TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Despite assurances from both President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that federal money would be used to operate the controversial Everglades immigrant detention center, the state has so far received “no federal funds,” according to court documents filed Thursday by the Department of Homeland Security.
In filings in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, DHS officials said that the facility has relied only on state funding so far and that Florida has not yet applied for federal funding.
“Florida has received no federal funds, nor has it applied for federal funds related to the temporary detention center,” it reads. “Courts cannot adjudicate hypothetical future funding decisions or render advisory opinions on contingent scenarios that never materialize.”
The filing was the agency’s response to a lawsuit filed by two environmental groups asking that the facility be shuttered. DHS argued it has no such authority because the department has not “implemented, authorized, directed, or funded Florida’s temporary detention center.”
The facility, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” gained national attention even ahead of its opening Tuesday. Trump and some of his top administration officials joined state officials for a tour of the facility, and the president said he’d like to see similar facilities constructed in other states. It is expected to cost $450 million a year to operate, according to Florida officials.
During the event, Trump said the federal government was not just going to help reimburse the state for costs, but that it also helped with construction — which was done in just eight days under the authority of an emergency immigration order DeSantis signed in 2023 and has extended several times since then.
Trump pointed to the source of the funds as the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Shelter and Services Program, which has been used in the past to house undocumented people. During President Joe Biden’s administration, the same pot of money was used to house undocumented people, a point Trump and other Republicans have long criticized, at times baselessly, as spending taxpayer dollars to house undocumented migrants in “luxury” hotels in New York City.
“We took the FEMA money that Joe Biden allocated to pay for the free luxury hotel rooms where he’s paying hundreds of millions of dollars in New York City, and we used it to build this project” Trump said.
Last week, DeSantis also told reporters that the facility will be “funded largely” by the FEMA program.
“Alligator Alcatraz will be funded largely by FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program, which the Biden administration used as a piggy bank to spend hundreds of millions of American taxpayer dollars to house illegal aliens,” he said. “Now, it is being used to detain criminal illegal aliens while they await deportation.”
DHS on Thursday said the federal government will still use the FEMA funds to pay “in large part” for the facility.
“These new facilities will in large part be funded by FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program, which the Biden Administration used as a piggy bank to spend hundreds of millions of American taxpayer dollars to house illegal aliens,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said.
The Shelter and Services Program is a reimbursement-based program, which means states must apply for reimbursements related to eligible costs. The facility has been open for fewer than three days, so the issue could center on Florida just not yet applying for the FEMA funds because of the early work.
The Florida Attorney General’s Office and the Florida Department of Emergency Management, the agency responsible for applying for reimbursements, did not return requests seeking clarification.
The admission that no federal funding has yet been sent to the state comes amid behind-the-scenes tension between top DHS officials, including Secretary Kristi Noem, and DeSantis over the governor’s handling of the facility’s rollout. Federal officials wanted the main unveiling to coincide with Trump’s visit Tuesday, but DeSantis did a tour of the facility with “Fox and Friends” last Friday, something that caught both federal and some state officials off guard.
DHS called the claims “fake news” when NBC News first reported the tensions Tuesday but did not refute the claims.
“DeSantis upset Noem and Lewandowski with his Fox News tour of the detention site,” a Republican operative familiar with the process told NBC News on Tuesday, referring to Corey Lewandowski, Noem’s close adviser. “Noem wanted an event for Tuesday and didn’t want anyone having eyes on the site and needed to push until Tuesday because she was traveling.”
The first group of detainees arrived Thursday, and the facility is supposed to hold 3,000 people.
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