Liv Caputo | Florida Phoenix

The federal government is withholding a $608 million grant to help pay for Florida’s migrant lockups because a required environmental review still hasn’t been completed, newly released records show.

The Sarasota and Palm Beach County sheriff’s offices are the first local law enforcement agencies to decide they don’t want the state to reimburse them for immigration officer bonuses — because the counties don’t plan to give them.

Federal lawyers say any reimbursement — if it comes — would cover only operational costs.

More than $40 million in Florida immigration grants will pay local law enforcement agencies for capturing and holding detainees — costs that will cover a biometric eyeball scanner, surveillance towers, and a printer.

The Florida House voted Thursday to revive the state’s expired emergency fund — embattled because of an immigration enforcement tab totaling in the hundreds of millions — but with a few weakened changes to appease the DeSantis administration.

The Florida House on Tuesday backed down from its proposal to block emergency funds from being used on illegal immigration enforcement following harsh criticism from the DeSantis administration.

The lower chamber — long at odds with the DeSantis administration — would also ban the purchase of aircraft, boats, or motor vehicles through the Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund, a trust set to expire next week unless reauthorized by the Legislature.

The measure also would create a rebuttable presumption that out-of-state non-citizens are responsible for car accidents.

Florida’s emergency managers spent more than $405 million in taxpayer dollars in six months to fight illegal immigration, but that doesn’t just include law enforcement, state spending records show: It covers private jet flights, restaurant meals, and badges.

Meanwhile, government attorneys say a reimbursement agreement isn’t even finalized.

A pair of AI bills aimed at environmental protection and business growth surrounding AI data centers advanced.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier on Monday escalated a long-simmering feud with a Republican lawmaker by calling for his ouster from a House leadership role, citing the legislator’s ties to a law firm defending Planned Parenthood in a lawsuit brought by the state.