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Chairman's
Message
Supporting Florida Law
Enforcement
Governor
DeSantis announced $400 million in new funding proposals to increase
the salaries of Florida’s state law enforcement officers, correctional
officers, and state special risk firefighters. The proposal for the
upcoming legislative session also provides $1,000 bonuses for first
responders, including law enforcement officers, paramedics, EMTs and
firefighters across the state for the second year in a row.
Governor
DeSantis also announced $5,000 bonuses to recruit and retain both
state and local level law enforcement. The proposal will be considered
during the 2022 Florida Legislative Session.
“While
other states have turned their backs on law enforcement, even calling
to ‘defund the police,’ in Florida we continue to support the men and
women in law enforcement,” Governor DeSantis said. “I am proud to
propose larger and longer-lasting measures to help our state recruit
and retain the best law enforcement officers in the nation and to
provide $1,000 bonuses for first responders and law enforcement
officers for the second year in a row.”
Here are
the details of the Governor’s proposal for state law
enforcement:
- $73
million to increase the minimum pay for entry level state law
enforcement officers by 20 percent, and to increase veteran officer
salaries by 25 percent.
- $135
million to increase the base pay of Correctional Officers and
Department of Juvenile Justice Officers.
- $1.4
million to increase the salaries of state Special Risk Firefighters by
up to $2,500 each.
And here
are the details for local law enforcement:
- $5,000
signing bonuses for every recruit who is new to the law enforcement
profession in Florida.
- Providing
the State Officer Certification Exam free to law enforcement officers
relocating to Florida and covering the cost of any necessary
equivalent training programs up to $1,000 per officer.
- $1,000
bonuses for first responders, including law enforcement officers,
paramedics, EMTs, and firefighters across the state.
- Creating
law enforcement academy scholarships to cover the cost of enrollment
for men and women seeking to serve their state and communities through
police work.
This
proposal builds on Governor DeSantis’ plan unveiled in August to
recruit and retain local law enforcement officers. Read more about
those proposals here: https://www.flgov.com/2021/08/17/governor-ron-desantis-announces-new-initiatives-to-recruit-law-enforcement-officers-to-florida/
Earlier in
2021, Governor DeSantis worked with the Florida Legislature to secure
$1,000 bonuses for 174,000 first responders, and signed House Bill 1,
the hallmark anti-rioting legislation.
Read more: https://www.flgov.com/2021/11/29/governor-ron-desantis-proposes-sweeping-pay-increases-for-state-law-enforcement-officers-1000-bonuses-for-first-responders-and-5000-to-support-state-and-local-level-recruitment-efforts/
Governor DeSantis denounces Biden
removing FARC from terrorist list
Governor
DeSantis responded quickly to President Biden’s reckless decision to
remove the violent communist organization FARC from the U.S. list of
foreign terrorist organizations. Columbia-based FARC has committed
innumerable murders, assassinations, bombings, kidnappings and more
over decades to pursue socialist ends.
“President
Biden’s decision to remove the FARC from the State Department’s list
of Foreign Terrorist Organizations will embolden terrorist groups
throughout Latin America, empower narco-traffickers and pave the way
for Castro-chavismo in Colombia,” Governor DeSantis said.
“Biden’s
policy is an insult to members of the Colombian American community,
many of whom fled that terrorist group’s barbaric attacks on
civilians,” he said. “This is a serious mistake by the Biden
administration and will hurt Floridians. With this mind, my office
will ascertain what policy measures our state can take to protect our
residents from a resurgent FARC and other terrorist Marxist
groups.”
Read more: https://www.flgov.com/2021/11/24/governor-ron-desantis-responds-to-president-bidens-reckless-decision-to-remove-farc-from-the-list-of-foreign-terrorist-organizations/
And
here: https://spacecoastdaily.com/2021/11/gov-ron-desantis-responds-to-bidens-decision-to-remove-farc-from-list-of-foreign-terrorist-organizations/
Florida
Governor DeSantis Proposes Gas Tax
Relief to Save Floridians More than $1
Billion
Governor
DeSantis is proposing more than $1 billion in gas tax relief for
Floridians in the upcoming legislative session. This gas tax holiday
will save up to $200 for the average Florida family.
“Gas prices
have been rising due to inflationary pressures from bad federal
policies, so we here in Florida need to step up and provide relief to
our citizens,” Governor DeSantis said. “Today, I am proposing that
during session, the Florida Legislature provide more than $1 billion
in gas tax relief for Florida families. This will have a positive
impact on millions of Floridians.”
The
Governor made the announcement at stops at Buc-ee’s in Daytona Beach
and at Daily’s in Jacksonville and was joined by leaders in the gas
and transportation industry.
“This gas
tax relief is going to make it right back to the customer and it will
happen instantly as soon as the legislature gets it done and we are
happy to be a part of it,” said Arch H. “Beaver” Applin III, President
of Buc-ee’s. “This is a very business friendly state and this is
probably one of our favorite places we have done business
in.”
