A coalition of civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), filed a federal lawsuit against Florida officials on Wednesday, contesting the constitutionality of the state’s newly enacted “domestic terrorist organization” designation regime. The lawsuit, CAIR-Foundation, Inc. v. DeSantis, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.
Background
The lawsuit centers on HB 1471 and HB 1473, a pair of laws passed during the 2026 legislative session that took effect on July 1. The statutory framework grants the state executive branch the authority to designate domestic groups as terrorist entities if the Chief of Domestic Security finds they meet specific criteria, including involvement in “terrorist activity” as defined by state law.
At a Wednesday press conference, Governor Ron DeSantis announced his intent to designate the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim Brotherhood, and antifa under the new statute. The plaintiffs argue that the newly established process lacks sufficient constitutional safeguards, allowing state officials to impose a highly stigmatizing label and trigger severe legal penalties without providing targeted groups with meaningful advance notice, an evidentiary standard of proof, or a pre-deprivation hearing before a neutral decisionmaker.
Constitutional Concerns
The lawsuit asserts that a formal designation would effectively freeze the operations of CAIR and CAIR-Florida within the state. Under the regime, designated groups are classified as criminal gangs, making it a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison for any individual or entity to knowingly provide them with “material support or resources.” The plaintiffs state this definition is broad enough to criminalize standard administrative functions, commercial banking, leasing office space, and volunteer work.
The plaintiffs are seeking a federal court declaration that the designation regime violates the speech, association, and petition clauses of the First Amendment, as well as the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, alongside a permanent injunction against its enforcement.
Original reporting: Tampa Free Press — read the source article.
