Your Week 8 Legislative Session Review from Team Anna

by | March 7, 2022

Dear Friend,

We’re back in Tallahassee for one more scheduled week of Legislative Session. I say scheduled because there are rumors that we might have a Special Legislative Session focused on redistricting, too. Thank you for trusting us to be your happy warriors and for taking action with us.

This is your update from Week 8 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

As reported by News 6: President Joe Biden declared during his State of the Union address that it is time for “Americans to get back to work,” highlighting progress made on the pandemic in the last year, with more tests and vaccines available to communities.

“Tonight, I can say we are moving forward safely, back to more normal routines,” Biden said. “It’s time for Americans to get back to work and fill our great downtowns again.”

The White House outlined a strategy to allow people to return to normal activities safely in a new National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan.

The 90-page plan spells out initiatives and investments to continue to drive down serious illness and deaths from the virus, while preparing for potential new variants and providing employers and schools the resources to remain open. A main part of the plan is a new “test to treat” plan to provide free antiviral pills at pharmacies for anyone who tests positive for COVID-19.

Meanwhile, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings announced during a Thursday COVID-19 update that the county’s 14-day rolling positivity rate is 6.4%, relaxing the mask mandate for county employees, except for workers at correctional and health facilities. The county’s COVID-19 testing sites will stay open, as will the vaccine site at Barnett Park. About 76% of residents ages 5 and older have had one or more shots of the COVID vaccine.

Disney Cruise Line is also making face coverings optional for guests starting next week. Disney Cruise Line has had a facial covering requirement for all guests, while indoors since the cruise line restarted following a monthslong shutdown.

HOMEOWNERS ASSISTANCE FUND

The Department of Economic Opportunity has finally announced the opening of the federally funded Homeowner Assistance Fund. 

This Fund is designed to mitigate financial hardships associated with the COVID-19 pandemic by preventing homeowners’ mortgage delinquencies, defaults, foreclosures, and displacements, as well as loss of utilities, home energy services, and insurance.

Financial assistance will be provided based on the needs of homeowners in Florida. The registration portal is now open, and is for homeowners to begin the first step in determining their eligibility to receive assistance. It can be found at www.FLHomeownerAssistance.org.

Feel free to share this information with family and friends. Our legislative office has continued to provide support to Floridians who are missing unemployment benefits, seeking rental assistance, in need of health care services, and/or facing other economic challenges. We will always do our best to assist and are here to serve.

REDISTRICTING UPDATE

As reported by the Miami Herald:

Florida’s voters will have a new set of political boundaries to follow when they elect their state legislators in November, after the state’s high court finalized legislative maps on Thursday as part of the nation’s once-a-decade redistricting cycle. The maps are expected to seal in place a Republican majority in the state Legislature for the next decade.

The Senate map gives Republicans a likely 23-17 advantage over Democrats in the 40-member chamber — a one-seat pickup for Democrats over the current map. The House map gives Democrats as many as eight additional seats in the 120-member House, potentially reducing the Republican majority to 71 from 79, and increasing the Democratic share to 49.

The decision means that candidates may now start lining up to run in the various state House and Senate districts, and it is expected to force some legislators to move to new neighborhoods, as the new maps put some lawmakers into the same districts. But if voters want clarity on the congressional candidates on the ballot, they are going to have to wait.

An impasse over the congressional map remains a possibility after the House advanced an amendment Thursday that fails to resolve a stalemate between the governor’s office and the Legislature.

If a congressional map isn’t passed by the time lawmakers end the legislative session on March 11, they will have to return for a special session or ask the court to draw a redistricting map. They face a permanent deadline: June 17, the final day for candidates to qualify to run for Congress.

The House gave preliminary approval to two congressional maps that attempt to bridge differences between the positions taken by Gov. Ron DeSantis — who wants a more partisan map that dismantles Black-majority districts in North and Central Florida — and the Florida Senate, which drew a more politically competitive map in an attempt to abide by the anti-gerrymandering provisions of the Florida Constitution.

The House proposes two maps, one that creates a Duval County-centric district that diminishes Black voting strength in North Florida; the second map is similar to the map that passed the state Senate but favors more Republicans than the Senate plan by splitting Black voters in Orlando.

As we were debating the Congressional Maps, the Governor tweeted this: “I will veto the congressional reapportionment plan currently being debated by the House. DOA.” 

So at this point, there is a lot of uncertainty with the two maps sent to the Governor because it seems like he will veto them, creating the need for a Special Legislative Session. We will keep you updated.

FLORIDA’S STATE BUDGET

Last week House and Senate negotiators continued trying to hammer out high-profile spending issues in what likely will result in a record state budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. This took place via budget conferencing, a process where both chambers come together to confirm funding decisions within spending silos.

