NEWS ALERT!

Sen. Rick Scott is Fighting to Preserve the American Dream; Biden’s Inflation and Supply Chain Crises are Hurting Families and Businesses

Under the Biden administration, inflation has grown every month. Washington’s wasteful spending has skyrocketed the federal debt to nearly $30 trillion – an unimaginable $233,000 in debt for every American family. The Democrats’ wasteful tax-and-spending spree is causing raging inflation and skyrocketing prices on every day goods, hurting families and businesses in Florida and across the nation.

Senator Rick Scott has been clear that the Biden administration needs to take responsibility for its reckless spending and develop a plan to curb the devastating impacts of rising inflation on American families. That’s why Senator Scott has introduced the Supply Chain Emergency Response Act, the Federal Debt Emergency Control Act and the Full Faith and Credit Act to rein in Washington’s out-of-control spending and tackle our nation’s debt.

Since being elected to the U.S. Senate, Senator Scott has repeatedly urged action to address America’s debt crisis. He will continue to fight against reckless spending and socialist policies that are fueling the raging inflation crisis and hurting American families — especially poor families like his growing up.

Read more on Senator Scott’s efforts to protect hardworking American families below.

Sen. Rick Scott Hosts Roundtable With Local Business Leaders on Biden’s Supply Chain Crisis

Senator Rick Scott joined business leaders at the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce to discuss the devastating impacts of the Biden administration’s raging supply chain and inflation crises on Florida families and job creators.

Senator Rick Scott said, “Since he took office, President Biden has pushed a socialist agenda that is killing opportunity for families and businesses across the nation. I’ve been hearing about the devastating impacts of Joe Biden’s inflation and supply chain crises for months, and I heard it again from business leaders in Naples today. America is seeing inflation at a 40 year high, but Biden has done NOTHING to stop these out-of-control prices, or fix the supply chain crisis that’s making this problem even worse. Biden’s failures are forcing hardworking Floridians, like the mom from Southwest Florida I spoke with recently, to rely on food banks just to feed their families. What’s worse is that every time I and my Republican colleagues in the Senate put forward a commonsense way to fix these issues, Democrats stand in the way and block them. Restoring our supply chains is critical to getting the American economy rolling again, and I won’t stop fighting for Florida families and to put an end to this crisis.”

Read more HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott on PPI Inflation Report: Joe Biden Continues to Fail the American People

Following the release of December’s staggering Producer (PPI) and Consumer Price (CPI) Indexes, Senator Rick Scott released an update on his actions to fight Joe Biden’s raging inflation and debt crises. PPI and CPI data showed inflation continued to rise in December increasing 9.7% and 7.0% respectively over the year. Senator Scott has been adamant about the need to implement substantive fiscal reforms to end the ongoing inflation crisis fueled by the Biden administration’s socialist tax-and-spend agenda. December’s data shows that there has been a significant increase in inflation every month of Biden’s presidency, resulting in the highest inflation increases in 40 years. Following the damming CPI report, Senator Scott released the following quote:

Senator Rick Scott said, “Joe Biden’s presidency has been nothing but non-stop failure. Since Biden took office, Americans have been hit with the highest inflation increases in decades, yet the president has done NOTHING to stop skyrocketing prices. Instead of taking care of the issues that are hurting hardworking families, Biden and his Democrat underlings in Congress are 100% focused on their radical plan to federalize elections. It’s shameful just how far Joe Biden will go to put the Democrats’ political power grab over the needs of the American people.

“I recently heard from a woman in Florida who helps operate a food pantry. It used to be normal for her to serve about 15 families per day, but now she is seeing upwards of 70 families per day. The terrible thing about inflation is that as more folks are coming to her food pantry in need, it’s getting harder and harder to afford to help them. That’s the reality of Joe Biden’s inflation crisis and I am sick and tired of seeing this failed president do NOTHING to help. I came to Washington to make this place work for Florida families. The reckless spending must end. The socialist agenda must end. Democrats may have turned their backs on the American people, but I won’t stop fighting.”

Read more HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott: America’s Seniors are Paying the Price for Biden’s Inflation Crisis

Senator Rick Scott released the below statement slamming Biden’s inaction to address the inflation crisis he and Washington Democrats have created with reckless spending and socialist policies, which is expected to cause significant price increases on seniors citizens and Medicare recipients. According to a report from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Medicare Part B premiums and deductibles will both increase by 15% and Medicare Part A deductibles will increase by 5% in 2022, leaving seniors paying hundreds more for the health care and benefits they desperately need.

