Florida Governor Ron DeSantis instructed college and university authorities of his state to stop hiring foreign speciality workers on H-1B visas. At a press conference in Tampa, DeSantis said only Americans should be recruited in Florida colleges and universities and if that can’t be done, then “we need to really look deeply about what is going on with the situation”. He said the Board of Governors should fully pull the plug on the H-1B visa program. “Why aren’t we producing math and engineering folks who can do this?” DeSantis questioned. “[There’s] a clinical assistant professor from supposed Palestine. Why are they—is that just social justice that they’re doing?”The direction comes as the Donald Trump administration imposed a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visa applications in an attempt to arrest the influx of foreign workers in the US.Ron DeSantis is a vocal critic of H-1B which he called indentured servitude and cheap labor. “We can do it with our residents in Florida or with Americans, and if we can’t do it, then man—we need to really look deeply about what is going on with this situation,” he said. The Governor came all prepared with the data of how many H-1B visa holders are working in Florida colleges and universities. He put out the list of assistant professors, coaches, data analysts, coordinators, marketers, and more university workers on H1-B visas from areas like the United Kingdom, China, Spain, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, Russia, Poland, Albania, Argentina, and the West Bank. According to Florida Phoenix, as of June 30, 2025, there were more than 1,900 Florida employers sponsoring over 7,200 H1-B visa holders. There were a total of 78 employers and 677 beneficiaries in the education sphere, with the University of Florida boasting the most H1-B beneficiaries at 156, followed by the University of Miami with 90, and the University of South Florida with 72.After the press conference, Ron DeSantis also announced the decision on social media. “Universities across the country are importing foreign workers on H-1B visas instead of hiring Americans who are qualified and available to do the job. We will not tolerate H-1B abuse in Florida institutions. That’s why I have directed the Florida Board of Governors to end this practice,” he wrote. “Florida leads the nation in higher education, and thousands of highly qualified Americans graduate from our colleges and universities every year. If any universities are truly struggling to find US citizens to fill their job openings, they ought to evaluate their academic programs to determine why they cannot produce graduates who can be hired for these positions,” he added.
