Miami-Dade County Tax Collector, Dariel Fernandez, Issues Statement on Businesses Attempting to Evade United States Sanctions Against the Cuban Communist and Socialist Dictatorship

Miami, FL, August 21, 2025. As Miami-Dade County Tax Collector, I take with the utmost seriousness our duty to uphold the law and defend the values of freedom that define this community. Any business that attempts to evade sanctions on the Cuban communist and socialist dictatorship is not only breaking federal law, it is spitting on the sacrifices of countless Cuban Americans who fled oppression to live free. This dictatorship is not a government; it is a brutal regime that supports terrorists, jails dissidents, censors free speech, and starves its own people while a corrupt few enrich themselves.

Every business in Miami-Dade County must obtain a Local Business Tax (LBT) receipt to operate, and it is our office, the Miami-Dade County Tax Collector's Office, that is solely authorized to issue these permits. We will ensure that every registration is thoroughly reviewed, irregularities are identified, and firm action is taken against any violations. In addition, we will strengthen our collaboration with federal and local authorities to guarantee that those who attempt to evade the law face the full weight of justice. And let me be clear: I will do everything in my power to make sure that Miami-Dade County is never a refuge for those who aid, benefit from, or collaborate with the Cuban communist and socialist dictatorship.

Miami-Dade County is built on the blood, tears, and sacrifice of those who escaped communism and socialism in Cuba, and I will never allow their struggle to be disrespected. To side with that dictatorship is to side against freedom, against human dignity, and against the very principles that make Miami-Dade County a beacon of hope. We will not allow the accomplices of communist murderers—living here and trying to continue doing business to fill the regime's coffers—to find shelter or opportunity in this community. Those who choose to collaborate with the regime, directly or indirectly, will find no refuge here. We will expose them, hold them accountable, and ensure that Miami-Dade County remains a stronghold of liberty and justice, not a marketplace for tyranny.