Members each get a binder with a list of budget items and were told to weigh several factors, including whether federal or other state funding was available for certain projects. | Mark Wallheiser/Getty Images
Good morning and welcome to Thursday.
The Legislature may have reached a deal with Gov. RON DESANTISon illegal immigration, but lawmakers are still charging forward with ways to assert their power and independence.
Florida House Speaker DANNY PEREZ told members last week to break up into work groups and review budget items that DeSantis had vetoed. He wants each group to consider and recommend parts of the budget they think should get reinstated.
Here’s how it works. The meetings kicked off Tuesday and Wednesday with instructions from managers about what to focus on and discussions about how to narrow down which projects they think are most important.
Members each got a binder with a list of budget items and were told to weigh several factors, including whether federal or other state funding was available for certain projects. They also asked members to look at whether some projects might be too late to fund at this juncture, as state spending restarts every July.
In a meeting about arts and culture funding, some lawmakers argued that projects focused on history and education should get priority, while lawmakers reviewing vetoed water projects said it would be hard to narrow the list down, given Florida’s storm-torn status.
“The purpose of this is to really pick what we feel should be reconsidered,” said state Rep. MICHELLE SALZMAN (R-Pensacola), who led the water programs group. “What is the best use of Florida taxpayer dollars in this process? We don’t have a quota.”
“I’m sure everyone here has probably received a million text messages and calls from other members asking how it’s going to work and to look at projects,” said state Rep. MIKE REDONDO, who led the group on human services funding.
The House will vote on each budget item, which needs two-thirds support to pass. (A quick note about the process: The House is doing the work on overrides because last year’s spending bill originated from that chamber. Should the Legislature choose to review veto overrides on the next budget, the review would start on the Senate side.)
Items that pass will be sent to the state Senate for consideration. Florida Senate President BEN ALBRITTON told reporters he “applaud[ed]" the House’s work and his spokesperson, KATIE BETTA, confirmed he supported Perez and commended the approach he has taken.
For members, the opportunity to have hometown projects get a second shot is a big deal. Lawmakers who spoke to Playbook after the vetoes last year were deflated when requests got cut, leaving them empty handed on certain priorities they’d hoped to highlight back home. After the vetoes, DeSantis said he wanted to meet needs while keeping “spending under control.”
The groups aren’t planning to have lobbyists or others testify at hearings, but they did encourage members to meet with lobbyists and those who’d sponsored the funding requests in the first place. Rep. DEAN BLACK (R-Jacksonville) urged his colleagues to talk to constituents.
“No one knows the needs of our districts better than the people themselves,” he said. “It’s very easy for something to get vetoed when all you’re looking at is a giant document in black and white.”
— Gary Fineout contributed.
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... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ...
IMMIGRATION BILL EDIT — “State Republicans are scrapping a policy that would have required scores of state and local employees — including teachers — to cooperate with the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts to the “fullest extent possible,’” reports POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury.
“This language, part of the original immigration bill passed by Florida’s Legislature and spurned by DeSantis, is not included in the new-look legislation introduced this week that is expected to be enacted into law. The change comes amid Democratic objections to how the proposal could have ultimately spurred educators or school police to report undocumented students to ICE.”
NEW HOME GROW BILL — “The state House Health Care Budget Subcommittee chair on Wednesday filed a bill that would allow medical marijuana patients to grow pot plants at home,” reports POLITICO’s Arek Sarkissian.
“The bill filed by state Rep. Alex Andrade (R-Pensacola), HB 555, would allow the more-than-900,000 patients in Florida who are authorized to use marijuana as medicine to grow two plants at home. The home grow language is similar to SB 546, filed by state Sen. Joe Gruters (R-Sarasota) last week.”
SPRINGS PROTECTION — State officials on Wednesday held a second public hearing on proposed rules to protect springs from groundwater overpumping after facing criticism for declining to respond to questions at a January hearing,” reports POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie.
“Department of Environmental Protection officials responded to questions posed by critics who say the proposed rules required by 2016 law change are inadequate.”
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CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS — The Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel are out with a new series examining Florida’s universal voucher system for schools,including a database that looks at individual school enrollment and the percentage of students that receive vouchers.
TAPPED — “Former Speaker Paul Renner appointed to universities’ Board of Governors,”by Jay Waagmeester of the Florida Phoenix. “Renner joins former Speaker Jose Oliva and former lawmaker Manny Diaz Jr. as former legislators on the board.”
ON A BOAT — DeSantis announced several wish list items Wednesday during a ribbon cutting on the first day of the International Boat Show in Miami Beach, where he extolled the state’s fishing and boating. He wants the Legislature to pass a bill that would prevent local governments from banning the sale or use of boats based on fuel sources.
He also asked for a bill that would require probable cause when officers pull over boaters — banning the use of “compliance stops.” He said the issue would “right a wrong that has been an issue in this state for far too long.”
“People who are just out enjoying themselves, when there's no indication that anything is wrong, they should not be subjected to these intensive searches,” the governor said. “And so this is a fair and balanced approach. If somebody is breaking the law, they will be held accountable. But if you're pulled over while you're in a boat, it just has to be a reason. You can’t just do it for kicks.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis cuts the ribbon for the International Boat Show opening day on Feb. 12, 2025 in Miami Beach. | Kimberly Leonard/POLITICO
SPEAKING OF … Florida boaters over the years say they were “arrested after performing poorly on a series of sobriety tests designed to detect impairment on the water,” reports Shira Moolten of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
NO ‘BAILOUT’ — The Legislature won’t be passing any bills that would help condo owners pay for the costs of increasing building safety, reports Jim Turner of News Service of Florida. The laws were created in the wake of the 2021 Surfside partial building collapse and have caused some Florida residents to be priced out of their homes, as well as becoming unable to find comparable housing.
NATURAL DISASTER HELP — “The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has launched a loan program for North Florida farmers, growers and ranchers affected by last month's unprecedented snow storm,” reports TaMaryn Waters of the Tallahassee Democrat. “The record-breaking storm crippled operations for several local outdoor nurseries, with some reporting millions in damage.”
LATEST DATA ON ABORTION BAN — “Florida’s ban on abortion beyond six weeks of pregnancy has led to the first decline in abortions since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, a result supporters of the ban hoped for,” reports WUFT’s Siena Duncan. “The statewide total of 60,755 abortions in 2024 was down 28 percent from 84,052 in 2023, according to reports to the Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration.”
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PENINSULA AND BEYOND
— “Are mass deportations Christian? Florida leaders contemplate the question,”by Kirby Wilson.
PARTY SWITCHER GETS CHALLENGER — “Democrat Todd Delmay is challenging Democrat-turned-Republican state Rep. Hillary Cassel in what’s likely to be the hottest South Florida legislative election in 2026,” reports the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Anthony Man. “Best known in LGBTQ civil rights and Democratic political circles, Delmay [announced] his candidacy on Wednesday.”
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TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP
DEFAMATION SUIT — “A Florida appeals court Wednesday cleared the way for President Donald Trump to pursue a defamation lawsuit against Pulitzer Prize board members in a dispute rooted in the organization awarding a prize to The New York Times and The Washington Post for reporting about alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election,” reports Jim Saunders of News Service of Florida.
DATELINE D.C.
Frost is the first Gen Z member of Congress and was previously organizing director of the gun violence-prevention group March for Our Lives. | Francis Chung/POLITICO
TODAY — Rep. MAXWELL FROST (D-Fla.) is holding a press event in Washington at 11:30 a.m. on reintroducing a bill that would establish the Office of Gun Violence Prevention within the Department of Justice. The Trump administration closed the office created under former President JOE BIDEN. Frost is the first Gen Z member of Congress and was previously organizing director of the gun violence-prevention group March for Our Lives, formed in the wake of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
MANATEE PROTECTION — Reps. DARREN SOTO (D-Fla.) and VERN BUCHANAN (R-Fla.) have introduced legislation to update the conservation status of the West Indian manatee from “threatened” to “endangered,” reports The Floridian’s Grayson Bakich. By updating the manatee’s status, the Fish and Wildlife Service will be able to receive more resources to rehabilitate the population.
BILL TO ADDRESS HUMAN TRAFFICKING — Buchanan introduced legislation that bans childlike sex dolls and would establish a grant program under the Department of Health and Human Services to train teachers and students to spot human trafficking’s warning signs, reports Jesse Mendoza of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
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DS Laboratories is now hiring more employees at its headquarters in Miami, Florida, to keep up with the growing global demand for its hair and skin care products. In just one year, it is estimated that sales on Alibaba by Florida businesses contributed millions to the state's GDP and supported thousands of local jobs.
TOM BRADY LICENSE PLATE BENCHED — The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles announced that the Best Buddies license plate featuring Tom Brady throwing a football will be discontinued by Feb. 17, reports Richard Tribou of the Orlando Sentinel.
BIRTHDAY: Alex Burgos, policy communications director at Meta.
