Your Week 7 Legislative Session Review from Team Anna

by | February 28, 2022

Dear Friend,

We’re back in Tallahassee for two more scheduled weeks of Legislative Session. Thank you for trusting us to be your happy warriors and for taking action with us.

This is your update from Week 7 of Florida’s 2022 Legislative Session. Remember, our legislative updates are thorough but will never be all encompassing. I encourage you to tune into the Florida Channel live, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

Onward, 

Representative Anna V. Eskamani

COVID19 UPDATES

COVID-19 cases are plummeting throughout Central Florida, but it’s not time to take off the masks quite yet, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Lake County’s seven-day average test positivity rate for new COVID-19 cases is down to 9.1%; Seminole is at 7.1%; Osceola is at 6.1%; Orange is at 6.9%.

The CDC previously relied on cases and test positivity to measure the impact of COVID-19 illness on health and health care systems in a community, which in turn influenced masking guidance.

As reported by the Orlando Sentinel:

On Friday the CDC announced it will now look at three pieces of data in an attempt to more accurately gauge the severity of COVID-19 outbreakin a community: hospitalizations, hospital capacity and new COVID-19 cases. Under the updated guidance, Orange, Osceola, Polk and Lake are still considered areas of high community spread as of Friday. In these areas, the CDC recommends wearing a mask in public indoor settings.

Read more here about the CDC’s guidance. 
Also: Orange County Public Schools is ending its last masking requirement on Monday due to low COVID-19 caseloads. Read more here.

REDISTRICTING UPDATE

Under pressure from Gov. Ron DeSantis to dismantle a North Florida congressional district designed to elect a Black representative to Congress, the Florida House late Thursday released a map that does much of what the governor wants but also added a backup plan.

In a signal that it considers the governor’s proposal may be vulnerable to being invalidated by a state or federal court, the House released a second map that restores the North Florida district as the court approved it in the 2010 redistricting cycle and, in the text of the accompanying bill, it says that if the court invalidates the first map, the second map will take effect in law. “If a court determines that the district…is invalid…it shall stand repealed” and the second map “shall take effect immediately” after the court’s review, the bill states.

Read more here.

The maps’ legislation also included language requiring any legal challenge to be filed with the justices within 30 days of becoming law. Chair Tom Leek said that this was necessary to assist the court in ruling in time for candidates to qualify in the new districts in advance of this year’s elections.

The final vote was 15-9 to send the contraption (HB 7503) to the House floor, with a couple of Republicans voting No because, they said, they agreed with the governor that U.S. Supreme Court precedents handed down since the Florida Supreme Court approved the district in principle in 2015 render it unconstitutional now.

The legislation remains to be reconciled with the Senate’s map, which includes a sprawling North Florida Black district.

FLORIDA’S STATE BUDGET

Two weeks ago the Florida House and Senate debated and voted on the State Budget. Though there are some positives in the state budget (for example, pay raises for public employees), there were also many negatives, including not enough funding for the Agency for Persons With Disabilities, no funding for the rising cost of rent, cuts to hospitals that serve indigent populations and probably the worst of them all: $200 million being cut from school districts because they had mask requirements.

That’s right: Gov. Ron DeSantis did an about-face on his initial opposition to a House plan that would shift $200 million away from school districts that required students to wear masks last year during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week didn’t see too many updates on the state budget, but this week we expect budget conferencing to begin. This is when both chambers come together to finalize the state budget before the end of session. Then the entire legislature votes on the budget one more time.

Important to remember that nearly 40% of Florida’s budget is federally funded.

DON’T SAY GAY BILL & HB7

HB 7, the Governor’s anti-CRT bill passed off the House floor last week. This bill could have a chilling effect in both our schools and our places of work as it censors the teaching of history, implicit bias, and any material some could deem as “uncomfortable”. See my debate here; as a caucus we only had 1 hour to debate against this offensive legislation. 

