Much of Florida’s pro-Trump, anti-people agenda is now law — with one exception | Editorial

The 2021 legislative session was marked by Republicans trying to out-Trump each other, which resulted in a lot of bad bills — so many that the Herald Editorial Board dubbed it the most anti-people Legislature we have seen in a long time.

Thursday, July 1, marks the day many of these new laws go into effect.

But don’t call us Debby Downers just yet. There were a few good measures that came out of Tallahassee this year — and one that was handed by the courts.

On Wednesday, a U.S. District judge blocked a law that fines tech companies up to $250,000 a day if they ban a political candidate from their platforms. Following Donald Trump’s expulsion from Twitter and Facebook after his supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol, Gov. Ron DeSantis and the GOP took it upon themselves to punish Big Tech. It turns out there might be one tiny detail they forgot: the U.S. Constitution. A lawsuit claims the law violates the First Amendment by forcing companies to carry “government-compelled speech” on their platforms.

Another good deed was DeSantis’ veto on Tuesday of a no-fault insurance-reform package, which many groups said would raise the cost of buying car insurance for poor Floridians and put more uninsured drivers on the road.

And yet, when the governor gives with one hand, he smacks with the other.

He also signed a bill Tuesday that repeals three Key West measures that limited cruise ships at the city-owned port. Voters passed those measures out of concern for the cruise industry’s impact on the environment and quality of life.

DeSantis also vetoed a bill that would have created an optional civics curriculum for schools that encouraged students to get involved in local politics through a project. He took issue with the term “action civics” in the bipartisan bill, saying it “risks promoting the preferred orthodoxy of two particular institutions.” Whatever he means by that, it seems to us that the governor’s true problem is young people becoming engaged in the democratic process.

It’s also a shame that DeSantis vetoed another bill, passed with ample bipartisan support, that would have allowed some 27,000 minors to request their criminal records be expunged if they complete a diversion program.

Now let’s look at what will actually be the law of the land in Florida starting Thursday.

(Note: Some laws went into effect immediately after they were signed over the past two months. That includes the anti-democratic “anti-riot” bill, as well as legislation that overhauled a program that provides lifelong care for children born with catastrophic brain damage. Reform was much needed after a Miami Herald/ProPublica investigation revealed many parents were nickeled and dimed by the Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Association.)

Intellectual diversity: This one feels straight out of the post-war Red Scare. A new law requires public universities and colleges to survey students, faculty and staff, to ensure “intellectual freedom and viewpoint diversity” on campuses. The point is to find out the ideological leanings of faculty and staff — and Republicans are already threatening budget cuts if they don’t like what they see.

Vaccine passports: Florida is now an anti-vaxxer haven thanks to legislation touted by DeSantis that prohibits government and businesses from requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination. That has already caused a clash with the cruise industry as it tries to resume activities safely after experiencing horrific coronavirus outbreaks early in the pandemic. What happened to allowing private companies to make their own decisions?

Hazard lights: If you have been breaking Florida law by using your hazard lights while driving in heavy rain — let’s admit it, a lot of us do that when driving down Interstate 95 during the summer’s monsoon-like storms — rest assured. As of Thursday, you can use your emergency flashers.

Police reform: One of the best things to come out of this Legislature was House Bill 7051, which created minimum training standards for the use of force and de-escalation tactics, as well as the duty to intervene when another police officer uses excessive force. Many advocates say — and we agree — that the legislation didn’t go far enough. However, given the conservative makeup of the Legislature, this is a good start.

Assault on ballot initiatives: Senate Bill 1890 put a $3,000 limit on campaign contributions to a political committee that sponsors a statewide ballot referendum. While lawmakers want to make it hard to finance ballot proposals, their own political committees and parties can continue to receive unlimited cash from donors. Hypocritical? Yes, and maybe unconstitutional, as a lawsuit claims.

Anti-trans: When nearly 40,000 Floridians have died from the coronavirus — and millions more have had their livelihoods affected by the global pandemic — banning transgender athletes from female sports doesn’t feel like a pressing issue. So why did the Legislature treat this as a priority when, since 2015, only 11 trans kids have gone through the process to play sports set up by the Florida High School Athletic Association? Your guess is as good as ours.

Big Sugar gift: The sugar industry donated more than more than $11 million to political campaigns of both parties in the 2020 election cycle. What did it get in return? Apparently, a new law that protects the industry from lawsuits challenging pre-harvest sugarcane burning, which causes respiratory problems and covers homes and cars in black soot in the poor, mostly Black Glades area south of Lake Okeechobee.

Pro-veteran: DeSantis signed three bills in June to make Florida, which is home to several military bases, more friendly to veterans. These new laws will create the Purple Star Campus program that provides resources to schools that offer the children of military members extra transition help, a program to allow service members to gain workforce training with civilian employers during active duty and to make it easier for state and political entities to hire veterans.