I am writing to you from the epicenter of the attack on our freedoms, the Florida Statehouse in Tallahassee.
The GOP assault begins with:
HB 607 & SB 752 now in the final stages before floor votes in each chamber, which will have the effect of censoring the media by exposing them to defamation lawsuits.
HB 1225 & SB 918 are the GOP solution to a shortage of workers. After passing immigration laws which caused a massive exodus of documented workers from the state, the GOP needs these bills to fix the shortage. Both bills are an assault on the fundamental nature of education. They will permit overnight employment of minors during the school week, leaving students sleep deprived as they attend school. Additionally, the bills strip away current requirements for meal breaks for minors. HB 1225 has already passed the House and is in committee hearings in the Senate.
Not wanting to leave anything unharmed, HB 541 & SB 675 create a workaround for the new minimum wage amendment passed by the voters of Florida. This bill will reduce the minimum wage by 50% for any entry-level position. So, kids get to work for half the pay, with no meal break overnight during the school week…what could possibly to wrong with that!
And it only gets worse.
HB 1205 has already passed the house while the Senate version SB 1414 remains in committee. This bill all but wipes out the ability of citizens to put amendment questions on the ballot through the petition process. From requiring all petition gatherers to be registered with the state to permitting only state residents to gather petitions, to requiring a million-dollar bond to be posted with the state by the sponsoring organization, Republicans are thwarting small “d” democracy.
These Republicans are engaged in nothing short of an all-out assault on our fundamental freedoms and values. Now is not the time to grow tired, it is time to rise up and be a defender of our freedoms.
More to come.
Legislative watchdog Keith Edison is one of Lee County’s Democratic State Committee Representatives. Let your representatives know what you think. Get help from https://leecountydems.org/resources-3/