Gov. DeSantis announces 2024 presidential bid, DeSantis campaign raises $8M in first day, Disney cancels $1B project, and more...
May 26, 2023 — This Week's Top Stories in Florida
Welcome to this week’s edition of Floridian Today, a newsletter about all things Florida — from politics, business, real estate, and climate. Reporting from the Sunshine State, these are the most important stories you need to know. To never miss an update, subscribe here:
Here’s the latest from Florida…
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis enters the 2024 presidential race
Ending a year of speculation, Gov. Ron DeSantis has officially entered the 2024 presidential race by filing the necessary paperwork with the Federal Election Commission before announcing the decision on Twitter with CEO Elon Musk. The Republican rising-star governor said he was “running for president to lead our Great American Comeback,” directly challenging former President Donald Trump, who leads the field of GOP candidates. DeSantis’ presidential launch via Twitter Spaces didn’t go as planned as the live audio-only conversation began 20 minutes late, repeatedly crashed, and suffered audio issues. Musk said was problems were due to the social media’s servers being overloaded by the number of listeners who tuned in, which totaled nearly 350,000 users. “Decline is a choice. Success is attainable. And freedom is worth fighting for,” DeSantis said in a 1-minute video ad released on his Twitter feed. “We chose facts over fear. Education over indoctrination. Law and order over rioting and disorder. We held the line when freedom held in the balance.” The announcement comes as the two-term governor has been making moves to prepare for the long-awaited announcement, including traveling the country to appear at campaign-style rally events and promote his published autobiography. He has quickly made a name for himself since serving as a relatively unknown congressman representing communities along Florida’s upper east coast. DeSantis’ anti-woke agenda, culture wars, and penchant for embroiling himself in controversial national issues has catapulted the Republican into the spotlight. He is seen as the most viable GOP challenger to take on former President Donald Trump for the party’s nomination, but most recent presidential primary polls continue to show DeSantis trailing Trump by double digits. Four of the latest national polls conducted among registered Republican voters have the Florida governor lagging behind by as many as 33 points in a Fox News poll and as few as 21 points in a Marquette Law School poll. On the campaign trail, candidate DeSantis will seek to gain an advantage over the frontrunner by convincing voters that he is more electable in a general election contest than Trump.
DeSantis raises more than $8M in 24 hours after presidential launch
In the first 24 hours after launching his 2024 presidential campaign, Ron DeSantis raised $8.2 million – a first day fundraising record. The DeSantis campaign announced that they had raised $1 million of that sum within the first hour of launch. The total is a combination of online donations and contributions brought in by fundraisers at a Miami event in what is likely to be the most expensive Republican primary battle ever. DeSantis' $8.2 million haul isn’t too far off the $9.5 million raised by former President Trump in the first six month of his campaign. However, among declared GOP candidates, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott leads with the most cash on hand at $22 million, which was mostly transferred from his Senate reelection account to his White House bid. The Never Back Down super PAC backing DeSantis’ run has an estimated $200 million budget and is expected to shell out $100 million to support voter turnout and the ground game in early primary states. Previously, President Joe Biden held the fundraising record after bringing in $6.3 million on day one of his 2020 presidential campaign.
Disney cancels $1B development project due to ongoing feud with DeSantis
The Walt Disney Company has canceled a $1 billion investment in Florida as part of the company’s previously planned expansion of its operations in the state. The scrapped project comes amid the ongoing feud with Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has approved several bills targeting the company after it opposed one of his signature policies last year – the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill. In 2021, Disney announced its plans to build a $1 billion campus in the Lake Nona area of Orlando and relocate thousands of jobs from California to Florida to the area. The Lake Nona Town Center project was expected to bring about 2,000 jobs to Central Florida, enabled by a state tax credit. Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Parks, issued an email to employees to announce the cancellation of the project, noting “new leadership and changing business conditions” as the reason for its abandonment. The company’s dispute with Gov. DeSantis and the Florida Legislature is believed to have weighed heavily on Disney’s decision to cancel the Lake Nona development. Meanwhile, the governor’s office cited the market and the entertainment giant’s faltering financial position as cause for the cancellation. The news is disappointing for the state as the jobs slated to be relocated were high-paying positions and would have brought new homes and hotel rooms to the area. Disney still plans to make $17 billion in investments for Disney World over the next decade, which will create an estimated 13,000 jobs.