Senator Rick Scott said, “Here’s my question for Joe Biden and Democrats: who is your reckless spending and socialist agenda helping? It’s clearly not families on fixed incomes, like mine growing up, struggling to keep up with inflation and put food on the table with higher and higher costs. It’s definitely not our businesses facing higher costs and a supply chain crisis fueled by Biden’s failed policies and unconstitutional vaccine mandates. And it’s obviously NOT our seniors depending on Medicare who will be left paying HUNDREDS more for the care they need. We need to be LOWERING health care and drug prices and strengthening this vital program for seniors and future generations, not crippling the system and leaving families to pay the cost. It’s now clearer than ever that Democrats don’t care who pays the price for their liberal wish list, they have their blinders on, following Bernie Sanders’ socialist lead on an all-or-nothing multi trillion dollar tax-and-spending spree. I came to Washington to FIGHT for our seniors. We cannot allow this to move forward.”

Read more HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott to America’s Supply Chain Leaders: Let’s Work Together to Get America Back on Track

Senator Rick Scott sent a letter to America’s supply chain leaders thanking them for their hard work to keep the American economy running during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In his letter, Senator Scott highlights his concerns with the Biden administration’s disastrous policies and socialist agenda which has imposed unconstitutional vaccine mandates and created labor shortages, causing a massive supply chain crisis and further fueling inflation that’s hurting America’s poorest families. Senator Scott is requesting input from these leaders on the challenges they’re facing and what solutions can be implemented to help families across America get what they need.

Read more HERE, HERE and HERE.

Democrats Want Americans in the Dark, Block Sen. Rick Scott Transparency Proposal to Address Rising Energy Prices

As energy prices across America surge higher, Senator Rick Scott spoke on the Senate floor to request unanimous consent on his Give Americans Stability at Pumps as Rising Inflation Causes Emergencies (GAS PRICE) Act. This simple legislation, cosponsored by Senators Roger Marshall, Cynthia Lummis, Shelley Moore Capito, Ron Johnson, Jerry Moran and Marsha Blackburn, would direct the Energy Information Administration (EIA) to report to Congress any policy or rule set by the Biden administration which raises energy costs for American families. Senate Democrats blocked its passage.

Reports from the EIA have shown that prices on energy, like gasoline, have increased 55% in just one year, and it is predicted that this winter, home heating prices are going to rise by more than 40% for homes that use heating oil, more than 30% for homes using natural gas, and 54% for homes using propane.

Senator Rick Scott said, “Just this week, the South Florida Sun Sentinel ran a story with the headline, ‘Gas Prices hit their highest level since 2014. When will we get a break?’ As gas prices keep rising, the message from Florida couldn’t be more clear. But this is about more than just headlines. There skyrocketing prices are hurting real families who are living paycheck to paycheck, and struggling to keep up. I grew up poor. When my parents’ bills went up, it made it more difficult on my family. When gas prices went up, it meant we had less food to put on the table.

“The only person to blame for what we are seeing across this country is Joe Biden. He’s done everything in his power to destroy America’s energy independence. In his first month in office, he cut the Keystone Pipeline permit and killed thousands of American jobs. Then he suspended new oil and gas leasing and drilling permits for federal lands. Of course, Joe Biden only knows how to blame everyone but himself. Since the Biden administration has shown ZERO interest in fixing this urgent problem, I introduced a simple bill today that just made it so Congress would be informed when a new policy or rule causes energy costs for American families to go up. Of course, Democrats blocked it. Joe Biden’s lieutenants in the Senate will do anything to cover up the disastrous impacts of his failed energy agenda and today was just further proof of that fact. It’s shameful but I won’t stop fighting against the Democrats’ radical socialist agenda that is driving up prices and hurting American families more every day.”

Watch Senator Scott’s floor speech HERE

Sen. Rick Scott: Biden’s Inflation Crisis Demands Action

Senator Rick Scott led his colleagues in a press conference demanding President Biden take immediate action to address the inflation crisis his tax-and-spend agenda has created, which is hurting working American families.

As the Biden administration continues to mislead the American public about how Washington’s reckless spending is leading to the rising prices of every day goods, Senator Scott has been calling on the president to take responsibility for his wasteful spending proposals and release a plan to curb the impacts of rising inflation on American families. See more HERE.

Watch Senator Scott’s remarks HERE or below. Watch the full press conference HERE.

Video
Senator Rick Scott said, “For years, I’ve been warning about the impact Washington’s reckless spending will have on American families – including the threat of inflation. Now, as the Biden administration lays out plans for $7.1 trillion in new spending after taking office, inflation is here. 83% of Americans are already tightening their budget due to inflation pressures. For a growing number of American families who are struggling to make ends meet, the Biden administration’s policies mean the price is wrong. Meanwhile, President Biden is totally silent about his inflation crisis. Our debt is out of control and now we’re seeing the consequences. Biden needs to show up and address his binge spending before even more families get hurt.”