Lawmakers need to finish a budget by Tuesday if they are going to end the legislative session as scheduled March 11. That is because of a legally required 72-hour “cooling off” period before lawmakers can vote on the budget.

Read more via the link below:

Please note that we continue to advocate for our local funding requests along with funds for affordable housing, mantel health, disability services and arts and culture.

DON’T SAY GAY BILL

 HB 1557, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, will be heard in the Florida Senate this Monday and Tuesday. Remember 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. This is a direct attack on the LGBTQ+ community and the Governor’s administration has gone even more extreme in their messaging, accusing anyone who opposes this as being “groomers.”

So what can you do to help? Contact your Florida Senator right now (click here), and contact the following Senators while you’re at it.

Script: “Hello! My name is [name] and I live in [city]. I am urging Senator [name] to vote NO on HB1557. This bill could erase LGBTQ+ identity from our schools and only further stigmatize the community. Please stop these bills by voting NO on HB1557 when it reaches the Senate floor on Monday!”

  • Future Senate Pres. Kathleen Passidomo|850-487-5028|Passidomo.Kathleen@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Jennifer Bradley|850-487-5005|Bradley.Jennifer@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Ed Hooper| 850-487-5016| Hooper.Ed@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Joe Gruters | 850-487-5023 | Gruters.Joe@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Jeff Brandes | 850-487-5024| Brandes.Jeff@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Manny Diaz, Jr.| 850-487-5036| Diaz.Manny@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Travis Hutson | 850-487-5007 | Hutson.Travis@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Ana Maria Rodriguez | 850-487-5039 | Rodriguez.AnaMaria@flsenate.gov
  • Senator Gayle Harrell | 850-487-5025 | Harrell.Gayle@flsenate.gov
  • President Wilton Simpson | 850-487-5010 | Simpson.Wilton@flsenate.gov

Students are also traveling to Tallahassee to advocate against this bill. See below for details. 

 

UNION BUSTING BILL

Last week the Florida House passed HB 1197, legislation that infringes on public sector workers’ right to join or stay in a union. The bill will now be heard in the Florida Senate Rules Committee this Tuesday. This is an all-hands-on-deck situation for Florida’s Labor Movement. Call your senator today and tell them to vote NO on HB 1997!

Take a stand and click here to make the call for workers’ rights. Below is my debate on the House Floor against this bill.

Today at 1:00pm the Floria AFL-CIO is hosting a virtual workshop about this bill and will share more ways for you to get involved to help stop it.

In the realm of workers rights — another bad bill passed the House that would force CNA’s to do even more work then they already do, while saving their employers money. As reported by CBSMiami:

With certified nursing assistants a key issue in the debate, the House on Friday overwhelmingly passed a bill that would change staffing standards in nursing homes.

The Senate also took up the bill and could pass it as soon as Monday. Supporters argued that the bill (HB 1239) would provide more flexibility for nursing homes to meet the needs of residents, while also helping address staffing shortages.

“I want to empower our elderly with the highest possible quality of life,” bill sponsor Lauren Melo, R-Naples, said.

But opponents said the bill poses a threat to residents because it could lead to less care from certified nursing assistants, who perform many of the hands-on services in nursing homes.

We oppose this bill and support increasing wages of CNAs to attract more workers into the field versus make their jobs even more difficult. This would also ensure that patients get the attention and care they need and deserve too.

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

Florida’s dangerous abortion ban, HB5, has passed the House Floor, 78-39, and the Senate floor, 23-15, prohibiting nearly all abortions after 15 weeks with NO exceptions for rape or incest.  Its last stop is the Governor’s desk.

ACT NOW: Call and email the Governor and ask him to VETO HB 5:

  • Email: GovernorRon.DeSantis@eog.myflorida.com
  • Phone: 850-717-9337
  • Facebook & Twitter @GovRonDeSantis | Instagram: @FLGovRonDeSantis

Script: “Hello my name is ________. I am urging Governor DeSantis to VETO HB 5, a dangerous unconstitutional abortion ban. Abortion bans are unpopular with most Floridians, who respect the privacy of medical decisions. Protect our rights and freedoms by VETOING HB 5. Abortion is healthcare!

Last week we did join The White House for a listening session focused on HB5. See the readout here.

EDUCATION POLICY ISSUES

In addition to the union busting bill described above, the Don’t Say Gay Bill, and the education budget being finalized, there were quite a few other education policy updates last week too.

As stated on CTA’s website: HB 1203/SB 1386 would remove educator voice from the evaluation process and prohibit evaluations from being collectively bargained between school districts and local unions. Both of these bills passed their respective committees on February 1, 2022.

