Miami Catholic schools wanted tighter security. DeSantis cut the funding
Gov. Ron DeSantis delivered the ax to a portion of the state budget dedicated to funding security measures in Miami-Dade County Catholic schools — and local Catholic leaders aren’t happy about it.
On Monday, DeSantis vetoed $15 million allocated for security grants for Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Miami, the total amount of funding for Catholic school security previously approved by the Florida Legislature earlier this month. The funding would have marked the first time the state spent money on security measures for Catholic schools.
The vetoes came as DeSantis approved a $117.6 billion budget, his last as governor, after vetoing $1.7 billion total, and nearly $810 million in line item vetoes, according to the Governor’s office.
The reason behind the security grant veto, DeSantis said, is that private schools are already receiving a significant amount of money in state voucher scholarships, and that approving the security funding may set a bad precedent in the future.
“No one has done better for Catholic schools, and we have, because we have universal school choice,” DeSantis said as he signed the budget during a press conference at Hillsborough College Monday morning.
“What I don’t want is for the state to somehow have an entitlement that we’re going to have to fund all the time,” the governor said.
Catholic leaders in Miami expressed their disappointment in the governor’s decision, arguing that the safety of Catholic school communities is a “fundamental responsibility and an ongoing priority.”
“While we acknowledge the Governor’s comments regarding existing state support for educational choice programs, we respectfully maintain that school security is a distinct and critical need,” the Archdiocese of Miami Office of Catholic Schools said in a statement.
The nonrecurring grant funds were going to be used to pay for security improvement projects at Miami-Dade Catholic schools, which includes 68 schools in Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties. The plan was to invest in building and equipment upgrades like fences, bulletproof glass and video recording systems as well as fund more safety officers and their training, according to budget documents.
The Archdiocese of Miami said the security enhancements “are not a luxury,” but are "an essential component of providing safe environments where students can learn and thrive.”
Catholic leaders celebrated the Florida Legislature’s approval of the security funding earlier this month and expressed their hope for the state’s prolonged support for Catholic school students.
Today, Miami Catholic school leaders said though they were disappointed with the governor’s decision, they were still “thankful for the Legislature’s support” and that they hope to continue a “dialogue on ways to strengthen school security for all students.”
Jewish schools maintain security funding
In their original pitch for the funding, Catholic leaders argued that the state already spends money on security measures for Jewish schools, and that Catholic schools should also be included.
Florida has spent tens of millions of dollars protecting Jewish days schools in past years, following the Oct. 7 attack on Israel and a subsequent rise in antisemitic incidents across the country.
This year, lawmakers agreed to allocate $15 million for security for Jewish schools — funding that was not vetoed in the final budget. DeSantis acknowledged this investment, saying that Jewish day schools were facing more targeted threats.
“We started with the security with the Jewish day schools, because there were specific threats involving some of those schools, and we’ve done that. Now that’s grown too,” DeSantis said.
More than 94,000 students are enrolled in Catholic schools across the state of Florida, with more than 37,000 students in South Florida, according to data from the Archdiocese of Miami.
The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops lobbied for the funds during Legislative Session along with a broader statewide reimbursement program for Catholic school security expenses, but the latter was not included in the final budget agreement.
Jim Rigg, superintendent of Catholic Schools in Miami, told the Herald earlier this month that the concerns about a rise in targeted Catholic violence is part of the reason for the increase in security costs for private schools.
“Unfortunately, we live in a time where school violence is a reality, not just in Catholic schools, but in all types of schools around the country,” Rigg said.
Catholic leaders began advocating for the security grants after last year’s mass shooting at a Catholic Church in Minneapolis, which killed two children and injured 28 others.
This story was produced with financial support from Trish and Dan Bell and donors in South Florida’s Jewish and Muslim communities, including Khalid and Diana Mirza and the Mohsin and Fauzia Jaffer Foundation, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. The Miami Herald maintains full editorial control of this work.
This story was originally published June 29, 2026 at 4:16 PM.
