Overview

• The tented complex at the Dade-Collier airstrip will begin processing and detaining up to 3,000 migrants within days using FEMA-funded infrastructure.
• Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity sued on June 25 under NEPA and the Endangered Species Act, arguing construction proceeded without environmental review.
• On June 28, hundreds of protesters—including Miccosukee and Seminole tribal members—demonstrated against the camp’s threat to sacred lands and fragile Everglades wetlands.
• Gov. Ron DeSantis invoked emergency powers to seize county land and fast-track the project and has announced plans for a second detention site at Camp Blanding.
• Operating costs are estimated at $450 million a year—about $245 per bed per day—incurred by Florida and reimbursable through FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program.