Feds approve Florida for a $608 million 'Alligator Alcatraz' reimbursement

[In It to Win It]

Federal officials on Friday confirmed Florida has been approved for a $608 million reimbursement for the costs of building and running an immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades, exposing “Alligator Alcatraz” to the potential risk of being ordered to close for a second time.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in an email that the state of Florida was awarded its full reimbursement this week.

While the funds have been approved, they haven’t yet been released since the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s process requires that it review expenses for which reimbursement requests are made, Stephanie Hartman, director of communications for the Florida Division of Emergency Management, said in an email to The Associated Press.

The reimbursement process potentially exposes the state of Florida to being forced to unwind operations at the remote facility for a second time because of a federal judge’s injunction in August. The Miami judge agreed with environmental groups who had sued that the site wasn’t given a proper environmental review before it was converted into an immigration detention center and gave Florida two months to wind down operations.

https://apnews.com/article/florida-immigration-alligator-alcatraz-federal-officials-8a7fce9f41aff8f6d32865db425afca0