Read more HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott Announces Supply Chain Emergency Response Act to Help Alleviate Shipping Bottlenecks

Senator Rick Scott announced his bicameral Supply Chain Emergency Response Act to help alleviate the impacts of President Joe Biden’s disastrous supply chain crisis that is affecting families and small businesses across America. Congressman Carlos Giménez introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives. The Supply Chain Emergency Response Act is endorsed by Heritage Action for America.

Last week, Senator Rick Scott wrote to leaders of the port, trucking and retail industries requesting input on the supply chain challenges they’re facing and what solutions can be implemented to help families across America get what they need.

Senator Rick Scott said, “As empty shelves grow more and more common, prices are surging higher and small businesses can’t access the goods they need to serve their customers. Joe Biden’s supply chain and inflation crises are devastating for so many Americans, but it’s our poorest families, those on low and fixed-incomes like mine growing up, that are hurt the most. Yet, Biden does nothing to help. Unlike the Biden administration, I’m not going to just sit around and play TV commentator. Today, I am proud to partner with my friend and colleague Congressman Giménez in introducing the Supply Chain Emergency Response Act to get products flowing to American families and businesses again. We need to make Washington work for Florida families. Fortunately, Florida’s ports are ready and able to help with this crisis and I hope all of my colleagues work with us to quickly pass this good and urgently needed bill.”

The Supply Chain Emergency Response Act would:

Redirect $125 million of unspent, unobligated funding from the CARES Act to help facilitate the move of cargo vessels currently holding along the West Coast across the Panama Canal and dock in the East.
Allow state governors to use unspent, unobligated CARES Act funding to help offset port fees and other related state-level expenses.
Prohibits any individual who is a member of the Chinese Communist Party or any company owned, in whole or in part, by the Chinese Communist Party from being eligible for the provisions under this act.
Read more HERE.

Senators Rick Scott & Pat Toomey Lead Colleagues in Reintroducing Full Faith and Credit Act to Address Federal Debt Crisis

Senator Rick Scott and Senator Pat Toomey were joined by Senators Thom Tillis, Ron Johnson, Mike Braun, Bill Hagerty, Ted Cruz, Kevin Cramer, Shelley Moore Capito, Marco Rubio, John Barrasso and John Hoeven in reintroducing the Full Faith and Credit Act to ensure the federal government prioritizes funding for our military, veterans and seniors should the federal debt ceiling be reached with no action from Democrats to raise or suspend it. Senator Scott has been demanding that Congress take action to address America’s nearly $30 trillion federal debt and get the reckless spending which fuels it under control. Senator Scott continues to urge his colleagues to refuse to increase the debt ceiling without also enacting true spending reform.

Senator Rick Scott said, “Washington’s reckless spending is completely out of control. The United States is nearing $30 trillion in debt and Democrats are pushing a radical, socialist tax-and-spending agenda that will push us to an unimaginable $45 trillion. Too many in Washington have accepted deficit spending, blank checks, tax hikes and skyrocketing inflation as the status quo. We need to be clear: there will be a day of reckoning for this and unfortunately American families will pay the price. It’s time for Congress to take significant action to put our nation back on a path of economic success. I did it in Florida and we can do it in Washington.

“Our bill, the Full Faith and Credit Act, would require the U.S. government to fulfill critical payments to the debt to avoid default and full fiscal calamity if Democrats refuse to take accountability for their wasteful spending and address the debt ceiling. It also ensures Americans depending on Social Security, Medicare, veteran benefits, as well as our service members, are not punished for Washington’s dysfunction. I want to thank my friend and colleague, Senator Pat Toomey, for previously introducing this bill and allowing me the opportunity to lead this effort with him at this critical moment. It’s time for Washington to start living within its means, just like every family and business across the nation does, and preserve the American dream—this bill is a great start.”

Read more HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott Introduces Federal Debt Emergency Control Act to Fight Washington’s Spending & Debt Crisis

Senator Rick Scott led his colleagues in introducing the Federal Debt Emergency Control Act to rein in Washington’s out-of-control spending and provide a concrete path forward to tackle the nation’s nearly $30 trillion debt. The Federal Debt Emergency Control Act is endorsed by the National Taxpayers Union, the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste, Americans for Tax Reform, Americans for Prosperity, FreedomWorks, and Club for Growth.

