California Attorney General Bonta demands unredacted records from Florida over immigrant flights
Eden Villalovas
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California Attorney General Rob Bonta demanded records from Florida’s state government related to the transportation of immigrants to Sacramento earlier this month.
Bonta sent two letters, linked in a Wednesday press release, asking for records pertaining to the decision-making processes that led to the transportation of immigrants to California. One of the letters was sent to the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), while the other was issued to the Florida Division of Emergency Management office.
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The record request from the California Department of Justice comes during a state law enforcement investigation of the matter.
Bonta asked DeSantis to provide records of “communications between your office and any private person, organization, or business entity involved in the transportation of migrants to California,” including disclosures between the two aviation companies who assisted in flying the asylum seekers.
The Democratic attorney general requested several unredacted records, including payments, invoices, and other communication from the FDEM.
Two private flights carried 36 Latin American immigrants to California in a move orchestrated by DeSantis’s administration. A Florida Division of Emergency Management official stated the relocation to California was “voluntary,” a spokesperson told the Washington Examiner last week.
Florida officials have said the immigrants seeking asylum were sent to California as part of a voluntary immigrant transportation program, which was expanded by Florida lawmakers in a bill in February, bolstering rules for flying immigrants to Democratic-led cities and states.
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Bonta announced shortly after the immigrants arrived in the state that California was investigating the circumstances of how they were transported. Bonta met with over a dozen immigrants and claimed no arrangements were made for them, adding the individuals were in possession of documentation appearing to be from Florida’s government, in a statement on June 3.
The letters stated DeSantis and the Florida Department of Emergency Management have 30 days to comply with the records request.