ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The Orange County Corrections Department will put a cap on the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement inmates housed at its jail and limit the number of times the same inmate can be returned to custody for the same immigration matter, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said Tuesday in a letter to an ICE and Department of Homeland Security official.
What You Need To Know
Orange County Corrections will limit the number of ICE inmates housed at its jail, Mayor Jerry Demings said in a letter to an ICE official
It also will eliminate multiple bookings for the same inmate for the same immigration matter, Demings said
The operational guidelines will align OCCD’s practices with the current Intergovernmental Service Agreement, Demings said
The county seeks to implement the changes March 1, according to Demings
The number of ICE inmates who do not face local charges will be limited to 66 males and 64 females, Demings said in the letter to Norman Bradley, assistant field office director for the Department of Homeland Security/Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Demings pointed out that the current Intergovernmental Service Agreement estimates a daily estimate of 94 males and 20 females for the U.S. Marshals Service and ICE.
“In recent months, the volume of ICE detainees housed at OCCD has materially exceeded levels consistent with these terms, which has placed a sustained strain on staffing, building space, and operational resources,” Demings stated in the letter.
Orange County’s Corrections Department also will eliminate multiple bookings for the same inmate for the same immigration matter, Demings said.
“OCCD has observed a practice whereby ICE removes and then returns the same inmate to OCCD custody, effectively restarting the 72-hour clock” outlined in the IGSA, Demings said.
That practice “circumvents the intended operation of the agreement (with IGSA),” he said.
“ICE inmates will be limited to one continuous housing period of up to 72 hours per immigration matter,” Demings’ letter stated.
Demings seeks to implement the operational guidelines effective March 1.
According to Demings, the changes will align OCCD’s practices with the IGSA and help resolve the drain on resources driven by recent housing demands. He noted that the county remains committed to supporting federal immigration enforcement required by state and federal law while at the same time maintaining a safe and efficient jail for Orange County.
In December 2025, Demings sent a letter to the U.S. Marshal Service requesting a renegotiation of the IGSA, citing an increasing number of ICE immigration inmates and an inadequate reimbursement for expenses related to holding the detainees. In that letter, he said those factors were costing Orange County $92 per day more than the $88 per day the county is allocated under terms of the IGSA, and he requested full reimbursement for those expenses.