Also on the House floor this past week was HB 1557, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which you can see my full debate of below. All but 1 Democrat voted against this bill in addition to 7 Republicans — that’s a big deal and means our advocacy to stop this dangerous bill is working. If passed, it could censor the “encouragement” of discussions around gender identity and sexual orientation in schools. 

Important to note that seven Republicans did vote NO on this bill.

This bill hits its last Senate committee Monday morning and Equality Florida is recruiting volunteers to join their bus and testify! RSVP here to join this rapid response and help protect LGBTQ+ rights!

Contact the members of the Senate Appropriations Committee and ask them to vote NO on HB1557:

SCRIPT FOR WHEN YOU CALL: “Hello my name is ________. I am urging Senator (___) to vote NO on HB 1557. This bill would effectively erase LGBTQ students, families, and history by censoring classroom discussions about sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. It would also undermine existing protections for LGBTQ kids in schools, potentially putting them in danger. The Legislature cannot force LGBTQ people back into the closet by policing identity or stopping kids from talking about their same-sex parents. Please oppose HB 1557!” 

Pressure has also been building for corporations to take a stand against this bill. See below.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

We know across Central Florida and our state folks are struggling to pay rent, keep up with rising property insurance rates, or waiting for mortgage assistance to become available. Renters have very few protections in our state and this week we debated against HB 537, a bill that would weaken these protections even more. “The current structure of this bill will put, especially vulnerable, low-wealth Floridians at event greater risk. I know this is a voluntary program, but so are payday loans and credit card debt,” said Rep. Eskamani on the House floor. See my full debate here.

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

HB5/SB146 passed its last Senate Committee stop and is ready for the Senate Floor. This unconstitutional bill has no exceptions for rape, incest, or human trafficking, and would force those who seek to end a pregnancy after 15 weeks to travel out of state. The bill passed the House Floor on a mostly party line vote about two weeks ago.

Efforts were made to amend the bill in the Senate, including adding exceptions and adding a contraceptive access program to the bill. All failed.

Last Monday advocates did travel up to Tallahasee for a rally focused on reproductive freedom. We were proud to join them!

EDUCATION POLICY ISSUES

As reported by Florida Politics:

HB 1193 passed the House and Education employment committee via a 13-5 vote. It is now waiting to be heard on the House floor

The bill would replace the much-maligned Florida Standards Assessment, or FSA, with coordinated screening and progress monitoring. Gov. Ron DeSantis and teachers support the proposal. It also places a cap on class time dedicated to state testing at 5%.

Students would take more strategic tests three times during the school year, with the first two intended to give students, teachers and parents guidance on how to work on the students’ weaknesses. The final “summative” test, late in the school year, would still provide results in time for students to be able to use summer school to meet standards.

Catherine Boehme, public policy advocate for the Florida Education Association, said the group does not support the bill because the 5% cap does not remove or limit district assessments, meaning student testing time may not decrease. She also said her organization wants the 5% to be capped at each subject level (5% of math time, 5% of language arts, etc.) as current language would have the 5% apply to all class time, including classes that do not require state testing.

“All of these provisions place more emphasis on tests and not the learning process,” Boehme said. “This bill does not provide what parents and teachers ask for, specifically time for learning.”

More than a dozen Florida teachers spoke during public comment largely in opposition to the bill on similar grounds as Boehme.

ENVIRONMENT & ENERGY

As reported by the Miami Herald:

 Florida homeowners and businesses would be given 18 months to install rooftop solar before current financial incentives are reduced under a House proposal intended to find middle ground between the rooftop solar industry and the state’s powerful electric utilities.

But the change to HB 741, which was originally written by Florida Power & Light for the House and Senate sponsors, also includes several sweeteners for the utility industry in its effort to revise net metering laws.

For example, the amendment by bill sponsor Rep. Larry McClure, R-Dover, would allow utility companies to ask regulators to allow it to charge all its customers so that it can recover the revenue it loses when some homeowners install solar panels.

