Elected officials speak out against “attacks” on local government

Share
Francesca Menes at the press conference / Credit: Local Progress Florida

Listen:

Elected officials from around Florida gathered for a press conference today to speak out against bills that they claim are attacks on local control. Five current and former elected officials representing communities across Florida spoke at a press conference against state legislation that they believe limits local control.

The press conference was hosted by Francesca Menes, Deputy Organizing Director of Local Progress Florida.

“This legislative session is definitely much different than the ones we’ve seen before. This is one where we have seen a very vicious, targeted attack on local democracy and local authority.”

The elected officials each touched on specific bills. Alachua County School Board Chair Tina Certain mentioned House Bill 1 which gives vouchers to more families of students for private school.

“Universal Vouchers would cost Alachua County 46 million dollars next year, that’s enough for the salaries of 903 teachers.”

Orange County Commissioner Emily Bonilla took issue with a Senate Bill.

“SB 1586 would gut any protections offered to tenants by local governments, shifting all power over from of these protections to the state. These bills just add insult to injury.”

Coral Springs commissioner Joshua Simmons emphasized the importance of local governments.

“What happens in Coral Springs could be different [from] what happens in Gainesville. But we need to figure out a way to make sure that those unique differences are able to be addressed.”

 

Leave a Reply

  • (will not be published)

XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>

You may also like

student meal
Next school year Hillsborough public schools are offering free meals

Hillsborough Public Schools are offering students free meals for the...

Correspondence Through Poetry. A Mind-Numbing Week.

Father Verses Sons: A Correspondence in Poems by Herbert Gold...

The sound of change: Music’s influence on anti-war and human rights movements

Throughout history, music has served as a powerful catalyst for...

a man in a tye dye shirt talking on a radio microphone
Recreational pot for Florida is on the ballot this fall—let’s talk about it

In four months, Florida voters have the opportunity to vote...

Ways to listen

WMNF is listener-supported. That means we don't advertise like a commercial station, and we're not part of a university.

Ways to support

WMNF volunteers have fun providing a variety of needed services to keep your community radio station alive and kickin'.

Follow us on Instagram

Traffic Jam - All Souls Edition
Player position: