Governor Ron DeSantis signs budget for fiscal year 2024-2025 budget
~ “Focus on Florida’s Future” 2024-2025 Budget ~
Tampa, Florida — On June 12, 2024, Governor Ron DeSantis signed the ‘Focus on Florida’s Future’ Budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025, totaling $116.5 billion less than the previous fiscal year, which reflects a reduction in state spending. Due to the governor’s line-item actions, the budget leaves $17 billion remaining for budgetary reserves.
Budget highlights:
www.flgov.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-25-GAA-Highlights.pdf.
Read the 16-page veto list:
www.flgov.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/FY_2024-25_Veto_List.pdf.
Read the veto message:
www.flgov.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/General-Appropriations-Letter.pdf.
Tax and Toll Relief
$1.5 billion in additional tax relief for Florida families in Fiscal Year 2024-25, including permanent tax cuts.
$450 million in toll relief to frequent Florida commuters, discounting tolls by 50% for frequent drivers utilizing SunPass with 35 or more monthly transactions.
A one-year exemption on taxes, fees and assessments for Homeowners Insurance Policies ($502 million in taxpayer savings).
A tax credit for businesses that employ Floridians with unique abilities ($5 million in savings annually for each of the next 3 years).
Four sales tax holidays (save families more than $289 million)
Freedom Month sales tax holiday during summer on outdoor recreation equipment.
14-day Back-to-School sales tax holiday on school supplies, clothing and computers.
1-week Skilled Workers sales tax holiday, saving skilled workers on work tools and equipment.
Two 14-day Disaster Preparedness holidays, saving money on disaster preparedness supplies.
Insurance Policy Holders
Over $237 million to support residential home mitigation programs and oversight of the property insurance market, including:
$200 million for the My Safe Florida Home Grant Program to continue assisting Florida homeowners through home inspections and cost-sharing for approved home hardening and wind mitigation programs to reduce premiums and make properties less vulnerable to hurricane damage. This investment follows additional funding provided during the recent Special Session and is especially important as Floridians are recovering following hurricanes Ian, Nicole, and Idalia;
$1.1 million to bolster the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation’s (OIR) ability to curate data related to Florida’s property insurance market; and $675,000 to contract for independent reinsurance and mitigation research experts to bolster OIR’s ability to review filings and recommend new tools to mitigate properties from hurricanes.
K - 12 Education
$1.25 billion to provide salary increases for teachers and other instructional personnel.
$1.7 billion in funding for early child education, including $438 million for Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (VPK).
$28.4 billion in funding for the K-12 public school system.
$1.5 million to support and expand the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative.
Over $6 million for civic literacy and civic professional development initiatives.
$10 million for the Florida Civics Seal of Excellence Program to allow 3,000 educators to receive a $3,000 stipend for completing the Florida Seal of Excellence endorsement coursework.
$10 million to provide bonuses to teachers to receive additional certifications in computer science courses.
Jewish Communities and Schools
$20 million to enhance safety measures for Jewish Day Schools and Jewish preschools.
$5 million for the Museum of Hope and Humanity in downtown Orlando to honor those lost in the Holocaust.
$3.5 million for the Jewish Day School-Student Transportation Safety Initiative to provide Jewish students transportation to and from school.
Over $7 million in funding to various Holocaust memorial and education centers around the state.
Higher Education
$1.7 billion in state operating funding for the Florida College System.
$4.1 billion in state operating funding for the State University System.
$100 million for the recruitment and retention of highly qualified faculty at state universities.
$130 million for the recruitment and retention of in total funding to reward quality nursing education programs to address nursing vacancies.
$765 million to support workforce education programs to ensure students are prepared to fill high-demand, high-wage jobs.
$35 million for the Open Door Grant Program, designed to create a demand-driven supply of credentialed workers for high-demand occupations.
$10 million for Alzheimer’s and Dementia research at state universities.
Over $173 million for Florida’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities, including $20 million for campus security at HBCUs.
$617 million to retain high-achieving students at in-state colleges and universities, fully funds the projected student enrollment for the Bright Futures Scholarship Program.
Health and Human Services
Over $232 million for cancer research funding, which includes $127.5 million for the Casey DeSantis Cancer Research Program and $60 million for the Florida Cancer Innovation Fund.
