Orange County Commissioners grapple with immigration

Orange County leaders are pushing back to limit the number of federal immigration detainees held in their jail and to get fully reimbursed for housing them.

However, some Orange County Commissioners and immigration advocates are eager to do more and are ready to file a lawsuit now against the federal or state government amid the county’s complex immigration debate.

“I’m not delaying. I’m being very deliberate on what we’re doing,” Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said to those urging quicker action at Tuesday’s meeting. “There’s a process. There’s building blocks.”

The number of Orange County’s U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees had been on the rise as Alligator Alcatraz in the Everglades and Deportation Depot filled up, and the volume of arrests overwhelmed the system’s processing capacity,  Orange County Corrections Department Chief Louis Quiñones, Jr. briefed Orange County Commissioners Tuesday.

Under a federal agreement, Orange County will hold ICE detainees for up to 72 hours in its jail.

What’s happened, however, is that ICE has been shuffling detainees in and out after the 72 hours, Quiñones said.

In January 2026, Orange County had 1,684 bookings, with 64% were repeat bookings

“On Jan. 31, that specific day, we realized that there was 84 inmates who were rebooked within the past 90 days,” Quiñones said. “And of those 84 inmates of those bookings, they were responsible for a total of 260 bookings.”

Demings sent a letter last week warning ICE that it would only hold detainees for 72 hours straight starting March 1.

Going forward, Orange County also said it would hold only up to 130 ICE detainees — 66 men and 64 women — who are not being held on any local criminal charges.

Since the letter was sent, the number of federal detainees has plummeted.

“What I will share with you today is we currently have 22 inmates who have no local charges in our jail,” Quiñones said. “So you can see that our numbers have significantly dropped.”

Orange County Commissioners also supported the County setting a deadline in their negotiations with the United States Marshals Service to get fully reimbursed for housing ICE detainees.

Currently, Orange County is reimbursed $88 per inmate by the federal government, although Quiñones said the actual cost is $180 per inmate, resulting in a loss for the jail on every detainee.

Orange County is also waiting 120 days or more to get reimbursed, officials said Tuesday.

Orange County officials already faced pressure from Attorney General James Uthmeier to sign an agreement with the federal government for local corrections officers to transport ICE detainees. Uthemier had threatened to get the county officials suspended from office last year.

Now, Orange County Deputy County Attorney Georgiana Holmes told the County Commission that there was no easy lawsuit to file to address the complex immigration situation facing local officials.

“This is not about avoiding litigation, it’s about ensuring if the county does go to court, it does so at the right time for the right reasons and with concrete factual records, so that the county is on firm legal ground,” she said.

Holmes said federal law would supersede any local effort to issue a temporary moratorium to block an ICE detention facility, Holmes said. State law requires local governments to make their best efforts to support the federal government with immigration enforcement, she said.

Immigration advocates were not satisfied with her answers and urged the county to do more and fight back legally.

“This inaction is not without consequences. It denies justice, places the county in significant legal jeopardy and harms it financially, as Orange County continues to use local resources to house federal detainees without timely reimbursement,” said Felipe Sousa-Lazaballet, Executive Director of Hope CommUnity Center and who is running for State House 42 District. “We are encouraged to hear several County Commissioners asking the poignant and difficult questions that this crisis demands. However, discussion cannot be a substitute for resolution.”

Orange County Commissioner Kelly Martinez Semrad said ICE is looking at warehouses in Research Park near the University of Central Florida or in Lake Nona.

With the jail understaffed, people rallying, and the faith community pushing for action, “The tension is building,” she said, urging the county to pursue legal action. “It’s time to do something.”