Legislative Update - August 23, 2024

Florida Primary Election were held on Tuesday and now we have the candidates for the General Election, scheduled for November 6. Millions of dollars were spent on elections across the state. Former President Donald Trump endorsed several candidates and so did Governor Ron DeSantis. In two races, each selected a different candidate to endorse. In the Senate District 7, Trump endorse David Shoar, former Sheriff and Governor DeSantis endorsed Tom Leek, former House Appropriations Chair. Leek was the winner. In the House District 94 race, Meg Weinberger, whose endorsements by former President Donald Trump and U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz earned her the nickname "MAGA Meg," came out on top in a four-way Republican primary on Tuesday in state House District 94. Governor DeSantis had thrown his support behind Anthony Aguirre.

The second round of the disaster preparedness sales tax holiday begins tomorrow and continues until Friday, September 6.

“Primary sees low voter turnout, Cord Byrd says” via Christine Jordan Sexton of Florida Politics — Secretary of State Byrd said 19% of registered voters turned out for Florida’s Primary Tuesday and he attributed the less-than-stellar turnout to the lack of any big statewide races. At a brief Tuesday evening news conference, Byrd, the state’s chief elections officer, said there were no reported problems other than some Supervisor of Elections Offices having difficulty with their “public-facing websites.” Byrd said the issues did not impact the counties’ ability to send election results to the state website. Byrd promised the state would “get to the bottom” of the issue. The Primary was seen as a dry run ahead of the November General Election when turnout would be much higher due to the presidential contest featuring Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.

Governor …

Hope Florida Expands to Include Emergency Resources: Gov. Ron DeSantis and First Lady Casey DeSantis on Wednesday launched "Activate Hope," an extension of the Hope Florida initiative aimed at supporting Floridians recovering from disasters. The new emergency response program aims to unite private sector, nonprofit, and government resources to assist residents in need of food, household goods, home repairs, and more after a disaster. The expansion includes the addition of a box truck and an ADA-accessible Hope Bus, enhancing the initiative's ability to collaborate with the Florida Division of Emergency Management at distribution sites and resource centers statewide. Hope Navigators and volunteers will be on-site following storms to provide supplies and offer guidance through Hope Navigation services. Hope Florida has served over 100,000 Floridians and assisted 30,000 in reducing or eliminating government assistance, potentially saving the state nearly $800 million over ten years, according to DeSantis. The Hope Florida Fund, launched in July 2022, uses private sector donations to give funds to local nonprofit entities. DeSantis Press Release

Business …

More Tax Holidays on the Horizon - Florida consumers will have another chance to save money while restocking their disaster preparedness supplies during this year's hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30. The second two-week long disaster preparedness sales tax holiday is scheduled to begin Saturday, Aug. 24 and run through Friday, Sept. 6. During the holiday, shoppers won't have to pay Florida's 6% sales tax on disaster-related supplies like batteries, tarps, portable radios, pet food, flashlights, pet medications and generators valued at $3,000 or less. Projected to save buyers an estimated $80.6 million, the first Disaster Preparedness tax holiday occurred June 1-14, as part of a wide-ranging tax bill (HB 7073) signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis in May. Another sales tax holiday included in that measure is also scheduled to start on Saturday, Sept. 1. The one-week "Tool Time" sales tax holiday will run until Saturday, Sept. 7, and covers tools and other home improvement items for trade workers, expecting to save Floridians around $19.8 million. Items like hand tools, work gloves, tool belts, work boots, ladders, and power tools under $300 qualify for the tax holiday. FL Revenue Press Release

Patronis Proposes State-Run 'Sunshine Freedom Bank' to Combat 'Woke' Banks - Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis wants to create a state-run bank called the "Sunshine Freedom Bank" to reduce Floridians' reliance on what he calls "woke banks and regulators in New York, California and Washington, D.C." Patronis claims that the Sunshine Freedom Bank would streamline the management of over $150 billion processed annually by the Florida Treasury, potentially lowering administrative costs, increasing investment returns and saving taxpayer dollars. He added that no Florida bank was large enough to solely process the $152 billion in incoming tax revenues and nearly $144 billion in outgoing disbursements completed in fiscal year 2022-23. Patronis also argued that the state-run bank would protect Floridians from financial institutions that enforce environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices, which Patronis believes don't align with Florida's values. "It's totally unacceptable to use Floridians' money to force radical policies on them that they do not want," wrote Patronis in a prepared statement. Patronis is calling for the Florida Legislature to fund a feasibility study to explore the requirements for establishing the Sunshine Freedom Bank. The study would examine the formation process, regulatory needs, start-up costs, and potential vendors, and ultimately determine whether creating the bank is necessary. "The Sunshine Freedom Bank would provide solutions for our state on many levels," Patronis said. "Florida is an economic powerhouse, and it's time to build the financial infrastructure to handle our massive size and success – and keep the associated benefits in-state. That's why I'm proposing this historic financial resource." The move follows other statewide initiatives to ban the practice of "debanking," or denying services to customers over political viewpoints, including 2023's HB 3, which prohibits banks from considering political opinions, religious beliefs, or non-quantitative standards when deciding whether to offer customers loans or other banking services, and a 2024 law (HB 989) that created a customer complaint process to investigate alleged violations relating to debanking. Additionally, the State Board of Administration prohibits state investments, like Florida's state employee pension fund, from considering social impacts when managing the fund's portfolio. Patronis Press Release / Florida Politics / Florida's Voice / The Capitolist