The Federal Debt Emergency Control Act:

Requires the Office of Management and Budget to declare a “Federal Debt Emergency” in any fiscal year where the federal debt exceeds 100% of that year’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
This emergency designation would trigger several provisions to help control and reduce the federal debt to levels below 100% of GDP, including:
Terminating any unobligated funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, and any previous stimulus bills, and sending it back to the Treasury General Fund immediately for deficit reduction.
Requiring all legislation that increases the federal deficit, as determined by the Congressional Budget Office, to carry its own offsets. If it does not, the legislation shall be considered out of order and will require at least two-thirds of all Senators to vote to increase federal debt before even being able to consider the bill.
Fast-tracking any legislation that would reduce the federal deficit by at least 5 percent over ten years.
Senator Rick Scott said, “America is in a debt crisis. Our nation is barreling toward $30 trillion in debt – an unimaginable $233,000 in debt for every family in America. It’s a crisis caused by decades of wasteful and reckless spending by Washington politicians. Now, President Biden is continuing this way of governing by pushing for trillions in wasteful spending, raising the U.S. federal debt by 60% to $39 trillion and the debt-to-GDP ratio to 117% in 2030, the highest level ever recorded in American history. Spending beyond our means has consequences. We’re already seeing rising inflation, which disproportionately hurts the poorest families, like mine growing up.

“That’s why I am leading my colleagues in introducing the Federal Debt Emergency Control Act to rein in Washington’s out of control spending. This includes preventing Washington politicians from mindlessly spending by requiring that two-thirds of the Senate vote to increase the debt before approving any bill. I look forward to every fiscally responsible Republican and Democrat working with me to quickly pass the Federal Debt Emergency Control Act.”

Watch Senator Scott introduce the Federal debt Emergency Control Act on the Senate floor HERE or below.

Read more HERE.

Southwest Florida Business Owners Discuss Supply Chain Issues with Sen. Rick Scott

Senator Rick Scott met with business leaders at the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday to discuss the devastating impacts of the Biden administration’s raging supply chain and inflation crises on Florida families and job creators.

“One Florida lawmaker says he understands you being upset and concerned with prices rising. Supply chain issues make it more challenging to get the things we need. So Southwest Florida business owners met with Senator Rick Scott and talked about their frustrations.

Sen. Scott promised business owners that he would do everything in his power to help them, including working with federal agencies to reduce regulations and work through issues with the department of transportation.
…

Ships aren’t getting to ports fast enough, and trucks aren’t getting their products out on time. Ryan Carter is well aware of this. Carter is the president of trucking company Scotlyn USA, based in Lee County.

‘In the past, it would take maybe a day or two days to get a truck fixed. It can take a week or up to 6 to 8 weeks to get our truck fixed,’ Carter said.
…

Jennifer Whyte owns Fort Myers Brewing Company, and she says she’s seen these effects as she tries to continue running her business. ‘From everything from the small things like plastic cups to things that we use all the time like aluminum cans,’ Whyte said. ‘An aluminum can has tripled essentially in cost.’
…

Sen. Rick Scott listened to their concerns. But he also had something to say. ‘I think the big thing it’s really frustrating the Biden administration just doesn’t react, I mean. One thing you have to do as a government is you have to say, ‘here’s our problem, let’s go solve the problem,’ Sen. Scott said.

Read the full article on WINK HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott in National Review: In Biden’s Sticky Inflation Crisis, Poor Families Suffer the Most

Senator Rick Scott wrote an op-ed for the National Review discussing the burden of President Biden’s sticky inflation crisis on American families. As inflation jumps to its highest rate in more than 30 years, Senator Scott details how President Biden’s reckless spending, socialist agenda and policies that turn people away from the workforce are creating a lasting inflation crisis that is devastating for working Americans, especially low and fixed-income families like his growing up.

In the op-ed, Senator Rick Scott wrote, “Here’s what’s clear: Biden’s inflation crisis isn’t transitory. It’s sticky. Trends don’t lie. With inflation surging higher every month of Biden’s presidency, we can’t allow the president and his economic advisers to continue ignoring the obvious.

Sticky inflation is dangerous because it has the ability to completely upend the American economy. It has a domino effect. Think about it like this. Frivolous government spending causes prices to go up. Then income doesn’t go as far as it once did. When income stops being enough to afford rent, groceries, and other necessities, you have to ask your employer for a raise. When everyone requests higher wages, companies are forced to raise prices. It’s a cycle. Prices go up. Costs go up. Wages go up. Prices go back up and the cycle restarts.

What I’m describing here is a downward spiral that hurts families and businesses and kills our economy. The buying power of American families, such as that family from Wauchula, is devastated. We know that, even if wages increase, they won’t do so at the same rate as inflation, so the dollar is doing less and less. And it all starts with reckless government spending and burdensome regulations.
…

Of course, instead of tackling the problem head-on, Biden continues to act like everything is just fine. Even as American families begin to see more and more empty shelves, Biden and his administration do nothing.
…

If we’re going to find a way out of this problem, America is going to have to change course.

