Florida County Declares Itself to Be a ‘Bill of Rights Sanctuary County’

Collier County Board of County Commissioners Chair Rick LoCastro prepares for a meeting in Florida on Aug. 22, 2023. Patricia Tolson/The Epoch Times

Commentary

Many people complain about how the federal government and its agencies are out of control, stripping away constitutional rights one unlawful executive order or regulation after another.

But the citizens of Collier County, Florida, have actually done something about it.

Acting through their elected representatives—their five county commissioners—they recently passed an ordinance declaring Collier County to be a “Bill of Rights Sanctuary County.”

The well-reasoned ordinance begins by expressing “growing concerns over the federal government’s increasing encroachment on the rights and privileges of its citizens ... [particularly] those edicts being promulgated by the federal government in the form of executive orders, which circumvent the legislative process and arguably violate the fundamental American doctrine of separation of powers.”

After quoting the entire Bill of Rights, which is the birthright of every living American, the ordinance concludes, “Collier County has the right to be free from the commanding hand of the federal government and has the right to refuse to cooperate with federal government officials in response to unconstitutional federal government measures, and to proclaim a Bill of Rights Sanctuary for law-abiding citizens in its County.”

The ordinance makes explicit what has always been true in the United States, namely, that states and localities have sovereign rights under the 10th Amendment of the Constitution and that citizens have constitutional rights, including, but not limited to, the first 10 amendments of the Constitution.

It defines an “unlawful act” as any federal order or rule that violates or unreasonably restricts and impinges upon an individual’s rights.

The ordinance reads, “Any such ‘Unlawful Act’ is invalid in Collier County and shall not be recognized by Collier County, and shall be considered null, void and of no effect in Collier County, Florida.”

It directs local officials to refuse to carry out unconstitutional federal mandates and other unlawful acts and prohibits them from using Collier County funds to enforce such acts.

Families protest potential mask mandates before the Hillsborough County Schools Board meeting held at the district office in Tampa, Florida, on July 27, 2021. Octavio Jones/Getty Images

It wasn’t easy to get to this point, even in deep red Collier County. The effort began in 2021, when local citizens, outraged by the COVID-19 lockdowns and other overreaches by the federal government, decided to take local action. A Collier County resident named Jimmy Rosenberger drew up the first draft of what was to become the Bill of Rights Sanctuary Ordinance. County Commissioner Bill McDaniel presented it to his fellow commissioners.

With broad support from the community, it was expected to pass handily. To the surprise of its proponents, however, it was defeated on a 3–2 vote. Those commissioners who were opposed worried that rejecting unconstitutional federal mandates might result in the loss of federal grants. In other words, they were willing to sell out the birthright of their fellow American citizens for a mess of pottage.

Galvanized by their defeat, the ordinance’s supporters went to work. The Collier County Republican Party, along with other groups such as Dr. Richard Schroeder’s Covid Tyranny Task Force, Keith Flaugh’s Florida Citizens Alliance, Dan Cook’s Patriot Project, and Tactical Civics, decided to work for the election of commissioners who would stand with, not against, the people they represented.

The result: In the 2022 election, two of the three commissioners who voted against the ordinance were defeated. Elected in their place were two new commissioners who promised to guard against a repeat of the COVID-19 lockdowns, masks, and mandates, along with other attempted violations of the civil liberties of citizens.

Following the election, the new board moved to pass a Health Freedom Resolution and a Health Freedom Bill of Rights Ordinance on April 11 and to return Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grant money that was being used to push the COVID-19 vaccines.

And then, on Aug. 22, the board passed the Bill of Rights Sanctuary County Ordinance.

What the citizens have accomplished in Collier County, Florida, can and should be replicated in hundreds of other counties across the United States. All that’s required is that enough citizens get involved in local elections, work to elect county commissioners and local law enforcement who respect local sovereignty, and then cooperate for the betterment of their local community.

In the face of massive federal government overreach, we can no longer be complacent. The encroachments of the federal government will continue as long as the states and the people allow it.

What difference does it make if a lowly county, city, or town declares itself to be a Bill of Rights sanctuary county or city, you might say?

The short answer is that those who don’t defend their rights will surely lose them.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.