TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that Florida reached a key milestone, awarding more than 2,000 bonuses through the Florida Law Enforcement Recruitment Bonus Program. This program is designed to encourage Floridians to join the profession and attract out-of-state recruits or experienced officers to relocate to Florida. To date, 595 law enforcement recruits from 49 states and U.S. territories have relocated to Florida, including more than 215 recruits from California, Texas, New York, and Pennsylvania. Each of the more than 2,000 law enforcement officers has received a $5,000 bonus after taxes, bringing the total amount awarded though the program to more than $13.5 million to date.

In addition to a $5,000 recruitment bonus, benefits of becoming a law enforcement officer in Florida include financial stability, upward mobility, excellent health and retirement benefits, student loan forgiveness programs, home loan programs, and more.

Florida has also established the Hometown Heroes program to help local hometown heroes like law enforcement officers, firefighters, military veterans, and active-duty military personnel afford to purchase their first home in the communities they serve. The program provides down payment and closing cost assistance to eligible homebuyers who are purchasing a home for the first time or buyers who have moved to Florida and are purchasing their first home in the state. Learn more here: www.floridahousing.org/programs/homebuyer-overview-page/hometown-heroes.

For more information about the Florida Law Enforcement Recruitment Bonus Payment Program, visit www.FloridaJobs.org/Recognition-and-Recruitment.