| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard | |  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis waves as he finishes his State of the State address during a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives. | Phil Sears/AP | Good morning and welcome to Tuesday. Gov. Ron DeSantis still has one giant item on his to-do list that Tallahassee insiders and lawmakers are carefully watching for. And it’s worth $117 billion. DeSantis is expected to sign the state budget sometime in early June, ahead of the fiscal year that begins July 1, POLITICO’s Gary Fineout reported. It almost certainly will face line-item cuts, though it’s not clear just how steep they’ll be. On the last day of session in March, DeSantis already said that there would need to be “a little trimming to be done,” citing the need for fiscal responsibility and shrugging off concerns from lawmakers with, “that’s just the way the cookie crumbles.” While still juggling the demands of the presidential campaign trail, DeSantis had proposed $114 billion in state spending and nicknamed the plan the “Focus on Florida’s Future Budget.” DeSantis’ budget signings in recent years have tended to come with a good deal of fanfare, where he’ll unabashedly veto top priorities of officials and lawmakers. He went so far as to toss out $3.1 billion in spending in 2022. The budget can also act as a messaging tool. For instance, DeSantis has boasted about tax relief programs — of which there are more in the forthcoming budget — as being in direct response to inflation under the Biden administration. As the governor has been traversing the state signing bills into law, he has previewed some budget measures he’ll be authorizing, including on Everglades restoration and water quality improvements. He has pledged to greenlight more funding in the budget for school security, including for the state’s historically Black colleges and universities and for Jewish day schools. Hundreds of millions of dollars are also set to go toward Senate President Kathleen Passidomo's priority, a health care overhaul to increase the number of medical professionals in Florida. Some state lawmakers previously shared with POLITICO that they were worried DeSantis might veto specific items in the budget to punish members who didn’t support him during his ill-fated bid for president. But so far, DeSantis has been broadly inclusive of Republican state lawmakers at his bill signings throughout the state, regardless of who they supported during the GOP presidential nomination contest. Should he spare their hometown projects, it would be the continuation of a reinvention tour of sorts for DeSantis, who has not only reached an understanding with Trump but seemingly ended his fight with Walt Disney World and shown a new level of appreciation for those who’ve supported his political aspirations. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis passes out pens used during a signing ceremony at the William J. Kirlew Junior Academy on May 9, 2019, in Miami Gardens, Florida. The law created a new voucher program for thousands of students to attend private and religious schools using taxpayer dollars traditionally spent on public schools. | Lynne Sladky/AP | THE BIG STORY — “School choice programs have been wildly successful under DeSantis. Now public schools might close,” by POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury. “Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida Republicans have spent years aggressively turning the state into a haven for school choice. They have been wildly successful, with tens of thousands more children enrolling in private or charter schools or homeschooling. Now as those programs balloon, some of Florida’s largest school districts are facing staggering enrollment declines — and grappling with the possibility of campus closures — as dollars follow the increasing number of parents opting out of traditional public schools.” BOOK REMOVALS — “Free speech groups say Florida misrepresents book objection law, causing mass removals,” by USA Today Network — Florida’s Douglas Soule. “[The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression] said the [education] department has added fuel to the flames by issuing guidance in an October memorandum, asserting that school library materials can't contain any ‘sexual conduct,’ which it says some counties are interpreting to apply to a broad swath of books including classics.” ABORTION WAIT TIMES INCREASE— “How Florida’s abortion law is affecting East Coast abortion clinics,” by the Washington Post’s Caitlin Gilbert, Caroline Kitchener and Janice Kai Chen. “Clinics up the East Coast have seen a surge in patient traffic since a law banning most abortions in Florida went into effect on May 1 — but so far they have not experienced the collapse in care that many providers had feared before the new restrictions began in the country’s third most populous state, according to new data collected by a research team at Middlebury College.” HEALTHCARE OVERHAUL — “Florida to allow doctors to perform C-sections outside hospitals,” by Phil Galewitz of KFF News. “Florida has become the first state to allow doctors to perform cesarean sections outside of