January
Legislative
Report
SUNNY SKIES FOR INAUGURAL
On January 7th, on the east side of the Old
Capitol Building under sunny skies, Florida’s
46th governor, lieutenant governor and new
cabinet members were all ceremonially
sworn into office. Governor Ron DeSantis
took the oath of office along with Lieutenant
Governor Jeanette Nunez and cabinet
members Ashley Moody, Attorney General;
Jimmy Patronis, Chief Financial Officer, State
Treasurer & State Fire Marshal; and the lone
statewide office Democrat, Nikki Fried,
Agriculture Commissioner. DeSantis pledged
to keep Florida a low-tax state, to improve
water quality and to end “judicial activism.”
WATER POLICY, SEPTIC TANK CONVERSIONS GETS NEW GOVERNOR’S ATTENTION
Wasting little time, Florida’s new Governor Ron
DeSantis issued an Executive Order addressing
several environmental issues (see full order
below). DeSantis’ order calls for $2.5 billion over
the next four years for Everglades restoration and
water resource protection --- a $1 billion increase
over what was spent the prior four years --- as
well as creation of the Office of Environmental
Accountability and Transparency and the Office of
Resilience and Coastal Protection, both within the
Department of Environmental Protection.
On the issue of septic tanks, the Governor’s
Executive Order directs the Department of
Environmental Protection to establish a septic-
to sewer grant conversion grant program, where
local governments would have to put up money
but then the state would match it.
The governor also instructed the South Florida
Water Management District to “immediately” start
the next phase of the reservoir project south of Lake
Okeechobee and to work with the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers to keep the project on schedule.
JANUARY 2019 • DITCHMEN
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