Guest commentary: SCCF provides update on extension of legislative session
As of May 16, the updates from Florida’s 2025 legislative session extension included:
– House resolution adopted to extend session to June 30
– Senate had not yet agreed to June 30 extension date
STATE BUDGET UPDATE
Florida legislators were expected to head back to Tallahassee the week of May 16 to begin reconciling the budget framework they had verbally agreed to on May 2, the scheduled last day of the session.
Since then, Gov. Ron DeSantis signaled that he would veto cuts to sales taxes that provided the foundation of the Legislature’s budget framework, resulting in Sen. President Ben Albritton to back away from the budget agreement.
The House passed a resolution extending the session from June 6-30 — one day before the start of the July 1 fiscal year. As of the week of May 16, the Senate had yet to agree to the second session extension and Senate Appropriations Chair Ed Hooper was quoted as saying he thinks the budget can be done by June 6.
The “call” of the session extension was to finish the budget, along with negotiating a few policy items tied to the budget. Individual policy bills will not be considered during the session extension. However, it is possible to tie policy issues to the budget without the committee meeting and public hearing processes required during the regular session. These policy items can be attached to conforming bills or implementing bills and can take the form of a “single fiscal-year study” or by funding a pilot project. Policies requiring funding can also be set outside of the normal committee process when they are created to “implement” the requirements a general appropriations bill.
The Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF) will be closely monitoring this budget process to watch for items that could impact the priorities we have been following.
SUCCESS FOR ENVIRONMENT
Sen. Gayle Harrell and Reps. John Snyder and Meg Weinberger played key roles in both passing beneficial bills and blocking harmful legislation this session to protect the natural resources in our state.
Harrell and Snyder both sponsored bills to permanently protect our state parks from destructive development of golf courses and large-scale lodges. The more protective House version of the bill, HB 209, passed both the House and the Senate unanimously and will be presented to the governor for his signature. DeSantis has indicated that he will sign the bill.
Weinberger did not yield to the pressure campaign from the Senate to amend the auxiliary container (single-use plastics) local government preemption issue on to her bill, HB 1609, which originally intended to address a waste incineration siting issue. Time ran out to pass the bill before an agreement between the House and Senate could be reached.
Please join the SCCF in thanking these state legislators for their leadership in protecting the natural areas of our state. You may call or email them at the following contact information:
– Sen. Gayle Harrell (Stewart)
(850) 487-5031
Harrell.Gayle.web@flsenate.gov
– Rep. John Snyder (Palm City)
(850) 717-5086
John.Snyder@flhouse.gov
– Rep. Meg Weinberger (Royal Palm Beach)
(850) 717-5094
meg.weinberger@flhouse.gov
Thank you for your continued support of our natural systems!
Holly Schwartz is policy associate for the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF). Founded in 1967, the SCCF’s mission is to protect and care for Southwest Florida’s coastal ecosystems. For more information, visit www.sccf.org.