Welcome to days 59-64 of our 100 Days of Action series with updates and actions you can take around the first 100 days of the new administration and our 2025 state legislative session. Our elected leaders need to hear from you and we'll help you get loud by keeping you informed and empowered with the tools you need to make your voice heard.
Today we have two NEW urgent calls to action to protect Florida's citizen-led amendments and block the NRA's national concealed carry reciprocity bills. Additionally, we are excited to share new details for our April 5th protest. We hope you will join us for our Hands Off! Indian River County Protest.
You can find any calls to action you may have missed at the bottom of this email.
Florida already has the most stringent process for getting citizen-led amendments on the ballot and passing them. SB 7016 and HB 1205 aim to make the process even harder for everyday Floridians to participate in. You can find a fact sheet on these bills here.
Both bills have policies that would make qualifying a citizens-led amendment more extreme, but SB 7016 also contains provisions that would allow politicians to interfere with the process, going as far as to let them kick an amendment off the ballot!
HB 1205 is scheduled for March 26th at 11:30 AM in House State Affairs.
SB 7016 has moved through its first committee and is waiting to be scheduled in Senate Fiscal Policy.
TAKE ACTION: We need you to call ALL legislators on the State Affairs Committee and ask them to vote NO on any attacks on citizen-led amendments. Find their phone numbers HERE. Call their offices and read the following script:
"Hello, this is [X]. Representative [INSERT NAME] has an opportunity to stop attacks on citizen-led amendments. I’m asking them to vote NO on HB 1205 in State Affairs. The process to pass a citizen-led amendment in Florida is already one of the strictest in the nation, requiring nearly one million signatures to get on the ballot and 60% support from voters to pass. We don’t need politicians to make the process harder."
BONUS ACTION: Email our legislator, Robert Brackett, and ask him to NOT support any attacks on citizen-led amendments: http://bit.ly/savedirectdemocracy
Fight National Permitless Carry of Firearms
The gun lobby's dream federal bill — H.R. 38 / S.65, the so-called “Constitutional” Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act — is gaining dangerous momentum in Congress. The bill is essentially a National Permitless Carry law.
H.R. 38 has 178 cosponsors — including a Democrat. Its Senate twin, S.65, has 46 cosponsors.
This bill would force ALL states to accept the weakest gun laws in the country, allowing people to carry concealed, loaded firearms across state lines — even if they haven't passed a background check, received training, or obtained a permit.
TAKE ACTION: Use this EASY ONE MINUTE EMAIL FORM to send a message to our U.S. Representative and Senators today and demand they vote NO on H.R. 38 / S.65.
If passed, this bill would:
Override state laws like Connecticut's, which were passed after the Sandy Hook tragedy to keep our communities safe
Undermine law enforcement
Make permitless carry the national standard
Increase gun violence — states with permitless carry have seen gun homicides rise 27%
The majority of Americans oppose this. We CAN stop it — if we speak up NOW. Don't let Congress hand the NRA a victory that will cost lives. Together, we can protect our communities from this reckless legislation.
Share Your Story
Share Your Story Congressional Democrats have created a portal website to field complaints from constituents who believe they have been hurt by the policies of newly elected President Trump and his administration.
Anyone interested in sharing their story with Democrats in Congress can visit the website — https://democraticleader.house.gov/shareyourstory. It is managed by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Previously Shared Calls to Action
NEW BILL ALERT: As our state continues to feel the impacts of the climate crisis, we need to pass the PAUSE Act now to protect the freedom of every Floridian to be healthy, prosperous, and safe! Hardworking families and seniors deserve to be protected from utility shut-offs during states of emergency and extreme weather events, and the PAUSE Act would provide these life-saving protections when they need them the most.
TAKE ACTION: Use this link to send a letter to the committee chairs in the House and Senate asking them to put the PAUSE Act on their agendas for consideration this legislative session!
Find out more about the PAUSE Act using the one-pager provided by Central Florida Jobs With Justice here.
TAKE ACTION:
Stop the Destruction of the Department of Education. Send email via form [NEA].
Protect the U.S. Department of Education: Stop Trump's War on Children. Send email via form [Network for Public Education Action].
House Republicans have introduced bill HR899 to terminate the Departments of Education. Our Congressman, Mike Haridopolos has not yet joined the bill's 30 cosponsors.
TAKE ACTION: Urge your Congressman to withhold his support for HR899 "To terminate the Department of Education."
Call Rep. Haridopolos' DC office at (202) 225-3671 and read the following script:
"Hi my name is _______ and I am a constituent calling from zip code ________. I'm calling to urge my Congressman to withhold his support for bill HR899 to terminate the Department of Education. I also expect him to speak with President Trump to discourage him from signing an executive order to eliminate the Department of Education.
Will my Congressman take these steps to protect public education?"
Here’s why USAID matters to Florida...
✅Helps keep Florida’s agricultural and seafood markets strong. USAID turns struggling countries into paying customers who buy American-grown oranges, seafood and other goods.
✅Prevents mass migration crises. When disasters strike or economies fail, people flee. USAID stabilizes nations so we don’t have waves of migrants heading north.
✅Stops wars before they start. USAID has kept countless conflicts from
escalating—which means fewer American troops in harm’s way and less taxpayer money spent on military intervention.
TAKE ACTION: Call our members of Congress and demand they defend USAID.
Sen. Scott 202-224-5274
Sen. Moody 202-224-3041
Rep. Haridopolos 202-225-3671
Say the following:
"My name is ________ and I am a constituent living in zip code ______. I'm calling today to let you know USAID funding benefits Florida through increased trade, job creation, and international partnerships—and we don’t even have to send troops to get it done. I expect your office to resist to surrendering America’s leadership to our rivals. Will my legislator fight to defend USAID funding to put America first?"
ALERT! Our Congressman is doing the bidding of the US arms industry by engaging in a full assault on public safety. Haridopolos has cosponsored bills to both abolish the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and to repeal the National Firearms Act.
The National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934 imposed taxes, registration requirements, and restrictions on certain firearms, including short-barreled rifles and shotguns, machine guns, and silencers, with the primary goal of discouraging their circulation due to their association with violent crime.
His support of this bill does not reflect the will of his constituents.
TAKE ACTION: Call Rep. Haridopolos' DC office at (202) 225-3671 and urge him to rescind his support of both HR221 to abilish the ATF and HR335 to repeal the NFA.
Republicans have introduced a state concealed carry reciprocity bill in both the House and the Senate. This bill would infringe on states' rights to set their own gun laws and override all state large capacity magazine bans. Our Congressman Mike Haridopolos has already cosponsored the bill in the House. In the Senate, Rick Scott has cosponsored the bill but Senator Ashley Moody has not. She needs to hear from you.
TAKE ACTION: Call Senator Moody's D.C. office at 202-224-3041 and use the following script:
Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is _______. I’m deeply concerned by the bill S.65 which tramples on states' rights to set their own gun laws. Please let my Senator know that, as a Florida constituent, I'm urging her to withhold her support for this bill. Again, it is S.65.
(leave a message if you get a voicemail)
ALERT! Our Congressman is doing the bidding of the US arms industry by engaging in a full assault on public safety. Haridopolos has cosponsored bills to both abolish the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and to repeal the National Firearms Act.
The National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934 imposed taxes, registration requirements, and restrictions on certain firearms, including short-barreled rifles and shotguns, machine guns, and silencers, with the primary goal of discouraging their circulation due to their association with violent crime.
His support of this bill does not reflect the will of his constituents.
TAKE ACTION: Call Rep. Haridopolos' DC office at (202) 225-3671 and urge him to rescind his support of both HR221 to abilish the ATF and HR335 to repeal the NFA.
The Farmworker Association of Florida spoke during the Indian River County delegation meeting about the plight of the American farmworker. One highlighted concern was the lack of water, shade and access to bathrooms and the desire for safer working standards for the people that feed our community and our children.
TAKE ACTION: Call Representative Brackett and urge him to cosponsor the bill to protect Florida's farmworks from heat illness. Call Brackett's Tallahassee office at (850) 717-5034 and read the following script:
Hello my name is __________ and I live in zip code __________. I am a constituent calling to urge Representative Brackett to respond to the concerned farmworkers that spoke during the Indian River Delegation meeting by cosponsoring HB 35. This is the Heat Illness Protection bill. Can I count on my Representative to support this bill?
House Republicans have introduced a bill to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This Act saves older Americans billions in health care costs. As of now, our House Representative Mike Haridopolos has not yet cosponsored this bill. He needs to hear from us!
TAKE ACTION: Call Rep. Haridopolos' DC office at (202) 225-3671 and read the following script:
My name is ______. I live in zip code ________ and I urge my Representative to withhold support for HR191. This bill would significantly increase costs for millions of Americans. HR191 would overturn the cap on insulin costs and the $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket precrription drug copayments for millions of older Americans. Floridians simply cannot afford for this bil to pass or for our Congressman to support this bill. Can I count on the Congressman to vote NO on HR191?
