Overview

• A divided 2–1 appeals panel stayed a Miami judge’s order that had required Alligator Alcatraz to wind down operations by late October.
• The court said NEPA reviews cover only major federal actions under the 2023 amendments and found the state-run, state-funded project falls outside that scope.
• Judge Adalberto Jordan dissented, pointing to officials’ statements about potential federal reimbursement that could alter the federal role analysis.
• Built under a state emergency at the Dade-Collier airstrip to support immigration enforcement, the facility will keep operating as Florida and DHS hailed the ruling.
• Friends of the Everglades, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Miccosukee Tribe said they will press the merits, as reporting highlights many detainees with no criminal convictions and parallel civil-rights challenges continue.