No more unconstitutional vaccine mandates that exempt Congress but punish private business. No more reckless government spending to fuel Biden’s inflation fire. Let’s take our debt seriously. Let’s stop raising taxes and start being responsible with our budget. Let’s get rid of government waste and cut the regulations that are causing bottlenecks in our supply chains. And let’s end the campaign against energy independence.

We can get out of this mess. But President Biden has to actually start caring about the economy.”

Read the full op-ed in the National Review HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott and Rep. Carlos Gimenez in Miami Herald: We have a Solution to the Supply-Chain Crisis, Which Biden Administration is Ignoring

Senator Rick Scott and Congressman Carlos Gimenez wrote an op-ed for the Miami Herald highlighting their solution to President Biden’s growing supply-chain crisis, the Supply Chain Emergency Response Act. Their bill will redirect $125 million of unspent CARES Act funds to subsidize the cost for cargo vessels stuck on the West Coast of the U.S. and reroute to the East Coast where ports, especially those in Florida, are open for business.

In the op-ed, Senator Rick Scott and Congressman Carlos Gimenez wrote, “It is a grave failure of the Biden administration that our store shelves are empty, and that Americans cannot find basic goods and products. These supply-chain issues have been festering for months, and rather than the Biden administration taking meaningful action to fix them, it, instead, has doubled-down on the premise that everything is OK.

That is why we came together to introduce the Supply Chain Emergency Response Act, a commonsense solution to get Washington working for Florida’s families.

Our legislation redirects $125 million of unspent, unobligated CARES Act funds to facilitate cargo vessels currently on hold along the West Coast to cross the Panama Canal and dock in the East.
…

Getting these cargo vessels to Florida and other Eastern states also alleviates the shipping-container shortage, which has made it difficult for American producers to ship their goods and products abroad. Despite what the Biden administration wants to say, empty shelves grow more common, prices are surging higher and small businesses can’t access the goods they need to serve their customers. President Biden’s supply chain and inflation crises are devastating for so many Americans, but it’s our poorest families, those on low and fixed incomes like ours growing up, that are hurt the most.
…

Fortunately, Florida’s ports are ready and able to help with this crisis, and it is our hope that all of our colleagues work with us to quickly pass this good and urgently needed bill to provide a commonsense solution to this supply chain crisis.”

Read the full op-ed in the Miami Herald HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott in the Financial Times: Biden Should Turn to the Florida Playbook

Senator Rick Scott wrote a letter to the editor of the Financial Times in response to a recent editorial on how Democrats should accept a “lighter” version of Biden and Democrats’ multi-trillion dollar tax-and-spend spree that pushes a massive expansion of government through deficit spending. In his letter, Senator Scott argues that if Democrats actually care about doing what’s best for Americans, they’d follow Florida’s playbook: Cut taxes, get Americans back to work and stop their insane socialist policies and deficit spending.

In the letter, Senator Rick Scott wrote, “There’s a popular saying that’s especially true in Washington: garbage in, garbage out. It’s a perfect fit for President Joe Biden’s “Build Back Better” package.

…

“While every president has the right to push their own agenda, Biden has shown that to fulfil his liberal wishlist, he is willing to bury our nation in a debt so massive that we will never be able to pay it off.
…

“Too many American families, especially poor families like mine growing up, are suffering from rising costs due to inflation. We don’t need a lighter bill. We need a hard reset.

Biden and his Democrat pals in Congress should take the proven playbook we used in Florida when I was governor. Cut taxes, get Americans back to work, stop with the insane mandates on families and businesses and boost the economy so we can pay down the debt and fund our priorities without increasing deficits.”

Read the full letter to the editor in the Financial Times HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott: How to stop Dems’ spending, debt mismanagement from destroying our financial security

In case you missed it, Senator Rick Scott wrote an op-ed for FOX Business on how the Federal Debt Emergency Control Act and the Full Faith and Credit Act will hold Congress accountable for their spending and restore the financial future of America.

In the op-ed Senator Rick Scott wrote, “These are the types of reforms our country needs to reverse course, rebuild its accountability to the American people and secure a stronger and more certain tomorrow for our children and grandchildren. It can be done. I know because I led similar efforts to restore financial stability to my state when I was Governor of Florida. Over eight years, we paid down a third of the state debt, cut taxes 100 times, slashed 5,000 burdensome regulations and saw Florida business boom creating more than 1.7 million new jobs. The Democrats said the sky was falling. It wasn’t. Our playbook worked in Florida and it will work across the nation.”

Read the full op-ed in FOX Business HERE.

Sen. Rick Scott in Tampa Bay Times: Here’s how I’d rein in Washington’s reckless spending

In case you missed it, Senator Rick Scott wrote an op-ed for the Tampa Bay Times on how his bill, the Federal Debt Emergency Control Act, will help rein in Washington’s out-of-control spending and provide a concrete path forward to tackle the nation’s unsustainable, nearly $30 trillion debt.

