FLORIDA SPRINGS COUNCIL ADVOCACY EFFORTS PROTECT FLORIDA’S SPRINGS ENVIRONMENT

Ryan Smart, Executive Director of the Florida Springs Council (FSC), has been spending his days in Tallahassee to try to convince legislators not to support several bills that would impact our environment.

One of the worst is SB 738/HB 789 which would mean that an individual or organization would be responsible for paying the legal fees if they lose a suit against a state environmental agency over a ruling or permit. This would prevent most non-profits from challenging decisions by DEP or the WMDs. Fortunately, the write-in campaign by the FSC worked! The emails and phone calls to legislators resulted in amendments to both the House and Senate bills that eliminated Section 1, the section that would have prevented individuals or environmental organizations from going to court to enforce Florida’s laws. Thanks to all who wrote or called your legislators! It worked!!!

There are still other bills that would be bad for the environment, including the following:

• SB 1620 would let FDEP sell conservation lands for agricultural use, including lands that were acquired for wildlife corridors.

• SB 632/HB 87 – The Bear Self Defense Act would allow anyone to shoot a bear on their property (note: the sponsors of the bills live in areas that do not require bear- proof trash cans.)

• Senate Bill 1126/House Bill 1641 would pre-empt all regulations on single use containers

• Senate Bill 664/House Bill 527 would keep local communities from protecting wetlands

Please go to the Florida Springs Council’s website for more information about these bills. Also, the website makes it easy to contact the committees that hear these bills and your local representatives to let them know you oppose these bills. We have a short window because the Legislative Session ends on March 9, 2024.