“Governor
DeSantis is spot on. It’s tough right now. Keeping up with costs,
costs are rising every single day and this is an incredible way to
give back to everyday Floridians,” said Aubrey Edge, President and CEO
of First Coast Energy. “The Governor has protected our personal
freedoms, looked after the economic interests of every Floridian and
made it great to have a business here in Florida.”
“Wawa is
supportive of the Governor’s leadership and this action to provide
relief for consumers at the pump,” said Chris Gheysens, President
& CEO of Wawa, Inc. “Given recent cost increases and supply chain
challenges, this initiative will have a positive impact on Florida
families.”
Read more here: https://www.flgov.com/2021/11/22/governor-ron-desantis-proposes-gas-tax-relief-to-save-floridians-more-than-1-billion/
Florida tourism is setting
records
Florida’s
visitation from July to September 2021 exceeded 2019’s pre-pandemic
visitation over the same period. Governor DeSantis made the
announcement based on Visit Florida’s estimates that show 32.5 million
travelers to Florida in the third quarter of 2021.
While
tourism in other states was completely paused, Florida was the only
state marketing outside its borders for seven months, seeing steady
growth in visitor volume each quarter. As a result, Florida is driving
the recovery of the U.S. travel industry and has cultivated a
strategic advantage that will continue to attract visitors in the
future.
“In 2020,
the experts thought Florida’s economy would be among the most impacted
in the nation because of how important tourism is to our state;
instead, we are setting the pace for job creation and visitation in
the U.S.,” Governor DeSantis said. “We have been able to set these
records because in Florida we kept businesses open and made sure
Floridians could keep working. In just fifteen months, Florida’s
visitation numbers have surpassed past pre-pandemic levels, helping
drive revenue, job growth, and economic activity to all 67 counties in
our state.”
Read more here: https://www.flgov.com/2021/11/23/governor-desantis-announces-florida-visitation-tops-pre-pandemic-levels/
Senator Marco Rubio
Val Demings Voted to Grant Amnesty to 6.5
Million Illegal Immigrants
Senator
Marco Rubio’s Democrat opponent Val Demings supported amnesty for 6.5
million illegal immigrants when she voted for Joe Biden’s radical
Build Back Better socialist agenda, according to the CBO’s report of
the House Democrats’ bill.
“The
proposal would be the largest-ever amnesty,” the Washington Examiner
reported. Demings has repeatedly voted for Democrats’ radical illegal
immigration agenda, supporting illegal immigrants voting, sanctuary
cities, and a pathway to citizenship for gang members and sexual
abusers while she opposes the border wall and resources for border
agencies.
“Val
Demings never tires of aiding illegal immigrants over Florida
families. Demings’ vote for the Build Back Socialist agenda affirms
her commitment to opening our borders and weakening our national
security,” said Elizabeth Gregory, communications director for Marco
Rubio for Senate.
Demings Still Tight-Lipped on Biden’s
FARC Decision One Week Later
While
Governor DeSantis and Senator Rubio have taken strong positions, Val
Demings remains silent on the Biden Administration’s disastrous
decision to remove the FARC mercenaries from the State Department’s
list of foreign terrorist organizations.
Colombian-Americans in Florida are well aware of the
FARC’s decade-long terror campaign, and they’re watching as other
elected officials — including numerous Florida Democrats — publicly
oppose the decision while Demings remains silent.
It appears
that Demings' silence on such a painful issue for so many
Colombian-Americans in Florida is because she supports Biden’s
decision. Demings is always going to side with far-left Democrats in
Washington over the interests of Floridians. She is just wrong for
Florida.
Attorney General Ashley
Moody
AG Moody launches ‘Be A Florida Hero’
recruiting website
Attorney
General Ashley Moody has launched a new law enforcement recruiting
initiative encouraging job seekers from across the country to “Be a
Florida Hero.”
The goal is
to attract new recruits into law enforcement careers in Florida using
a website that collects law enforcement career opportunities across
Florida into a first-of-its-kind, one-stop shop for law enforcement
job seekers.
The
National Police Foundation reported that a majority of police
departments nationwide experienced staffing shortages in 2020. These
largely came from budget cuts, low morale among officers and
increasing retirement rates. Moody said fewer officers on patrol leads
to a less safe populace and an environment ripe for crime.
“Florida is
the most pro-law enforcement state in the nation. We want officers
from areas that don’t value their service to know that here in the
Sunshine State, we back our blue,” Attorney General Moody
said.
See the “Be
A Florida Hero” site here: https://beafloridahero.com/index.html
Read more here: https://www.news4jax.com/news/florida/2021/10/14/florida-launches-nationwide-law-enforcement-recruitment-initiative-with-new-website/
Tweets
https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1465843064971444232
https://twitter.com/AshleyMoodyFL/status/1461719762346590208
https://twitter.com/JimmyPatronis/status/1465752614491066371
https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1465369454414647297
https://twitter.com/FloridaGOP/status/1463537776117309457
https://twitter.com/teamrondesantis/status/1465319770069340172
https://twitter.com/TeamMarco/status/1465721534488719367?s=20
REMEMBER: @FloridaGOP and retweet and
share. The Republican message must be spread around the state, and you
are integral to making that happen.
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