(The Center Square) – The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will be able to access $16.2 million in grant funds for FIFA World Cup security during the games scheduled to take place in Miami this summer.
The Joint Legislative Budget Commission approved the budget amendment Friday afternoon.
“FDLE will use these funds to purchase equipment for the detection, identification, monitoring, tracking, and mitigation of unmanned aircraft systems,” said FDLE Chief of Staff Timothy Fitzgerald. “This counter UAS equipment will strengthen FDLE’s capacity to secure the airspace in order to protect the public and critical infrastructure from unlawful or malicious UAS activities.”
When asked if the money would be used to purchase new drones, Fitzgerald said no and clarified it was to purchase equipment that could detect and mitigate the threat of drones including radar, sensors, and equipment to detect radio frequency signals.
Just over $8.1 million will come from the Federal Grants Trust Fund and the other approximately $8.1 million will come from the Operating Trust Fund.
FDLE received FEMA grant funding subawarded through the Florida Division of Emergency Management for airspace security operations specifically for the 2026 FIFA World Cup events in Miami, according to the budget amendment.
Miami Stadium will host seven World Cup matches in July. The 48-team tournament will include a total of 104 games hosted in 16 cities and three countries of North America, according to FIFA.
The Joint Legislative Budget Commission met amid a stalling of finalizing the 2026-27 fiscal year budget. Legislators didn’t agree on a budget during the regular session and are awaiting a special session schedule to address it.
While lawmakers will meet in Tallahassee next week, that special session is earmarked for congressional redistricting talks.
Originally, legislators expected a mid-April special session to finalize the budget, but Senate President Ben Albritton confirmed in a memo to senators earlier this month that that would not happen despite “productive discussions with our partners in the House.”
Albritton said a schedule for that special session would be shared as soon as possible.
There is a $1.4 billion difference between the House and Senate budgets, with the Senate proposing a $115 billion budget and the House proposing a budget of $113.6 billion, according to a Florida TaxWatch report.
House Speaker Daniel Perez pinpointed the gap as a critical problem, emphasizing the House wants to spend less than the Senate.