$456.5 million to support the health and development of pregnant women, new moms, and children; will ne used to enhance prenatal and postnatal care, expand access to pediatric healthcare services, and support early childhood development.
More than $442 million in funding to support behavioral health services - to improve access to mobile response services, increase provider rates, help expand the behavioral health workforce, and support collaboration between primary care and behavioral health providers.
Over $93.2 million to support those served or in danger of entering the child welfare system.
Nearly $10 million to expand adoption incentives to assist in finding forever homes for more foster children.
Nearly $70 million to support caregivers and individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and other related memory disorders.
$115 million to support seniors through the Community Care for the Elderly Program and the Home Care for the Elderly Program.
More than $2.2 billion appropriated to the Agency for Persons with Disabilities for services through the iBudget waiver, due to the Focus on Florida’s Future Budget and the recent Live Healthy legislation.
Veterans
$4.9 million in improvements to the State’s Veterans’ Nursing Homes
$10 million to assist in constructing the ninth State Veterans’ Nursing Home in Collier County.
$2 million investment to provide veterans with job training and placement services, support for entrepreneurship and small business development.
Florida's Economy
Florida, currently home to over 22 million residents and welcoming millions of visitors each year, is the nation’s fastest-growing state.
$15.5 billion for the Florida Department of Transportation with $14.5 billion of this to construct and maintain Florida’s transportation network.
Full funding of the oving Florida Forward Initiative, expediting 20 projects to relieve traffic congestion and $109.6 million for Florida’s ports, logistics centers and fuel pipelines, including vertiport development.
$75 million for the Job Growth Grant Fund, which helps fund projects that support local public infrastructure and expand workforce education opportunities
$80 million to continue marketing efforts through VISIT FLORIDA.
$175.2 million for the State Small Business Credit Initiative, providing small businesses with access to capital to grow their business.
$20 million for the Rural Infrastructure Fund to support local infrastructure projects that help attract jobs.
$100 million to expand broadband internet access in rural communities.
$88.6 million for the Small County Outreach Program to assist small county governments in repairing infrastructure.
$174 million for the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) program.
$234 million for the State Apartment Incentive Loan (SAIL) program.
$100 million for the third year of the Hometown Heroes Housing program to provide down payment and closing cost assistance for first time homebuyers.
Law Enforcement and the Military
$17 million for the third year of the Law Enforcement Recruitment Bonus Program, which provides a signing bonus of up to $5,000 for those hired as first-time law enforcement officers in Florida.
$7 million for the Defense Infrastructure Grant Program, which provides funding for infrastructure projects that make a positive impact on the military value of installations within the state.
$3 million for the Military Base Protection Program, which helps secure non-conservation lands to serve as a buffer protecting military installations from encroachment and supports local community efforts to engage in service partnerships with military installations.
Conservation
More than $850 million for Everglades restoration projects, including:
$550 million for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP).
$64 million for the EAA Reservoir to continue this critical project to reduce harmful discharges and help send more clean water south of the Everglades.
$50 million for components designed to achieve the greatest reductions in harmful discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie Estuaries.
$100 million for phase 2 of the C-51 Reservoir.
$86.7 million for the Northern Everglades and Estuaries Protection.
$535 million for targeted water quality improvements in key waterbodies and to implement the initial recommendations of the Blue-Green Algae Task Force.
$55 million to restore Florida’s springs.
$40 million to improve water quality and combat the effects and impacts of harmful algal blooms, including blue-green algae and red tide.
$15 million to infrastructure improvements and resource management for Florida State Parks. (Senate Bill 1638 also provides $32 million for land management activities within the state park system and $4 million for implementing the Local Trail Management Grant Program).
More than $129 million to protect Florida’s conservation lands and waterways, including $100 million for the Florida Forever Program to support land conservation and recreation.
Disaster Response, Recovery and Mitigation
$1.2 billion in state and federal funding for disaster recovery, mitigation and emergency management to continue helping Floridians impacted by a disaster while preparing for future disasters.
$396 million in additional federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for local hurricane recovery and hardening efforts throughout the state, including the CDBG Disaster Recovery Program and the CDBG Mitigation Program.