Support for ESG Efforts Declining: A series of recent reports suggest that the corporate investment world's interest in environmental, social and governance, or ESG, investment practices are waning. Mediocre performance in recent years by funds that are based on ESG principles – injecting certain environmental or social goals into the choosing of investment targets – is one reason some major investors have backed off. The idea has been widely rejected by Republicans in governing positions as well, including in Florida where Gov. Ron DeSantis has made a high profile stand against the practice. Florida Politics

AAA: Fla Gas Prices Hit Lowest Average Price in Two Months: Florida gas prices saw a brief increase of seven cents last week, but those gains were quickly reversed by the weekend, according to AAA – the auto club group. As of Sunday, the state average stood at $3.31 per gallon, which is two cents lower than the previous week, 12 cents down from a month ago, and 53 cents less than the same time last year. This price is also 33 cents below this year's peak of $3.64 per gallon. "The price of crude continues to influence prices at the pump," said AAA spokesperson Mark Jenkins. "Oil prices increased early last week on renewed optimism about the U.S. economy, after a July domestic consumer spending report was better than analysts expected. By the end of the week, however, weak economic data from China caused oil prices to soften." The U.S. crude oil price initially rose to $80 per barrel but ended the week flat, closing at $76.65 on Friday – 19 cents lower than the previous week. Gasoline futures also dropped by eight cents per gallon. The West Palm Beach-Boca Raton area remains the most expensive for refueling at $3.49 per gallon, while the Crestview-Fort Walton Beach region offers the current cheapest gas prices in the state at $3.13 a gallon. AAA Press Release / News Service Florida

Florida weekly initial jobless claims see sharp spike for first time in August” via Drew Dixon of Florida Politics — New unemployment insurance claims in Florida saw a sharp spike last week, accounting for the most significant increase this Summer, according to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). There were 7,549 first-time jobless claims filed in the Sunshine State for the week ending Aug. 17 before seasonal adjustments. That’s an increase of 1,987 claims from the previous week’s total. The substantial surge is the most notable jump in claims since the week ending July 13 when there was an increase of more than 1,000 initial unemployment claims. First-time unemployment claims have steadily declined for most of the Summer months in Florida.

 “As cost of living rises, the ‘unretired’ in South Florida return to work” via David Lyons of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel — The 401(k) plan is exhausted, savings have shriveled and that monthly Social Security payout doesn’t come close to covering basic monthly expenses. Many retirees in Florida and elsewhere around the U.S. are gravitating toward the same solution: They’re “unretiring” and heading back to work. A national survey has found that Fort Lauderdale ranks fourth and Hollywood ninth among U.S. cities with the most working seniors. Other large metropolitan areas in Florida, such as Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville, aren’t far behind. “Whether it’s due to delaying retirement or ‘unretiring,’ one in four seniors in Fort Lauderdale are still participating in the workforce,” said Collin Czarnecki, a researcher for LLC.org.

Hurricane potential takes brief pause before ramp-up at end of August, forecasters say - Colorado State University experts in a new forecast Tuesday afternoon predicted that there will be a normal amount of hurricane activity in the Atlantic in the next two weeks, though they still believe overall the season will be “an extremely active one.” CSU’s experts said the environment of the Atlantic toward the end of August will be more favorable for tropical cyclones to form. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]

Supercharged September: Atlantic hurricane season to intensify dramatically - A surge of hurricanes and tropical storms will shatter the silence across the Atlantic Ocean less than three weeks before the peak of hurricane season. Dry, dusty air kept most tropical activity across the Atlantic at bay throughout most of August, with Hurricane Debby and Hurricane Ernesto being the two exceptions. However, a major shift in the weather pattern will soon blow the doors wide open for a frenzy of tropical activity to unfold. More from Accuweather and Florida's Voice.

