Senate panel reviews 'Floridians First' general‑government budget; questions on Mi Safe Florida Home and cybersecurity grants

Tallahassee — The Senate appropriations committee heard a series of general‑government presentations under the governor’s "Floridians First" budget, including requests from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, the Florida Gaming Control Commission, the Florida Lottery, the Department of Management Services (DMS), the Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC), and insurance regulators.

DBPR Secretary Melanie Griffin highlighted funding requests to speed license processing ($390,000 for staff in the Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco division), a $500,000 one‑time animal abuse hotline, $400,000 for fleet vehicle replacement and $90,000 for IT recruitment and retention. Alana Zimmer, executive director of the Florida Gaming Control Commission, requested 14 FTEs and $3.3 million in trust fund authority for two new law‑enforcement squads and $4.5 million nonrecurring for a comprehensive licensing and enforcement IT system; she said gaming enforcement seized 6,725 illegal slot machines last year. Acting Lottery Secretary Reggie Dixon described $253.8 million in authority for the Lottery and marketing and IT positions to support revenue for education.

Interim DMS Secretary Tom Berger described facility modernization, fleet telematics, 911 upgrades, and cybersecurity investments, including a proposed 24/7 cybersecurity operations center and a $10 million competitive local government cybersecurity grant program. PERC chair Carrie Carpenter said implementation of Senate Bill 256 (2023) has sharply increased case and election workloads and requested nearly $1 million for staffing and additional resources to process cases and elections more quickly. Insurance Commissioner Mike Jaworski requested $2.2 million and 19 FTE for life/health and property/casualty product review and financial oversight.

Committee members led by Vice Chair Berman questioned several items in depth. Berman asked why a transparency portal for condominium associations and a homeowners‑association real‑estate fraud initiative appeared unfunded; staff said procurement timing and prior nonrecurring funding explain current line items. Members also sought details on the My Safe Florida Home program: staff said approximately $80 million in abandoned grants can be reissued to new homeowners and that stricter matching and income requirements have reduced uptake; presenters said current appropriations and carryover funds remain available and the administration proposed an additional $100 million to support new grants. On cybersecurity, DMS staff said last year’s additional funding had not been fully expended and the current recommendation reflects anticipated need for the upcoming year.

Presenters closed by offering follow‑up on specific figures when requested and the committee adjourned.