Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried blasted Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday for his plans to open "another wildly expensive and inhumane immigration detention facility paid for by Florida's taxpayers."
"There is already an immigration Detention Center in Baker County that is notorious for its reprehensible treatment of detainees, and a second facility promises more of the same," said Fried in a statement.
She said such facilities "reward massive, taxpayer-funded no-bid contracts to politically connected businesses and corporate elite donors."
"Floridians want their tax dollars going toward real solutions like fixing the insurance crisis, expanding Medicaid, funding public schools, and building affordable housing, not lining the pockets of corporate donors getting rich off of detention camps," Fried said.
DeSantis announced Thursday that his administration is preparing to open a second immigration detention facility dubbed "Deportation Depot" at a state prison in north Florida.
READ MORE: DeSantis announces plans for second immigration detention facility dubbed 'Deportation Depot'
The new facility is to be housed at the Baker Correctional Institution, a state prison about 43 miles west of downtown Jacksonville. It is expected to hold 1,300 immigration detention beds, though that capacity could be expanded to 2,000, state officials said.
After opening the controversial "Alligator Alcatraz" facility in the Everglades last month, DeSantis justified building the second detention center by saying President Donald Trump's administration needs the additional capacity to hold and deport more immigrants.
"There is a demand for this," DeSantis said. "I'm confident that it will be filled."
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has trumpeted Republican governors' efforts to expand immigration detention capacity, calling Florida's partnership a model for other state-run holding facilities.
DeSantis touted the relative ease and economy of setting up the north facility at a pre-existing prison, estimating the build-out cost to be $6 million. That's compared to the hundreds of millions of dollars the state has committed to construct the vast network of tents and trailers at the south facility in the rugged and remote Florida swamp.
"This part of the facility is not being used right now for the state prisoners. It just gives us an ability to go in, stand it up quickly, stand it up cheaply," DeSantis said of the state prison, calling the site "ready-made."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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