July 15, 2026 - TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — On Tuesday evening, Florida officials paused their plan to designate the Council on American-
Islamic Relations (CAIR) as a “domestic terrorist organization” under new laws that went into effect July 1. This development comes in a lawsuit that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and their partners filed on behalf of the civil rights nonprofit and its Florida chapter (CAIR-FL) after Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state officials announced they would quickly move to designate CAIR.
According to a court filing, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement now intends to issue regulations to implement the laws, and “no designation will be made before the regulations are finalized.” Lawyers for DeSantis and other defendants in the lawsuit stated they could not yet provide a timeline on when these regulations would be finalized, and the parties will report again to the court by July 22.
“The fact that Florida officials announced their intent to designate CAIR at their July 1 press conference, before regulations they now plan to issue have come into effect, shows their calculated and cruel plan to designate CAIR is not because it is in any way a threat to public safety, but because doing so suits their political agenda,” said Scott McCoy, deputy legal director, SPLC. “The state’s decision to negatively brand CAIR has already violated its constitutional rights and inflicted immediate and ongoing harm to it.”
In April 2026, DeSantis signed into law HB 1471 and HB 1473 despite public outcry. These laws establish an unprecedented state designation regime and dramatically expand Florida’s authority to both label and punish groups — including nonprofits engaged in First Amendment-protected advocacy — that officials unilaterally decide are security threats. Under the regime, officials can brand nonprofit corporations with debilitating stigma and then use an array of state authorities to immediately silence and incapacitate an organization, its employees and a wide range of others associated with the group through extraordinarily broad and severe criminal, civil and administrative penalties.
On July 2, the nonprofits’ legal team filed an emergency motion asking the federal court to prevent the designation from going into effect and to allow the groups to litigate the challenge without fear of prosecution under the broad designation laws. The court denied the emergency filings, stating it required further briefing and evidence that Florida officials were following through on their threats.
“From day one, Florida officials’ use of this dangerous new designation regime has violated the Constitution. Gov. DeSantis has simply no legitimate basis to brand our clients with one of society’s most reviled labels, let alone to force them to shut their doors under threat of crippling criminal penalties and leave the Floridians they serve without a crucial civil rights voice,” said Hina Shamsi, director, ACLU National Security Project. “In the United States, CAIR and all nonprofits have the right to criticize the government, protect religious freedom and advocate for the causes they believe in.”
CAIR and CAIR-FL are represented in the suit by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Florida, the Southern Poverty Law Center, Akeel & Valentine PLC and Bondurant Mixson & Elmore LLP.
About the Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements and advance the human rights of all people. For more information, visit www.splcenter.org.
About the American Civil Liberties Union
For more than 105 years, the ACLU has worked in courts, legislatures and communities to protect the constitutional rights of all people. With a nationwide network of offices and millions of members and supporters, the ACLU takes on the toughest civil liberties fights in pursuit of liberty and justice for all. For more information, visit www.aclu.org.
Source: SPLC