hospitals, siding with a private equity-owned physicians group that says the change will lower costs and give pregnant women the homier birthing atmosphere that many desire. But the hospital industry and the nation’s leading obstetricians’ association say that even though some Florida hospitals have closed their maternity wards in recent years, performing C-sections in doctor-run clinics will increase the risks for women and babies when complications arise.” WORKPLACE HAZARD — “No water, no shade: How homebuilders, farming companies and construction firms got politicians to reject heat rules for outdoor workers in Florida,” by Jason Garcia of Seeking Rents. “The Florida Home Builders Association is a powerful lobby in Tallahassee. It is run by companies like Lennar Corp., the Miami-based Fortune 500 giant that turned a nearly $4 billion profit last year, and Mattamy Homes, the largest privately held homebuilder in North America. And while the homebuilder lobbyists never said peep about the heat-safety bill in public, they torpedoed it in private.” VOTING TOOL — “Florida is using a fraud-hunting tool used by the right to look for voters to remove from the rolls,” by Matt Dixon and Jane C. Timm of NBC News. “Florida wants local elections officials to use data collected by far-right activists, some of whom falsely believe the 2020 election was stolen, to potentially remove people from the state’s voter rolls, according to emails obtained by NBC News. The network of activists has been collecting voter data in 24 states, and on May 3, one of them emailed the Florida-specific information to a top state election official. It included the names of roughly 10,000 voters from across the state the group insists should be examined for potential removal from the voter rolls, a process commonly referred to as list maintenance. The state’s chief elections official then forwarded that information to county election supervisors and asked them to ‘take action.’” PRESSURE CAMPAIGN — “Hemp industry is pushing hard on DeSantis to veto a bill restricting THC,” reports Health News Florida. “Hemp farmers and businesses vehemently objected to the bill, saying it would effectively shutter the industry and cost the state thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in lost revenue.” AHEAD OF HURRICANE SEASON — “Florida homeowners finally have some new insurers to consider,” by the Orlando Sentinel’s Jeffrey Schweers. “Anyone freshly dumped back into the insurance market for one reason or another has several new options, in addition to 19 other companies that are either keeping their rates the same or lowering them slightly, according to the state’s Office of Insurance Regulation … With eight new carriers approved to sell property insurance by the OIR, Florida is the only state showing a high volume of new companies entering the market this year.” — “You can save money on hurricane supplies in Florida — and have two chances. Here’s how,” by the Miami Herald’s Howard Cohen. RETURN OF THE FLAMINGO — “How Florida is getting its pink back,” by Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post. “In the past nine months, flamingos have appeared throughout Florida in places where they haven’t been seen in decades — sightings scientists hope mark the return of one of the state’s most celebrated symbols … The findings have excited birders and renewed a debate about whether flamingos should be classified as a threatened species by the state wildlife commission — a measure scientists say could help ensure Florida gets its pink back for good.”
| | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | IMMIGRATION IMPLEMENTATION — “Trump’s mass-deportation plan would have big economic consequences for South Florida,” by the Miami Herald’s Max Greenwood and Syra Ortiz Blanes. “Trump’s agenda would likely exacerbate the gap in Florida’s job market, which has 53 available workers for every 100 open positions, according to an analysis from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. As a result, experts believe that the labor pool for Florida’s agriculture sector and its lucrative tourism industry would suffer. Construction projects … would become both more expensive and slower to complete.” KICKED OUT — “UF bans student named in Chinese smuggling probe from campus for 3 years,” by Matthew Cupelli of Fresh Take Florida. “The University of Florida on Saturday banned a student from its property for three years whom the Justice Department accused of being involved in a multimillion dollar scheme to divert biomedical samples of dangerous drugs and toxins from a campus laboratory to China.” LOCAL REFERENDUM — “Charter proposal to double Tallahassee city commissioner pay faces likely headwinds,” by Jeff Burlew of the Tallahassee Democrat. “Some city voters will be turned off by the mere idea of giving more money to elected officials, according to political experts and observers. Others may be disinclined to vote yes for reasons ranging from an iffy economy to the entrenched hostility between the two City Commission factions that's been on public display for years.” — “Florida schools say maintaining student laptops for all is getting too costly,” reports Leslie Postal of the Orlando Sentinel.