In the op-ed, Senator Rick Scott wrote, “Congress can’t keep maxing out America’s credit card with no way to pay it off. It’s time for Washington’s binge-spending to end. It’s time to bring the same accountability to our nation’s capital that families and businesses across Florida show every day. Washington needs a wakeup call and I’ve introduced the Federal Debt Emergency Control Act to start ringing the bell.

…

America is barreling toward $30 trillion in debt. That’s equal to $233,000 in debt for every American family — a debt crisis caused by decades of wasteful and reckless spending. Now, President Joe Biden is continuing this way of governing by pushing for trillions in wasteful spending, raising the U.S. federal debt by 60% to $39 trillion and the debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio to 117% in 2030. Biden’s budget takes the United States to its highest sustained levels of federal spending since World War II. That’s insane, and there’s no way to pay for it.

Spending beyond our means has consequences. We’re already seeing rising inflation, which devastates our poorest families, like mine growing up. When inflation happened, I saw how hard it was for my parents to make ends meet. When inflation hit and food prices went up, we put less food on the table. No family should have to go through that.

…

My Federal Debt Emergency Control Act aims to rein in Washington’s out of control spending with concrete checks and balances that bring down the debt and help stop the reckless spending that causes inflation and kills opportunity for families across our state.

The Federal Debt Emergency Control Act would require the declaration of a Federal Debt Emergency anytime the debt exceeds 100% of GDP. Declaring a Federal Debt Emergency would initiate common sense debt reduction measures, including forcing two-thirds of the Senate and House to vote to increase the debt before approving any bill with deficit spending. We can’t let politicians spend without consequence.

…

If we don’t get spending under control, it’s our children and grandchildren that will suffer most as opportunity fades. Now is the time to act. I urge every Floridian to join me in demanding change that secures a prosperous and strong future for our nation.”

Read the full op-ed in the Tampa Bay Times HERE.

The Melo Minute

January, 28st 2022
Regular Session – Week 3
Issue No. 48
Bill of the Week!
HB 411 – Safe Harbor

Team Melo is happy to announce the return of our “Bill of the Week” segment! This week we want to highlight and provide an exciting update to House Bill 411. This bill ensures that materials, such as PPE, training, and potentially even private loans, provided by a business owner to subcontractors during a declared emergency would not alter their employment status. The bill creates a “safe harbor” for business owners from legal claims arising from their good faith actions. For example, if a business provided independent contractors with hand sanitizer or masks, it may be at risk of having those contractors become direct employees under Florida law. This gives those independent contractors the opportunity to sue Florida businesses based upon the masks and hand sanitizer. HB 411 will prevent such a suit and would allow those business owners to continue doing good deeds for those who contract with them. On Wednesday, HB 411 made its final stop in the Judiciary Committee, passing unanimously 20-0, and will soon find its way to the House Floor! I am looking forward to making sure that “good deeds do go unpunished” here in the State of Florida!

Legislative Highlights

Lifting Off

The Honor Flight Network is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization servicing “Korean War, Vietnam War, intermediary operations, and in special cases of terminal illness or injury, veterans from more recent service eras.” Veterans are treated to a trip to and from Washington, visiting the memorial from that veteran’s service. To learn more about the Honor Flights program, click here.

Be More Do More!

My District 80 staff is always available to meet with our constituents and listen to your concerns. Please feel free to call or visit our offices listed above to speak with me or a member of Team Melo and let us know how we may best assist you! #BeMoreDoMore

What We’re Reading

Legislation to Discount Property Tax Bills for Essential Workers Advances

Anne Geggis
Florida Politics

Florida House Redistricting Committee Sends New Statehouse Map to the Floor

Jacob Ogles
Florida Politics

This Week’s Words Of Wisdom

The Song Of The Week

This week’s Song of the Week is
“Taking Care of Business” by Bachman-Turner Overdrive.

I passed 3 bills through committee this week! One of those bills, HB 411 – Safe Harbor, made its final stop in the Judiciary Committee and is on its way to the House Floor. We are definitely “taking care of business!”

