DeSantis Signs Legislation to Name Palm Beach Airport After Trump

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Monday to rename a major airport in the state to President Donald J. Trump International Airport.

Only a handful of miles from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, the Palm Beach International Airport becomes the latest example of buildings, programs, and more to inherit the president’s name.

The change, which would take effect on July 1, is first subject to approval by the Federal Aviation Administration. The airport would also have to be renamed on various flight and navigation databases.

According to the bill, Palm Beach County, where the airport is located, must be granted commercial use of “President Donald J. Trump International Airport” and the “the perpetual and unrestricted right to use the name … as well as reasonable abbreviations thereof or deviations therefrom, at no cost, in signage, advertising, marketing, merchandising, and promotions and for the branding of the airport and its operations, services, and amenities, and all related purposes.”

Last week in Congress, Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) introduced legislation to switch the airport’s location identifier from PBI to DJT.

In a news release about his proposal, Mast said it reflects Trump’s close and longstanding ties to South Florida.

“President Donald J. Trump’s impact on our nation will transcend our time—a historic legacy of dedication and commitment toward the American people,” Mast said in the news release. “He’s called Palm Beach County ‘home’ for many years, and this designation reflects our gratitude for his public service and leadership.”

Mast’s bill will be considered in the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure before it can reach the full House floor for a vote.

Sunshine State lawmakers also hailed the airport’s renaming. Florida state Rep. Meg Weinberger wrote on X that the renaming honors the “greatest president of our lifetime.”

“This historic recognition celebrates a President who made Florida his home and saved our great Nation,” Weinberger said.

On the airport renaming, Florida’s bill passed the state House 81–30 on Feb. 17, and then advanced through the upper chamber in a 25–11 vote days later.

The decision comes after Florida also approved in September 2025 a plan to donate property in downtown Miami for Trump’s presidential library. That land transfer was then blocked by a Florida judge in November.

In addition to the airport, Trump’s name was added to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in December 2025, making it the Trump-Kennedy Center. In the same month, the U.S. Institute of Peace building in Washington also added the president’s name.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury said last week that American currency will have Trump’s signature starting this summer, the first time for a sitting president.

A gold coin with Trump’s image was approved this month as part of a series of coins by the U.S. Mint to celebrate the United States’ 250th birthday this year.

A class of Navy warships, the “Gold Card” U.S. visa program, a website for discounted prescription drugs, and new savings accounts for children also bear the president’s name.

Reuters contributed to this report.