TALLAHASSEE --- A push by Gov. Ron DeSantis for Florida universities to pause hiring international faculty and staff members through what are known as H-1B visas moved forward Thursday.
The state university system’s Board of Governors set up for final approval a proposed moratorium as part of rule changes involving powers and duties of university boards of trustees.
With critics raising concerns that the proposal could hinder Florida’s standing educationally and financially, the measure would direct each board of trustees to “not utilize the H-1B program in its personnel program to hire any new employees through January 5, 2027.”
Board of Governors Chairman Alan Levine said the moratorium wouldn’t stop the use of other visa programs.
“It’s just this one program, where we need to gather more information and then make an informed policy decision,” Levine said.
When the pause is in effect, officials will study the cost of the H-1B program, along with how the program is used by the different universities, system Chancellor Ray Rodrigues said.
“One of the concerns that's been raised around the H-1B program is that employers have used it to bring in employees … paid less than market rate,” Rodrigues said. “We will look at the salaries of employees in the university who are on H-1B to determine if those faculty (members’) pay is comparable to what the market pay is.”
In voting against the proposal, Carson Dale, the student representative on the board, said the pause could harm Florida’s competitiveness against other state university systems. Dale noted Elon Musk entered the U.S. as an international student before leading companies that reshaped the electric-vehicle and space industries.
“Top tier candidates are not going to pause their careers to wait on a single state,” said Dale, who is also the student body president of Florida State University. “When Florida removes itself from consideration for an entire hiring cycle, those candidates accept offers elsewhere.”
Board of Governors member Kimberly Dunn, an associate professor of accounting at Florida Atlantic University and the FAU Faculty Senate president, also cautioned a moratorium could harm Florida’s reputation and access to global expertise.
“These individuals directly contribute to Floridians’ health, safety and economic success,” Dunn said. “In many cases, the H-IB visa is the only viable pathway for bringing this level of expertise to our state.”
In October, DeSantis took aim at universities using H-1B visas to hire employees from other countries. During an appearance at the University of South Florida, DeSantis questioned why universities had staff members on H-1B visas such as a public-policy professor from China, a psychologist and counselor from the United Kingdom, an athletics operations and communications coordinator from Trinidad and Tobago and an assistant swimming coach from Spain.
In September, President Donald Trump also restricted issuance of the visas. DeSantis described many H-1B hires as “cheap labor” to save money.
“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,” DeSantis said.
The Board of Governors’ action came after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott this week directed state universities and agencies to halt H-1B visa petitions through May 31, 2027.
“State government must lead by example and ensure that employment opportunities --- particularly those funded with taxpayer dollars --- are filled by Texans first,” Abbott wrote in a letter.
The visas, created in 1990, are intended to attract technically skilled people. They are good for three years but can be extended an additional three years.
