JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis made headlines after announcing Thursday he arranged to send drones, weapons, and ammunition to Israel.
First Coast News received a request from Linda W. to look into the legality of the governor's decision.
THE QUESTION
Can a state governor send weapons to a foreign country?
SOURCES
University of North Florida Political Science Professor Michael Binder
U.S. Department of State
THE ANSWER
Yes, a governor can send weapons to another country if they receive federal authorization.
WHAT WE FOUND
A State Department official said in part in a statement: “Donations of export-controlled defense-related commodities are subject to U.S. government regulations and may require authorization.”
The State Department has jurisdiction over things like automatic weapons and related ammunition.
The official said for items the State Department oversees, exporters have to register and then apply for an export license.
When asked if Governor DeSantis followed those regulations, the state department official said they can’t comment on specific defense trade licensing or compliance.
“There’s a series of approvals that needs to go through the Department of Commerce that has to happen before anything along those lines could occur," said UNF Political Science Professor Michael Binder.
Binder says while it may be legal, states typically don’t send weapons to other countries.
“There’s a reason why foreign affairs are highlighted and filtered through the federal government so you only have one voice as a country as opposed to 50 different voices," said Binder. "You can envision a scenario where one side is fighting with guns from Florida and the other side is fighting with guns from Georgia. You can imagine what that might look like.”
Linda W. also asked if taxpayer dollars were used for the weapons shipment.
The governor’s press office previously said it was all privately funded.
First Coast News reached out to the governor's press office representatives Tuesday and Wednesday to ask if there were any tax dollars involved and for proof the governor followed federal export laws but did not receive a response as of Wednesday night.