[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6104849,"mediaKeyId","2788706-c40ff7f5a95469b6b22997b51afdf761","parentId",2788706,"title","Appropriations Committee unveils budget highlights; reports several bills favorably","audioSeconds",4104,"startMs",46000,"endMs",4150000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2788706-c40ff7f5a95469b6b22997b51afdf761&start=46&end=4150","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2788706-c40ff7f5a95469b6b22997b51afdf761/thumbnail_46000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6104849/Florida/Appropriations-Committee-unveils-budget-highlights-reports-several-bills-favorably","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6104849-7d4b41fedbb2fc2ec021ac968e97d9c4/orig.mp4?Expires=1773266404&Signature=KiB02iApK15-f7Fl8N332FAawEHAJpZdjEVzzmNz95IaJsYtUNQYr3~NphNQVRmJbURM7mW0SyKecWO98eYtNU908G338EsAhmzCofdDcSRDdHm9UdUzYFjz-aNtG8hTRLXjmzCeZ8C8GU3XQtnO-rCox39BZmMvj0tlSjLsZ7NDBXLVZpap0c~C0~zSUefN59W2gDqlJunVJ4CifEfrXHqSUF0lQdxl~jie6UnBuXIzPfYC5yfcT4Eqg~v~1M1fFOcXPvJMfWfLft8p6jFv~qD~bafUz0O-0SyAuoTRpOQTj97Nf6OIUMc0PxNnGlcm3t10anialMAn64YTs3MQVQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Florida Legislature","date","2025-03-26T00:00:00Z","article","TALLAHASSEE — The Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government opened Wednesday by presenting its budget highlights for the 2025–26 fiscal year and reported a slate of bills favorably to the next stage of the Senate process.

Budget highlights: Chair Bridal summarized the committee’s funding priorities, calling the recommendations a strong package for environmental and regulatory agencies. Key items presented included approximately $1.2 billion for water‑quality improvements (including Everglades funding), $218 million for citrus‑recovery efforts (including money for tree acquisition and planting), $69 million for feeding programs with $50 million for a new grant to create or expand food banks and purchase transport equipment, $598 million for wastewater and drinking‑water revolving loan programs, $53 million for beach restoration, $20 million for the Florida Keys, and $94 million for the state facilities pool to complete capitol window and HVAC projects.

Chair Bridal noted additional allocations: petroleum‑tank cleanup funds, support for state and local parks, $218 million for flood and sea‑level rise programs, funds for the Florida Forest Service and the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program, and continued support for the \"My Safe Florida Home\" program. She said project lists tied to the committee’s provisos were to be published Friday when the General Appropriations Act (GAA) is printed.

Committee motions and technical adjustments: Senator Grawle moved, and the committee adopted, a motion allowing staff to make technical adjustments to the budget recommendations without objection. Senator Sharif moved to accept the committee’s budget proposal as a recommendation to the full Senate Appropriations Committee; the motion was adopted without objection.

Votes at a glance: The committee reported several bills favorably during the hearing. Below are one‑line descriptions drawn from committee presentations and the roll calls recorded in the transcript.

- SB 796 (Sen. Bradley) — Creates a general permit authorization from DEP for distributed wastewater treatment systems to expedite remediation of water-quality impairments caused by failing septic systems. Reported favorably by committee.

- SB 1162 (Sen. Leake) — Expands certain water‑access and marina funding and authorizes FWC fuel‑tax‑funded grants for parking and boat‑hauling infrastructure. Reported favorably by committee.

- SB 466 (Sen. Leake) — Implements the 2023 Black History Task Force recommendation to locate a Florida Museum of Black History in West Augustine; drew local testimony from St. Johns County officials and residents. Reported favorably by committee.

- SB 178 (Sen. Roussan) — Establishes an agronomic study at Florida A&M University (subject to appropriation) to identify viable crops or products for land taken out of production due to disease or weather. Reported favorably by committee.

- CS for SB 678 (Sen. Truenow) — Allows pawn brokers to use printed or digital transaction forms. Reported favorably by committee.

- CS for CS for SB 736 (Sen. Truenow) — Updates the brownfields program administered by DEP and adopted a technical amendment aligned with the House version. Reported favorably by committee.

- CS for CS for SB 700 (Sen. Truenow) — Comprehensive farm bill (see separate article). Reported favorably by committee.

- SB 1226 (Sen. DeSigli) — Establishes a regulatory framework for pet‑insurance products based on a NAIC model; reported favorably by committee.

Public testimony: The record shows a mixture of brief in‑support pleas (for example, industry and local officials supporting the Black History Museum location) and more extended comment on the farm bill (notably the fluoride provisions). Several industry groups (Florida Chamber of Commerce, Florida Farm Bureau, Florida Feed Association) and local officials waived in support of bills during the hearing.

Process notes: Committee members were repeatedly reminded that the budget and projects will be reflected in the GAA printing and that some project titles may appear differently when the printed proviso list is distributed. The committee adopted technical amendments on a number of bills without objection and used roll calls for final reports on several measures.