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Representative Lauren Melo
Florida House District 80

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Florida House District 80 | 3299 Tamiami Trail East, Naples, FL 34112

Subject: BREAKING NEWS

Governor DeSantis Press Release on Regeneron

Chairman’s Message “Freedom Works” “We have made Florida the freest state in these United States.” Governor DeSantis delivered a rousing State of the State speech Tuesday to launch the 2022 Legislative session in Tallahassee, noting Florida’s stand-out successes this past year and reaffirming his priorities for year ahead. Here’s a summary look at the Governor’s address. Freedom Governor DeSantis fully embraces President Reagan’s adage that “Freedom is a fragile thing and it’s never more than one generation away from extinction,” and has made Florida a beacon of freedom in the nation. He said: “While so many around the country have consigned the people’s rights to the graveyard, Florida has stood as freedom’s vanguard. In Florida, we have protected the right of our citizens to earn a living, provided our businesses with the ability to prosper, fought back against unconstitutional federal mandates and ensured our kids have the opportunity to thrive.” Fiscal Responsibility At a time when the federal government has been spending money we don’t have at obscene levels, burdening our children with crushing debt for no discernable reason, Governor DeSantis is proposing a $99.7 billion budget that loads fully $15 billion into reserves while still increasing funding in key areas such as education, the environment and law enforcement. “Florida’s revenues have exceeded estimates by billions of dollars over the past year. December’s revenues came in at more than $500 million over the latest monthly estimate. And this is all being done with no income tax and the lowest per capita tax burden in America.” A Powerful Economy A strong economy impacts everyone’s quality of life and Florida is the envy of the nation in this regard. Much of this success is owed to Governor DeSantis’ strength and courage in maintaining Floridians’ freedoms in the face of authoritarian dictates. Everyone has benefitted. “Job creation in Florida is far exceeding the national average. And our labor force has increased six times faster than the nation’s. Florida also leads the nation in business formations, which have increased by 61% since I took office in 2019. In 2021, Florida saw 114,000 more new businesses than second place California — even though California has a population that is 40% larger.” Putting Kids First While other states shamelessly locked kids out of school and then masked them up if they ever let them return, all in a moral perversion to protect adults, Florida put children first and kept schools open and children breathing. Florida teachers met the challenge of the times and it shows in our students’ scores. And educators have been acknowledged with increased minimum salaries and bonuses, while the state also enacted the needed Parents Bill of Rights to ensure parents can make the best decisions for their children. “Education represents a major pillar of Florida’s future. I’m happy to note that Florida is again ranked number three for K-12 achievement in the latest Education Week Quality Counts rankings. We have worked hard to keep schools open, increase teacher compensation, promote workforce education and protect the rights of parents. In pockets across America, schools are closing once again. These closures are enormously destructive and will not be tolerated in the state of Florida. Florida has led the way in putting our kids first.” Environmental Protection Florida’s quality of life and economic security are inextricably linked to the good stewardship of our natural resources. Governor DeSantis has been a bold leader in this area, winning accolades from many environmental organizations. “We Floridians are heirs to a unique environment that makes our state the envy of the nation for fishing, boating and other outdoor activities. Three years ago, we promised bold action to safeguard Florida’s natural resources, improve water quality and restore the Everglades. With the support of the Legislature, especially Speaker Chris Sprowls and President Wilton Simpson, we have secured historic funding to support these efforts. Since January 2019, 42 Everglades restoration projects have broken ground, hit a major milestone or finished construction, record funding has gone to conduct research and secure technologies to mitigate blue-green algae and red tide, and the state now has dedicated streams of revenue to promote coastal resiliency and water quality improvements.” Honor Law Enforcement and Protect Communities While baffling and dangerous notions of defunding police, eliminating bail and freeing violent criminals early have taken tragic hold in some parts of the nation, Governor DeSantis has made it clear those won’t happen in Florida. “These soft-on-crime policies have been tried in communities throughout the country to disastrous results: crime has skyrocketed, morale for police officers has plummeted and quality of life has been destroyed. We have stood by the men and women of law enforcement. Not only do we reject defunding law enforcement — we enacted $1,000 bonuses for all police, fire and EMTs in Florida. I’m asking the Legislature to re-up these bonuses for another year. They deserve it.” Election Integrity Perhaps nothing is more essential to our republic than trustworthy, transparent elections. Florida already has some of the best election laws in the nation in protecting the sanctity of the vote, making it easy to vote and hard to cheat. But there is still more to be done to ensure that cheating is all but impossible. “Ballot harvesting has no place in Florida and we need to increase the penalties for those who do it. We also need to ensure that supervisors clean the voter rolls, that only citizens are registered to vote and that mail ballots only go to those who actually request them before each individual election. To ensure that elections are conducted in accordance with the rule of law, I have proposed an election