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | | | | 
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla) speaks outside the hush money criminal case of former president Donald Trump in New York on Thursday, May 16, 2024. | Ted Shaffrey/AP | 13TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT — “Meet the Democrats who want to oust Anna Paulina Luna from Congress this fall,” by Mitch Perry of Florida Phoenix. “Whoever survives the Aug. 20 primary will be a decided underdog to Luna this fall, as the district was drawn to be solidly Republican during the most recent congressional redistricting process in 2022.” ELECTION PREP — “What to know about Florida’s Amendment 2, the hunting and fishing ballot question,” by the Miami Herald’s Alyssa Johnson. “Proponents believe [it’s] a necessity to protect the outdoor recreation industry and give power back to Florida residents … But critics of the proposal fear that it could cause more harm than good. The Animal Law Section of the Florida Bar has taken an active stance against Amendment 2, arguing that the specific language of the amendment could put the state’s wildlife and its ecosystems at risk.” RETURN OF THE POLITICAL DONATION — “Disney starts giving to Florida politicians again, Sen. Thompson says,” by the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Steven Lemongello. “Disney’s Princess Tiana appears on the invitations to Democratic state Sen. Geraldine Thompson’s fundraiser next month, and with that image comes the return of a major player in Florida politics. The Walt Disney Co. provided theme park tickets, Thompson said, in what’s known as an in-kind contribution … In March 2022, Disney suspended all political contributions in Florida in the wake of the controversy over the so-called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law, which bans instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity in schools.”
| | DATELINE D.C. | | | | 
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) speaks with reporters outside the U.S. Capitol May 17, 2024. | Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images | VEEPSTAKES — “Trump elevates a conservative ‘warrior’ on education,” by The New York Times’ Alexandra Berzon and Michael C. Bender. “[Rep. Byron Donalds’] interests — in overhauling public education, evangelical Christianity and electing Donald J. Trump — have propelled a rapid political ascent. A backbencher congressman in only his second term, Mr. Donalds, 45, has fast become a prominent surrogate for Mr. Trump’s presidential campaign and a conservative media regular, serving up earnest and on-message defenses of the former president.” ONE-ON-ONE INTERVIEW — “‘It was pure retaliation’: The feud that will define the Senate GOP,” by POLITICO’s Ryan Lizza. “The [Rick] Scott-[Mitch] McConnell feud has never really subsided. Scott has led a band of senators on the right who have challenged McConnell on top priorities, such as aid to Ukraine, and voted against crucial legislation that McConnell supported, such as a debt limit extension and continuing resolutions to keep the government funded. [Last] week, Scott announced he will once again run for McConnell’s job. Things will be a little different this time. McConnell is stepping down as leader after the election, and Scott will face John Thune (R-S.D.) and John Cornyn (R-Tex.), the only other declared candidates in the race.”
| | TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP | | MAR-A-LAGO DOCS — “Prosecutors seek to bar Trump in classified files case from statements endangering law enforcement,” by The Associated Press. “Federal prosecutors on Friday asked the judge overseeing the classified documents case against Donald Trump to bar the former president from public statements that ‘pose a significant, imminent, and foreseeable danger to law enforcement agents’ participating in the prosecution. The request to U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon follows a false claim by Trump earlier this week that the FBI agents who searched his home in August 2022 were ‘authorized to shoot me’ and were ‘locked & loaded ready to take me out & put my family in danger.’”
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