FEA President Andrew Spar stated:

“These bills bar us from negotiating teacher evaluation, an infringement on our constitutional right to bargain.

The legislation is retaliation against the Orange County Classroom Teachers Association for the great work they have done to ensure educators’ voices are respected in the evaluation process. As you may know, they won an Unfair Labor Practice claim against Orange County Schools earlier this school year.

In the claim, PERC ruled that Orange County Schools implemented a unilateral change to the evaluation process without bargaining and that teacher evaluations, which are tied to salary, are a mandatory subject of bargaining.

This bill will be voted on the House Floor this Monday. Also, the Florida Senate on Thursday unanimously passed a bill aimed at ending the Florida Standards Assessments in public schools and replacing the standardized exams with a “progress-monitoring” system.

The measure (SB 1048), in part, would lead to a process that would require students to take progress-monitoring tests at the beginning, middle and end of each school year.

Critics of the bill, however, have argued that the new system of administering exams would not cut down on testing time for students.

ENVIRONMENT & ENERGY

The anti-net metering bill was heard in the Senate last week and will be voted on today. 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.

Last week the bill passed the House Floor, and you can see my debate against the bill below.

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.

CHANGES TO VOTING

As reported by The New York Times:

The Florida Senate passed a sweeping new bill overhauling the state’s electoral process, adding new restrictions to the state election code and establishing a law enforcement office dedicated solely to investigating election crimes.

The bill, which passed 24-14, now goes to the state’s House of Representatives, where it could pass as soon as next week and land on the desk of Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, who is expected to sign it. One Republican, State Senator Jeff Brandes, voted against it. A Democratic senator, Loranne Ausley, initially voted yes, but immediately posted on Twitter that she “pushed the wrong button” and has since changed her vote.

Though Republicans in the state had passed another sweeping voting law in May of last year, Mr. DeSantis made election reform one of the top priorities for this legislative session as well. Both efforts come after the 2020 election in Florida was without any major issues, and Republicans in the state touted it as a “gold standard” for election administration.

The legislation is poised to become the first major election-related bill to pass this year in a critical battleground state, and it would indicate no sign of cresting for the wave of new election laws, adding more restrictions to voting, that began last year — with 34 laws passed in 19 states.

The core of the bill is the establishment of a permanent election crimes office within the Department of State, which would make Florida one of the first states to have an agency solely dedicated to election crimes and voter fraud, despite such offenses being exceedingly rare in the United States. An investigation last year by The Associated Press found fewer than 475 potential claims of fraud out of 25.5 million ballots cast for president in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

This is another politically motivated elections bill that feeds into the big lie that the 2020 elections were not accurate and instead of improving our elections systems, it creates unnecessary burdens and grants DeSantis with an elections security force.

ATTACK ON IMMIGRANTS

As reported by The Orlando Sentinel:

The Florida Senate late Thursday approved a measure pushed by Gov. Ron DeSantis that critics maintain could have far-reaching implications for migrants in the state, such as people seeking asylum from Communist regimes and children awaiting reunification with their families.

The proposal targets transportation companies that bring undocumented immigrants into the state and would expand a 2019 law that sought to ban so-called “sanctuary cities,” even though none exist in Florida. The bill still needs approval from the House.

While federal laws generally govern immigration policies, Senate bill sponsor Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach, said the legislation (SB 1808) is designed to send a message to President Joe Biden and to Congress to take action on immigration.

But Democrats argued that so-called “ghost flights” targeted by Republicans throughout the country are political fiction.

We expect to see this bill on the House Floor this week.

TAX POLICY & DATA PRIVACY

Some good news: The Florida House passed a Tax Package that not only rejects some of the biggest corporate giveaways that the Florida Senate is debating, but it also includes a part of our proposal, HB85, to eliminate Florida’s tax on diapers by creating a year long tax break on diapers.

We are now waiting for the Senate to release their tax package. See my debate in favor of the Florida House’s tax package below.

 

We also debated in support of the Florida House’s Data Privacy Proposal.

HB 9, sponsored by Republican Rep. Fiona McFarland, would give consumers the right to determine what information has been collected, request the data be deleted or corrected, and opt out of the sale or sharing of that personal information.

While the bill has advanced through the committee process in the House, where it is ready for a floor vote, the Senate companion hasn’t seen any action since it was filed.

Watch my debate below.

CRIMINAL LEGAL SYSTEM

There are quite a few bills moving this year that are not reform minded when it comes to the criminal legal system. Some would actually enhance sentencing for non-violent offensives. This is bad, because there is no evidence to suggest that enhanced sentencing actually reduces crime or increases safety. See below for a quick review of these bills.

SCENES FROM TALLAHASSEE & THE DISTRICT