“Osceola schools considering new chaplain program, and the Satanic Temple wants in” via Natalia Jaramillo and Alissa Gary of the Orlando Sentinel — The masters of trolling, the Satanic Temple, alerted the Osceola County School Board they want to be included if the school district moves forward on bringing school chaplains into the schools under a new state law. The district didn’t vote on the chaplains' program, but some school officials are hesitant about moving forward without more direction from the state. “This is where we would have to go to the Department of Education and have a vetting process on who’s allowed on campus or not because I don’t feel comfortable,” said Board member Julius Melendez.

DEP …

DEP Pushing New 'Amenities' at State Parks, Drawing Opposition

The state Department of Environmental Protection is pushing a new development initiative to add amenities in several state parks, including new lodges and cabins, along with new pickleball and disc golf facilities, and a new golf course at Jonathan Dickinson State Park near Hobe Sound in Martin County. The plans quickly drew opposition from environmental activists and some park users, who said the idea sprung up without public input. "This appears to be something that has been planned in secret, and it doesn't appear to have involved the hundreds, if not thousands, of people who are volunteers in the parks, the citizen support organizations, or the many people who have been involved in helping to create and develop Florida's award-winning park system," former state parks director Eric Draper told the Tampa Bay Times. DEP is planning public meetings next week at sites around the state on the plans. Tampa Bay Times / Palm Beach Post / Pensacola News Journal / News Service Florida / WPTV / First Coast News / Rep. Eskamani Statement

Campaigns & Elections …

VR Systems Takes Responsibility for Election Night Website Crashes: Tallahassee-based election software company VR Systems acknowledged that some election supervisor websites crashed on Tuesday night as traffic increased following the primary elections and said heavy use was the problem. In an updated statement on Wednesday, VR Systems said the glitches affected every clients' website that they host, making users unable to look up election results online for a period on some sites on Tuesday. The company said it takes "full responsibility" for the problem. Secretary of State Cord Byrd said Tuesday night there were no problems with the election data or vote tallies being transmitted to the Department of State, with the issue simply one of use of the county reporting sites viewed by the public on the internet. Byrd said there was "no evidence" that the technical difficulties were due to a cyber attack. USA Today Network / Tampa Bay Times

Florida Republicans outraised Democrats 7-to-1” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics — Over the last four and a half months, Florida Republicans have outraised Democrats by a considerable 7-to-1 margin. Division of Elections reports showed the state GOP collected more than $15.6 million between April 1 and Aug. 15. Meanwhile, state Democrats in the same period raised just under $2.25 million. That leaves the Florida Democratic Party with just under $18 million in cash on hand heading into the Presidential Election. But the Republican Party of Florida has close to $32.3 million in the bank. The Republican Party slammed their Democratic counterparts for filing reports quietly without any public announcement.

KFF Poll: 67% of Fla Women Back a National Right to Abortion: A new Kaiser Family Foundation poll reveals that two-thirds of Florida women of reproductive age support a nationwide right to abortion, including nearly half of Republican-identifying women. The survey, published by KFF last week, also highlights concerns among 60% of these women about their ability to obtain an abortion if medically necessary. Additionally, one-third are unsure where to seek abortion services if ever needed. KFF conducted the survey among 512 Florida women aged 18 to 49 as part of a broader national study on women's health. The survey also showed that nearly 20% of women nationwide have altered their contraceptive practices following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022. The changes involved starting birth control, opting for sterilization, or buying emergency contraceptive pills like Plan B. Only one in five respondents were aware of abortion medications and only 9% knew that abortion medication can be obtained online, the survey found. The poll emphasizes the effects of misinformation and legal abortion access as Floridians prepare to vote in November on a constitutional amendment, known as Amendment 4, that would allow abortions up to about 24 weeks of pregnancy. It would need to be approved by at least 60% of statewide voters to take effect. Currently, Florida bans most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. Tampa Bay Times

Elections Officials Seek More Clarity for Felons on Voting Eligibility - The state Division of Elections is proposing a new rule for how felons can get cleared to vote in a bid to clear up confusion that led many former convicts to run afoul of new voting laws that led to their arrests for illegally voting after their release. The new rule calls for a one-page form for felons to request advisory opinions from state lawyers on whether they're eligible to vote. In 2019 the Legislature passed legislation to enact a constitutional amendment that allowed the restoration of voting rights for felons "upon completion of all terms of their sentence including parole or probation." In 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis created a new election integrity law enforcement unit that made several high profile arrests of felons on charges of illegally registering to vote as part of a Republican push to crack down on what some GOP leaders said was voter fraud. Many of those who were arrested – many of whom later had the charges dropped – had said they believed they were eligible and in some cases were even told by local or state elections officials that they were. The new proposed rule would give state elections officials 90 days to determine whether felons requesting advisory opinions are eligible. Politico Pro / News Service Florida / Division of Elections Proposed Rule