Legislative Update - July 14, 2023

Governor …

DeSantis is facing pressure amid a growing number of malaria cases in the state, after reports emerged that two public-health roles related to combating the spread of diseases have been left vacant for months, Newsweek reports. 

Attorney General Ashley Moody is backing Gov. Ron DeSantis' effort to relocate migrants from other countries to other states besides Florida, urging the Department of Justice in a new letter to ignore a California call for an investigation into the Florida program. Politico  

DeSantis may have a successor in the wings: Byron Donalds – the only Black member of the ultraconservative Freedom Caucus and who was nominated to challenge Kevin McCarthy’s speakership – is considering a run for governor, Vanity Fair reports

“DeSantis has hammered Joe Biden on rising prices. Now Florida is an inflation hot spot.” via Max Greenwood of the Miami Herald — As he relentlessly accuses Biden and national Democrats of fueling rising costs and fiscal mismanagement, DeSantis is facing stubbornly high inflation in his own backyard. New data released this week show prices in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metro area jumped 9% in the 12 months that ended in April. In the Tampa-St. Pete-Clearwater area, the inflation rate hit 7.3% in the year that ended in May. The national average now stands at 4%. The high cost of living in the Sunshine State opens up what DeSantis’ critics see as a key vulnerability for DeSantis, who is seeking the GOP’s 2024 presidential nomination but has struggled for weeks to narrow a wide polling gap with the Republican Primary’s front-runner, Trump.

CFO …

Patronis Launches Portal Allowing Floridians to Report IRS Discrimination - Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis on Thursday announced the launch of the Florida IRS Transparency Portal. The online platform allows individuals, private businesses and non-profits to report instances of alleged discrimination by IRS agents. The portal could identify discriminatory patterns, particularly when specific IRS agents target certain political causes, practices or beliefs, Patronis said. Florida residents and businesses can report harassment by IRS agents through the portal. Patronis urged Floridians to report any instances of "bullying" or targeting by the IRS. The information collected will be used to craft state laws and rules for protecting businesses, and will also be shared with congressional committees overseeing the IRS, he said. "I've always felt that transparency is the best disinfectant, and if there's an IRS agent who's bullying a Florida resident, I want to know about it," said Patronis. Patronis Press Release / Florida's Voice / The Capitolist / News Service Florida / WKMG / Florida Channel (Video) 

Legislature …

FIVE QUESTIONS: We talk with Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo. After getting her Live Local Act passed this year, what’s her follow-up act for the 2024 session? 

Business issues …

Farmers Insurance informed the state it was dropping home, auto and umbrella policies across Florida, potentially affecting tens of thousands of people and joining a long list of insurers that have packed their bags, the Miami Herald reports

Gov. Ron DeSantis said insurance companies are "going to wait through this hurricane season" before they deploy more capital to Florida. The governor's comments came after news dropped this week that Farmers Insurance is dropping about 100,000 policies in the state. "So, knock on wood, we won't have a big storm this summer. Then I think you're going to start to see companies see an advantage" from recent changes lawmakers have made intended to improve conditions for insurers to entice them to stay in the state, DeSantis said. Florida Politics

Thirty years after Hurricane Andrew, is Florida ready for a similar storm? In its September magazine issue, Insurance Journal takes a look at the property insurance industry in the state. Insurance Journal Magazine

Health Related …

In a patchwork of ways, medical officials across Florida have started complying with the state’s new immigration law requiring hospitals that accept Medicaid to ask admitted patients their citizenship status, the Tallahassee Democrat reports. 

CDC & COVID: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention launched a reworked COVID-19 website on Thursday, intended to make the online hunt for reliable public health information easier.

The federal Food and Drug Administration approved the country's first over-the-counter contraceptive pill on Thursday. Opill, made by Ireland-based drugmaker Perrigo, is expected to be available in stores and online by early next year. The decision aims to increase access to contraception, which has been available via prescription for decades, and address barriers such as cost. Advocates hope the approval will lead to more over-the-counter options and eventually extend to abortion pills. U.S. officials said the move is unrelated to ongoing legal battles over the abortion pill or last year's Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.Associated Press

Marijuana …

Florida recreational marijuana by the numbers: Economists see green in possible amendment - Economists are adding up the additional sales tax revenue the state will reap and how much it will spend to collect that money if voters were to approve a constitutional amendment legalizing the recreational use of marijuana. If legal today marijuana sales would generate between $195.6 and $431.3 million annually in local and state sales tax revenue, according to preliminary figures compiled by the Florida Financial Impact Estimating Conference. More from the Tallahassee Democrat.

Elections …

“Special Election gives Florida Democrats a shot at swing district” via Steven Lemongello of the Orlando Sentinel — An upcoming Special Election for a House seat in Central Florida could be a major test for whether state Democrats can bounce back from the drubbing they took last year. The party is hoping to build on the Jacksonville mayoral election in May, when focusing on one race in terms of money and attention led to an upset victory. “It’d be an important morale boost to kind of piggyback off Jacksonville and it gives you momentum,” said Matt Isbell, a Democratic elections analyst who runs the MCIMaps website. “But if they lose it, and they lose it by a decent amount, then it’s going to be a big problem.”