NAACP issues travel advisory for Florida
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) has issued a travel advisory warning Black Americans about the state of Florida. The advisory cites a number of policies enacted by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, which the NAACP says are “hostile toward African Americans, people of color, and LGBTQ+ individuals.” "Before traveling to Florida, please understand that the state of Florida devalues and marginalizes the contributions of, and the challenges faced by African Americans and other communities of color,” the travel advisory reads. The warning, approved by the NAACP’s board of directors, criticized "DeSantis’ aggressive attempts to erase Black history and to restrict diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in Florida schools." The move follows DeSantis’ agenda to crack down on critical race theory (CRT) in public schools and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs at public universities. Previously, the League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC, a Latino civil rights organization issued a similar travel advisory for Florida, as did the Florida Immigrant Coalition and LGBTQ group Equality Florida. Interestingly, the Chair of the NAACP National Board of Directors Leon Russell resides in Tampa.
DeSantis delivers $2.7B in tax breaks
Gov. DeSantis on Thursday signed a $2.7 billion tax break package into law – touted as the largest tax relief plan in state history. The package includes a variety of tax breaks, including multiple sales-tax holidays, a reduction in the commercial-lease tax, and permanent sales tax exemptions on baby and toddler necessities. The bill’s approval comes on the heels of the disaster preparedness sales tax holiday that begins on May 27 and ends on June 9, marking the start of hurricane season. Another series of tax breaks, known as “Freedom Summer,” will run over the next three months – until September 4 – and exempts sales taxes on movie tickets, sporting events, state park entry fees, athletic equipment, children’s toys, and boating, camping, and fishing supplies for Floridians. The tax relief also includes four weeks of back-to-school sales tax holidays in the 2023-2024 fiscal year, provides a one-year exemption on energy star appliances and gas stoves, and a permanent exemption on hygiene products. The relief package includes $854 million in tax incentives and sales tax refunds related to affordable housing as part of the Live Local Act, which DeSantis previously signed in March, and the $500 million toll relief program, which began in January. A family of four could see a $1,000 savings in tax relief over one year, according to the governor’s office.
DeSantis to send Florida National Guard, state law enforcement to southern border
Florida will be sending 800 National Guard troops and more than 300 state law enforcement officers to the U.S.-Mexico border to assist with the ongoing immigration crisis, Gov. DeSantis announced in a news release. The governor said that the deployment is necessary to address the “federal government’s abdication of duty undermines the sovereignty of our country and the rule of law” and help secure “communities across the nation” feeling the “impacts of Biden’s Border Crisis.” In addition to providing personnel to Texas, the state will also provide assets such as planes, command vehicles, drones, and boats to expel illegal immigrants. Florida National Guard troops and law enforcement officers will be at the border for 30 days, with extensions possible. This is DeSantis’ second time deploying resources to the southern border after sending 100 officers to Arizona and Texas in 2021. However, this latest effort is much more substantial as the number of migrants crossing into the U.S. via Mexico has reached record highs this year.
Legislature approves $4B in hurricane relief
The Florida Legislature has approved $4 billion in hurricane relief for communities impacted by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole in 2022. The funding includes $350 million for a new grant program to help local governments repair infrastructure, remove debris, conduct beach renourishment, and assist with municipalities’ revenue losses and operating deficits. An additional $1.7 billion is allocated for the Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund, My Safe Florida Homes program, and other recovery efforts, such as beach restoration and renourishment. Lee County will also see over $75 million to fund repairs for four specific bridge projects. The grant program will provide much-needed assistance to local governments as they work to rebuild roads, bridges, and other critical infrastructure. In response to the devastation to buildings and homes in the aftermath of Ian, the bill restricts counties and municipalities from prohibiting a temporary residential structure to be placed on a property for up to 36 months following a natural emergency. It also requires localities to expedite the issuance of permits, extends certain building permits, prevents increasing building fees until October 1, 2024, and restricts any city or county within 100 miles of the landfall of Hurricanes Ian or Nicole from adopting a more restrictive amendment to a comprehensive plan or land development regulations, with a retroactive date to September 28, 2022. The relief package was passed with near-unanimous support from both parties and is seen as a crucial step in helping Florida recover from the devastating impact of the two hurricanes. The funding and corresponding policy initiatives aim to not only help facilitate the reconstruction of homes, beaches, and critical infrastructure but also contribute to the overall resilience of the affected areas against significant weather disasters in the future.
Florida increases penalties for crimes against K-9s, first responder’s animals
A newly-signed law will increase criminal penalties for crimes committed against police K-9s or any animal works with law enforcement, firefighters, or search and rescue teams. HB 1047, which unanimously passed the State Legislature, makes it a third-degree felony for anyone who “knowingly and willfully resists, obstructs, or opposes a police canine or police horse” or “maliciously touches, strikes, or causes bodily harm” to animals working with first responders. Additionally, anyone who “maliciously harasses, teases, or interferes with, or attempts to interfere with” a police K-9 or other animal working with first responders could face a first-degree misdemeanor. Previously under state law, it was a misdemeanor crime to maliciously strike or harm a K-9 or other animal serving in its official capacity.
