Weekly political notes from The News Service of Florida
By Jim Turner
The News Service of Florida
TALLAHASSEE — The doors are ready to close on Enterprise Florida, the business-recruitment agency long targeted by state House leaders.
Members of the Enterprise Florida Executive Committee this week signed off on the dissolution of the agency’s board as of Sunday, as required by a bill (HB 5) approved by the Legislature this spring.
Many of the agency’s responsibilities are shifting to the Florida Department of Commerce, with a new non-profit organization set up to work on international business recruitment.
“I just have to say that the transition is moving along. It’s moving smoothly. The staff has been just extraordinary in their efforts and what they’re doing,” Enterprise Florida President Laura DiBella said. “Everybody’s working basically two jobs now, their old job and the new job. It’s been a pretty heavy lift for the entire team.”
Since 2017, when then-Speaker Richard Corcoran described business incentives as “corporate welfare” and “de facto socialism,” House leaders have targeted spending by Enterprise Florida and other public-private agencies.
This year’s legislation, signed May 31 by Gov. Ron DeSantis, liquidates Enterprise Florida by Dec. 1 and moves contracts and data of more than 20 programs to the Department of Commerce.
The law also directs the department to contract with a direct-support organization, which will be called Select Florida, to work on international trade.
The new organization is picking up 15 Enterprise Florida staff positions — including at least 13 current employees. DiBella will serve in a part-time capacity for Select Florida.
The legislation directs $5 million to the non-profit. About $400,000 in revenue generated by Enterprise Florida sits in a trust awaiting Select Florida to begin operating in October.
Enterprise Florida has spent about $7.6 million this year, of which $5 million went to the Florida Sports Foundation to help the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau prepare for the 2026 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament.
Miami is one of 16 North America cities that will host matches.
The Associated Press reported Tuesday that more than 100 FIFA jobs involving legal, audit, compliance and risk-management services are moving from the organization’s Swiss headquarters to Coral Gables in advance of the tournament.
ON THE MAP
With Gov. Ron DeSantis on the road campaigning for president, Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez has taken a more-visible role. And on Monday, she announced construction plans for four Southwest Florida projects that are part of the $7 billion Moving Florida Forward transportation program, which DeSantis championed.
Nuñez, during the appearance in Fort Myers, said the program — speeding construction on 20 projects — is a new way “to manage the unprecedented growth that Florida has been experiencing.”
“What we’ve seen is the result of the governor’s leadership,” Nuñez continued. “People are flocking to Florida. And they’re coming to enjoy not only the great leadership, but it’s pretty climate and the great beaches.”
To pay for the program, $4 billion will be moved from general revenue to the State Transportation Trust Fund and $3 billion will be borrowed.
The Southwest Florida plans announced Monday included an early 2025 start date on rebuilding the Interstate 75 interchange at Pine Ridge Road; a spring 2027 start for projects involving State Road 29; and a fall 2027 start to expand 18 miles of I-75 from Golden Gate Parkway to Corkscrew Road.
The projects were previously in the Department of Transportation’s long-range plans without identified start dates.
As the week progressed, the Department of Transportation posted additional Moving Florida Forward projects. They included:
— Fall 2024: I-75 interchange reconstruction at Fruitville Road in Sarasota County and widening part of State Road 70 in Manatee County.
— Late 2024: Reconstructing Interstate 4 from ChampionsGate to Osceola Parkway and the interchange of I-4 and State Road 33 in Central Florida.
— Spring 2025: Widening I-75 between Wildwood and Ocala.
— Fall 2025: Reconstructing U.S. 301 as it crosses Florida’s Turnpike between Wildwood and Sumterville in Sumter County.
— Summer 2025: Adding two tolled express lanes to part of Interstate 275 in the Tampa Bay area.
— Fall 2026: Widening I-4 from U.S. 27 to ChampionsGate in Central Florida.
— Late 2027: Improving the Interstate 95 interchange at U.S. 1 in Volusia County.
PAYMENTS INSTEAD OF PASSES
In approving a new budget Wednesday, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board included $3,000 annual stipends for employees and some retirees to replace a decades-old practice of providing Walt Disney World passes.
The move to eliminate the park perk had drawn heat from district firefighters, who supported Gov. Ron DeSantis’ efforts over the past year to revamp the leadership of the special district that includes Disney properties.
District officials argued the passes were a self-serving measure by Disney that funneled tax dollars from the entertainment giant back into the parks.
The debate about the perks was among the latest twists, including state and federal lawsuits, for the district, which succeeded the former Reedy Creek Improvement District amid a feud between DeSantis and Disney.
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