1srelluc
Diamond Member
A federal appeals court on Tuesday overturned a Miami judgeās order that briefly required the Florida Division of Emergency Management to begin shutting down Alligator Alcatraz last summer and barred new detainees from being held at the site.
The split decision by the three-judge panel of the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals said District Judge Kathleen Williamsā Aug. 21 order - paused by the same appeals court just days after it was issued - was improper because the environmental groups and Miccosukee Tribe bringing the lawsuit āfailed to proveā that the federal government controlled the site.
Part of their decision hinged on the fact that Florida has not been reimbursed a dime for the more $600 million in taxpayer funds the state has spent on constructing and maintaining the site, despite Gov. Ron DeSantisā promises last summer that it would be funded by the federal government.
The appellate judges pointed to the Trump administrationās lack of financial investment as evidence that the project shouldnāt trigger federal environmental review laws.
āUntil Homeland Security officials decide to fund the facility, no final agency action occurs,ā the judges wrote.
Trump wins again! This one took longer than I figured.