In a near-unanimous vote, the Florida House gave final approval Friday to a bill tightening restrictions against state employees’ participation in political campaigning.
The bill, HB 1445, is narrower than what the Florida House first proposed. The lower chamber wanted to bar state employees from soliciting contributions for political parties, committees, or candidates during working hours.
The Senate changed that language, replacing it to prohibit contribution solicitations that are coercive, explicitly stating that state employees suggesting someone make a political donation is OK under the bill.
The language lawmakers agreed upon also stops state employees from participating in any political campaign, not just those for elective offices, when they’re supposed to be working.
Throughout the legislative session, the involvement by state officials in Gov. Ron DeSantis’ political campaign against last year’s failed ballot initiatives to legalize recreational marijuana and restore abortion access prompted legal challenges came under scrutiny.
The move to restrict politicking from state employees came after NBC News first reported that state employees in the governor’s office called lobbyists to request donations for a political committee aligned with DeSantis as he and First Lady Casey DeSantis hinted that she was considering a run for governor.
Although the proposal from Republicans Rep. Debbie Mayfield of Melbourne and Sen. Erin Grall of Vero Beach is on its way to the governor’s desk, DeSantis has already said he would veto it.
“They’re pulling it out of their rear ends and trying to jam it through this process. Over my veto pen,” DeSantis said of the proposal during an April 15 press conference in Pensacola.
DeSantis’ main criticism of the bill at the time involved a provision requiring agency heads to live in Tallahassee, which the governor referred to as a “swamp.” However, the final version cuts off reimbursement for agency heads to travel to Tallahassee. For example, state Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo lives in Pinellas County.
Final passage of HB 1445 came well into the evening of the 60th day of the legislative session and with little debate. Mayfield reminded the chamber that the sole vote against the bill when the chamber first passed it on April 16 came from Delray Beach Republican Rep. Michael Caruso, a staunch DeSantis ally.
Caruso was also the sole vote against the bill on Friday.
Two provisions that remained intact in the compromise between the House and Senate require people appointed to universities’ boards of trustees and the board that oversees Florida’s public higher education institutions to live in the state or have graduated from the specific school they serve, or from any state university for the statewide board.
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
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