integrity unit whose sole focus will be the enforcement of Florida’s election laws. This will facilitate the faithful enforcement of election laws and will provide Floridians with the confidence that their vote will count.” Read the entire speech here: ​​https://www.flgov.com/2022/01/11/governor-ron-desantis-state-of-the-state-address-3/ ​​ Florida Governor DeSantis announced nearly $17 million to the City of Bonita Springs in Lee County through the Rebuild Florida Mitigation General Infrastructure Program. The flood mitigation money will pay for critical improvements to 2.5 miles of stormwater infrastructure through the heart of the city, and will repair damage caused by Hurricane Irma. “Today we are excited to be able to make an impact in Bonita Springs,” Governor DeSantis said. “This award will help the city make key stormwater system improvements and is one of the many projects we have awarded utilizing long-term recovery funds to make meaningful infrastructure improvements. We are going to continue to support infrastructure that builds our resiliency.” Read more: https://www.flgov.com/2022/01/12/governor-ron-desantis-announces-nearly-17-million-for-stormwater-infrastructure-improvements-in-bonita-springs/ Governor DeSantis has secured an additional 15,000 doses of Regeneron for the people of Florida, which will be immediately utilized to support new monoclonal antibody sites. Unfortunately, this action was necessary because the Biden Administration federalized distribution of the lifesaving monoclonal antibody treatments based on political calculations. Actually, Democrats have continuously politicized Covid. The Department of Emergency Management had covid testing kits that went unused when the covid pandemic subsided, and has received three extensions on their expiration date. In the deceitful world of Nikki Fried, these were being “hidden.” But Florida was just waiting for the Biden administration, and as the nation well knows, they are slow in responding to every need. So last week, Governor DeSantis highlighted the importance of these lifesaving therapeutics and called on the Biden Administration to release its stranglehold on the supply of monoclonals and increase Florida’s supply by at least 30,000 doses per week. In response to this pressure, the federal government will be sending 30,000 more monoclonal antibody doses to Florida. Additionally, the Florida Division of Emergency Management sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services offering logistical support to receive the additional doses as quickly as possible, including picking them up and driving them to Florida. “But for the federal government’s decision to restrict supply of monoclonal antibody treatments to Florida, my administration would have already opened additional monoclonal antibody treatment sites throughout the state,” Governor DeSantis said. Read more: https://www.flgov.com/2022/01/07/governor-ron-desantis-secures-15000-doses-of-regeneron-for-floridians/   ​Attorney General Ashley Moody In 2020, Americans lost more than $520 million through robocall scams. Attorney General Ashley Moody is taking action by pressuring the Federal Communications Commission to put measures in place to stem the tide of foreign-based illegal robocalls attempting to scam Americans. Attorney General Moody, as part of a bipartisan group of attorneys general, sent a letter to insist the FCC require companies that allow foreign calls into the United States to take steps to reduce or block robocalls entering the U.S. telephone network. These necessary steps include implementing STIR/SHAKEN, a caller ID authentication technology that helps prevent spoofed calls. “Scammers often use robocalls in an effort to quickly engage millions of targets across the country,” Attorney General Moody said. “Robocalls using spoofed numbers are difficult to track and even harder to stop — especially when they originate from overseas. That is why I am calling on the FCC to work with telecommunications companies to put up barriers to reduce the number of foreign robocalls bombarding Americans’ telephones.” Read more:http://www.myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/newsreleases/6C239762654091F6852587C600691DB5   Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis is highlighting his Born Free legislative priorities for the 2022 legislations session. The CFO’s top priorities include $10 million in funding for Florida’s Urban Search & Rescue Task Forces, providing tax relief so Floridians can protect their homes and lower their insurance premiums, and continuing efforts to protect consumers. “Florida’s strength is based on a love of freedom. We’ve got over 800 people a day flocking to our state because we have worked hard in Tallahassee to protect freedoms; not squash them,” CFO Patronis said. “We’ve got blue lock-down states working hard to crush their economies, undermine law enforcement and fire firefighters over not taking the jab, while allowing big corporate businesses – with zero loyalty to our country – to treat Americans with complete indifference. We’ve also got an Administration on the federal level unlawfully using rules to try and turn the Sunshine State into a California or New York. We’re not having ANY of it.” Read more: https://www.myfloridacfo.com/sitePages/newsroom/pressRelease.aspx?id=6066 Read the priorities here: https://www.myfloridacfo.com/documents/Born-Free-Legislative-Priorities.pdf Tweets https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1481075960342622212 https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1481343635883020290 https://twitter.com/AGAshleyMoody/status/1481299587084296199 https://twitter.com/JimmyPatronis/status/1480952608802185225 https://twitter.com/FloridaGOP/status/1481356021985591297 https://twitter.com/teamrondesantis/status/1481011785629057024?s=20 https://twitter.com/TeamMarco/status/1481357312363220995 REMEMBER: @FloridaGOP and retweet and share. The Republican message must be spread around the state, and you are integral to making that happen. PAID FOR BY THE REPUBLICAN PARTY OF FLORIDA. NOT AUTHORIZED BY ANY CANDIDATE OR CANDIDATE’S COMMITTEE.WWW.FLORIDA.GOP