The amendment was approved by the House Commerce Committee.

This bill is now ready for the House Floor, and so are we. We’ve filed multiple amendments to change this bill and make it less harmful to the rooftop solar industry.

SB2508, a bill being seen as another gift to the sugar industry, continues to raise concerns too. We’ll keep you posted on its progress as we approach the end of legislative session.

I also voted no on this bill that would completely decimate Lake County’s water board, and change it from elected positions to appointed ones.

CHANGES TO VOTING

As reported by the Tampa Bay Times:

Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republican lawmakers say they have a plan to secure Florida’s elections: regular cleaning of the voter rolls, creating an election security force and tougher penalties for election-related crimes.

But Republican lawmakers are finding they’re satisfying few people with their contentious elections proposal, a top DeSantis priority as he beats back calls from the right to audit Florida’s 2020 election.

Democrats have said the legislation will cause voter suppression. Elections supervisors called an earlier version of the billa “recipe for disaster.” And lawmakers are getting an earful from those on the right who believe there was widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

Meanwhile, canvassers from the Republican Party of Florida have been — without consent — changing people’s party affiliation from Democrat to Republican.

The pattern was repeated in low-income housing complexes throughout Hialeah and Little Havana, a Herald investigation found. A team of reporters visited eight locations where voter registration data showed unusually high numbers of voters switching from one party to another last year. The reporters knocked on every door where someone’s party affiliation had changed.

Four out of every five voters who spoke to the Herald — 141 in total — said that their party affiliation had been changed without their knowledge.

ATTACK ON IMMIGRANTS

As reported by the Tampa Bay Times:

Opposition to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ immigration platform is not hard to see — or hear.

The hallways of Florida’s Capitol are bustling with advocates who oppose the bill, their messages carried on children’s postcards to lawmakers and in coordinated campaigns led by faith leaders from South Florida and across the state.

In a recent development, opponents delivered criticism in brutal fashion in Spanish-language radio ads hitting two Republican lawmakers from Miami-Dade County, the persistent epicenter of Florida’s immigration wars. The White House also has chimed in.

DeSantis’ hard-line immigration push, a wedge of a larger fight he is picking with President Joe Biden, has been a dominating theme of Florida’s legislative session and divided lawmakers along bitter partisan lines.

But as the chorus of opposition reaches a crescendo, Republican lawmakers are not caving to the pressure and continue to support measures that would create economic disincentives for companies that transport “unauthorized” migrants into Florida on behalf of the federal government. They also don’t seem to care about what the impact of this policy proposal along with the Governor’s recent Executive Order means for migrant kids.

These bills are moving toward the finish line as DeSantis’ administration moved forward with a hearing on Thursday to consider a rule that would direct state child-care regulators to deny licenses to shelters that house unaccompanied migrant children for the federal government, unless there is a resettlement agreement between the state and the feds.

Ahead of that administrative hearing, nine Democrats from Florida’s congressional delegation — including Rep. Charlie Crist, who is seeking the Democratic gubernatorial nomination this year — sent a letter to DeSantis, urging his administration to rescind its immigration policies.

CRIMINAL LEGAL SYSTEM

In addition to several anti-reform bills passing the House Floor that enhances penalties, it also looks like the Florida Senate is moving towards opening more private prisons.

Meanwhile, we are still waiting for answers from the Department of Corrections (DOC) over the death of Mr. Ingram, and incarcerated person who was being transferred to another prison facility.  This is the not the first time an inmate has died in such a tragic way.

DR. LAPADO CONFIRMED

ICYMI:The Florida Senate on Wednesday voted to confirm Joseph Ladapo, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ pick to be the state’s surgeon general.

The party-line 24-15 vote was the culmination of a contentious approval process for Ladapo, who faced hours of questions from two different Senate committees in recent weeks.

Read more here.

SCENES FROM TALLAHASSEE & THE DISTRICT