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Coalition calls for Lake Okeechobee to be treated as a standalone restoration priority
Summary
Commissioners urged the 16-county coalition to adopt Lake Okeechobee as its own long-term congressional and state priority, push for federal appropriations for the C&SF study, and coordinate letters to legislative delegations.
Commissioner Smith told the coalition the group should "adopt the lake as its own separate project" and urged members to treat Lake Okeechobee as a distinct, long-term priority with a multi-decade work plan.
Smith framed the proposal as complementary to existing Everglades efforts: "It's just the lake, I think, after all these years of what we've worked on and what we've accomplished thus far, needs to have its own standing as 1 issue." He proposed sending a formal request to the state legislature and Congress to secure that standing and the necessary appropriations.
Agency and county leaders said the Corps has authority to study broader C&SF efforts but requires an appropriation to proceed. Drew Bartlett of the South Florida Water Management District urged coordinated advocacy in Washington, D.C., saying the Corps "has the language. What we need is an appropriation." Coalition members agreed to draft model letters for members and counties to send to legislative delegations and to consider organizing delegation visits to press for funding.
