill that would legislate against children.
• When Florida aided Cuban kids in their time of need, we felt proud to have the freedom to do so. Unfortunately, this bill would curtail our opportunity to continue to be a beacon of hope for migrant children fleeing from life-threatening dangers.A Free Florida is a Florida that is free to help children in need!