Senators Rubio, Scott compel federal employees to return to the office
Florida Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott are joining a group of fellow Republican U.S. senators to introduce companion legislation that would mandate federal agencies revert their telework policies to those in place before the COVID-19 pandemic. The Stopping Home Office Work’s Unproductive Problems, or SHOW UP, Act requires agencies to “reinstate and apply the telework policies, practices, and levels … in effect on December 31, 2019” within 30 days of the bill’s enactment. If any agency seeks to maintain or expand its COVID-era telework policies, it would have to submit a plan certified by the Office of Personnel Management to Congress for approval. The bill aims to address GOP lawmakers’ frustrations with backlogs identified in the federal bureaucracy, including the Social Security Administration (SSA) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS), for which work-from-home policies are being partly blamed. Sen. Scott called the remote work policies implemented within the federal government during the pandemic “a waste of taxpayer dollars and inefficient.” Democrats and agency officials say the problem behind service backlogs is more a result of persistent understaffing – not telework. The Biden administration has scaled back work-from-home policies in recent months to coincide with the end of the federal public health emergency declaration by increasing “meaningful in-person work at federal offices.” An identical bill passed the U.S. House in February by a 221-206 vote.
Disney shutters Star Wars hotel that cost $1,200 per night, per guest
Less than two years after opening, Disney's Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser hotel will be closing its doors permanently in September 2023. The Star Wars-themed hotel, which opened in March 2022, was an immersive two-night experience that allowed guests to live out their own Star Wars adventure. Guests could choose their own path, interact with characters from the film series, and participate in themed activities. However, the premium hotel experience drew criticism for its high cost. A family of four could expect their two-night stay to cost anywhere between $5,000 to $6,000 for a standard hotel room. A suite could run up to $20,000 for two nights. The vacation package included food and beverages, inclusive entertainment, and admission to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Disney has not said why the 100-room hotel is closing, but it is likely due to a combination of factors, including the high cost, mixed reviews, and lack of demand/occupancy. The news comes as the company has announced $5.5 billion in cuts as it aims to make its streaming TV business profitable. Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro told attendees at a recent finance conference that the closure of the Starcruiser hotel will allow the company to claim a tax write-off of approximately $300 million.
St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport earns title as TSA's 2022 Airport of the Year
St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport (PIE) has been recognized as the TSA's 2022 Airport of the Year in the small to medium-sized airports category. The airport competed against 333 airports of similar size in the Transportation Security Administration's annual Honorary Awards. The TSA praised PIE for its exceptional team achievements, which led to significant improvements, excellent performance, and short passenger wait times, despite seeing a record-breaking number of travelers in 2022.
Tampa General Hospital performs its first-ever living donor liver transplant
The first liver transplant with a living donor has been successfully completed at Tampa General Hospital, a revolutionary breakthrough for the growing Tampa Bay region as more than 4,500 Floridians await an organ transplant, including 400 for a liver transplant. The medical feat will give greater options for those needing an organ transfer by expanding opportunities to individuals who wish to become living donors. Ultimately, it will expand access to transplants, especially for those whose health outcomes are not deemed a high priority on the organ waitlist. In this first successful surgery of its kind at Tampa General Hospital, it was a son who donated nearly two-thirds of his liver to his mother, who battled liver disease for two years. Across the country, an estimated 100,000 people are on the organ transplant waitlist. Anyone can become a living donor as long as they are deemed a match for someone needing a transplant.
Free beer returns to Busch Gardens this summer
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is giving guests more reasons to visit the theme park this summer with free beer. Between now and July 20, Busch Gardens Pass Members 21 and older can enjoy up to two free seven-ounce beers per visit to the park while non-passholders are offered one free seven-ounce beer on their visit. Guests can take advantage of the complimentary draft from designated locations within the park beginning at 10:30 AM until one hour before park closure.
Seeing double? New Publix opens next to existing Publix
Residents of Neptune Beach are puzzled by the opening of a new Publix grocery store just 250 feet from an existing Publix. The new store has some unique offerings that the old store does not, such as an area where patrons can enjoy coffee, beer, wine, or smoothies while they grocery shop. However, many residents still wonder why Publix would open two stores so close together. Many residents still find the older location more convenient due to its parking lot layout and the presence of a traffic light allowing easier access onto the busy Atlantic Blvd. Publix says the new store will "alleviate congestion in stores, in addition to allowing for the best traffic patterns in a particular area."
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