Ending: The committee adjourned after reporting all items on the docket favorably and without objection to move the measures forward in the Senate process.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment and General Government 3/26/2025","oneSentenceSummary","The committee presented funding priorities for fiscal 2025–26 and reported multiple agriculture, environment and regulatory bills favorably, including measures on wastewater permits, water‑access facilities, a Black History Museum site selection implementation and pet‑insurance regulation.","taxTitle","Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government , Standing Committees, Senate, Legislative, Florida","taxId",26937,"location","Florida","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":46,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6104854,"Committee advances comprehensive farm bill after hours-long debate over water additives and fluoridation",2950,1200000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2788706-c40ff7f5a95469b6b22997b51afdf761&start=1200&end=4150","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2788706-c40ff7f5a95469b6b22997b51afdf761/thumbnail_1200000.jpg","/articles/6104854/Florida/Committee-advances-comprehensive-farm-bill-after-hours-long-debate-over-water-additives-and-fluoridation","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6104854-32aefed869aca6e4bc7c63194377754f/orig.mp4?Expires=1773266404&Signature=A-8mo2Koik7GMx2gdxmFVd4UaxngpKNPO85unWtzCGLpcaqvEfKJkEvVeg0K60L2IjafPU07RM~GNgKzWulxyv25DMQNuBDfdJeWcARkLFgmKdBjdItuU1b-wszFCEoKIjkyWPfnwM6dXkfrPSr9HosmeA9C~UBN~7PSs5~SpAKwS1bLFD8CzN7lYg8hoEnOSpVS~lqthql~wwAWC1bBah7wu9Ll5~cZQ1VqZR9WgYyN09inVdMRGR4gCZayDmzr7jJzrqc0CZj2p0YUhOIPCC0y~yPxm06hWIMK2KgWs0gDxOBrKnrx7Pr8yXD512uBbJJk533rDoDhoyuvhLWZ5g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","TALLAHASSEE — The Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government on Wednesday reported favorably CS/CS/SB 700, a comprehensive agriculture and consumer-services “farm bill,” after extended debate and more than two hours of public testimony focused largely on proposed restrictions on adding health-related substances, including fluoride, to public water systems.

The bill sponsor, Senator Truenow, told the committee the bill contains technical modernizations across the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ statutory duties and a set of larger policy changes. \"The bill can be divided into two categories, technical changes that modernize and streamline agency processes,\" Truenow said when he introduced the measure, and he summarized broader provisions including labeling requirements, updates to disaster-recovery programs and a new registry restricting certain foreign donations to charities.

Why it matters: Committee members and dozens of citizens, dentists and public-health advocates spent the bulk of the hearing on sections 31 and 32, which would preempt local decisions by prohibiting the addition of “health-related additives” to public water supplies. Supporters argued the prohibition protects individual choice; opponents warned it would remove a long-standing, population-level oral health tool used to prevent tooth decay, especially in underserved communities.

Committee debate and public testimony: Supporters of the water-additive prohibition included Bailey Kuykendall, operations director of Stand for Health Freedom, who said, \"Water should hydrate, not medicate,\" and urged lawmakers to end fluoridation as a matter of medical-consent rights. Michelle Schneider, a Pensacola resident who testified she has campaigned on the issue, said the measure is about \"medical freedom,\" not the scientific merits of fluoride.

Dental and medical professionals urged caution. Brandon Edmondson of the Florida Dental Association called community water fluoridation \"one of the greatest scientific achievements of the twentieth century,\" and asked that the decision remain at the local level. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons warned removing fluoride would increase cavities and more serious infections; Dr. Russell Walther told the committee that in his practice fluoride reduction correlates with higher rates of severe dental disease requiring hospitalization.

Committee members pressed sponsors on specifics. Vice Chair Berman asked whether the bill would bar insurers from using climate or flood risks in underwriting; Truenow said the bill contains language aimed at limiting certain ESG-driven denials of service for agricultural producers, but did not point to a single line‑item restriction in committee debate. Multiple senators asked whether naturally occurring fluoride levels would be affected; Truenow replied the proposal addresses added additives rather than naturally occurring minerals.

Amendments and voting: The committee adopted two amendments during the floor presentation that the sponsor described as technical and as establishing a Florida beef-marketing program. After debate and testimony, Chair Bridal called the roll on the committee substitute as amended. The roll-call exchange recorded several explicit votes during the transcript (for example, Senator Arrington was recorded as voting \"No,\" Senator Burton \"Yes,\" and Senator Sharif \"No\"). By voice and roll call, the committee reported CS/CS/SB 700 favorably.

What the bill would do (as discussed in committee): Truenow said the bill removes any additive to a public water supply that is not related to water purity; requires transparent labeling for meat, milk, poultry and egg products; creates crimes for drone harassment over certain farmland; creates or updates state disaster-recovery loan and grant programs for agriculture and aquaculture; establishes an honest‑service registry limiting some foreign donations to charities; extends an FFA scholarship and allows schools to build supporting infrastructure; and allows state purchase of formerly agricultural land converted to solar once decommissioned, with the state able to remove development rights and re‑offer it for agricultural use.

Next steps: With the committee’s favorable report, CS/CS/SB 700 advances toward the full Senate appropriations process. The sponsor asked for members’ support and characterized the bill as advancing Florida agriculture and consumer protection priorities.

Ending note: The hearing drew unusually high public turnout on a single issue inside a much broader bill; committee members repeatedly referenced the need for local engagement and additional technical review as the measure moves forward.","The Appropriations Committee advanced CS/CS/SB 700, a broad agriculture and consumer-services package, after lengthy debate and extensive public testimony focused on provisions that would prohibit adding health-related substances, including fluoride, to public water supplies.","actionData","errors"]

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Appropriations Committee unveils budget highlights; reports several bills favorably

Committee advances comprehensive farm bill after hours-long debate over water additives and fluoridation