TALHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) – Signs of financial pressure from Washington, including potential cuts in Medicaid, SNAP and FEMA.
The state relies on federal dollars for nearly a third of its budget, and disruption from DC could have ripple effects at the state level. So the question is, are lawmakers doing enough to protect Floridians from the unexpected?
“I don’t believe in raising taxes. We agree to the opposite: cut taxes, cut expenditures, wasteful spending,” said House Speaker Danny Perez (R-Miami). “What we’re doing is that we’re in a position where God forbids us, we’re in a recession, we’re again in the 2000s. We have a budget stabilization fund that can backstop and protect Floridians from being in an uncomfortable position.”
Senate and House leaders say they are leaning towards the Budget Stabilization Fund, the state’s rainy day reserve, in the case of a recession, rising costs, or federal pullback.
“We do things to make Florida’s balance sheet more durable and challenging times, and when things get tougher, we put more money aside as a rainy day reserve.
But not everyone on the Capitol building agrees that leadership strategies have reached the right mark.
“When it’s already raining on people in Florida, we can’t talk about saving money for a rainy day,” said Rep. Fentris Driskel (D-Tampa).
House minority leader Driskell said funding should not be cut, and budgets should be expanded.
“It seems like there’s a lot of heat about this budget stabilization fund. There’s a lot of heat about saving money for a rainy day, but you can only do it after all other obligations have been met,” Driskel said.
“The question is, do you think you believe this budget is that Florida could come out of the dodge cuts or that it’s preparing changes coming out of Washington, D.C.
It is now the 102nd day of a 60-day session, and the budget chair is working for a week and is competing to finalize the spending plan.
