The Florida Roundup - Property tax amendment local impacts, U.S. Senate Democratic primary and weekly news

Episode Date: July 24, 2026

This week on The Florida Roundup, we looked at the estimated revenue loss for local governments under Florida’s proposed property tax amendment with investigative journalist Jason Garcia (00:00) and Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves (08:04). Then, we spoke with two Democratic candidates for the U.S. Senate: Rep. Angie Nixon (19:50) and former. U.S. Lt. Col. Alex Vindman (28:04). Plus, some educational news from the week (37:20) and environmental updates (43:40).

This is the Florida Roundup. I'm Tom Hudson. It is terrific to have you on board with us this week. It is still July, but voting already is underway for the August primary. Now, later on this hour on our program, we'll speak with the two Democrats hoping to be their party's nominee for the United States Senate. Angie Dixon is a state representative from Jacksonville, and Alex Vindman is a retired Army lieutenant colonel. So stick around here to hear from both of them, Angie Nixon and Alex. Vindman coming up later on on the Florida Roundup. But first, usually when a piece of legislation is being considered by Florida lawmakers, an analysis has done on any fiscal or economic impact of that proposal. Basically, what would be the effect on government revenue and government spending? When lawmakers were considering a bill that asks voters if they want homeowners to pay less property taxes, no analysis was done. The revenue estimating conference has not estimated the potential impacts on local government revenues from the constitutional amendments. proposed by the joint resolution.

This is what lawmakers would have read in their packet of information about that legislation back in June when they were considering it. This is audio that's text to speech generated. Staff estimates the impact on local government revenues in FY 2008-29 could be more than minus $14 billion. That was the best guesstimate at the time. They hadn't done an official analysis yet, but now we have that official estimate. and the June back of the envelope of $14 billion, that's pretty close. If voters approve the proposed constitutional amendment to increase the homestead exemption and lower the taxable value of homes and condominiums across the state,

local governments will see about $12 billion disappear. And if that ballot measure does not get at least 60% of the vote in November? If the amendment does not pass, the impact is zero. So, zero if voters say no, And about $12 billion a year less to local governments if they say yes. So how would a tax cut impact your cost of living? How would it impact your community? 305-995-1800.

We're going to start this hour this week again talking about property taxes and the big question faced by Florida voters in the months ahead. 305-995-1800. Or you can send us a quick email. We're monitoring the inbox right now live across the state radio at the Florida Roundup.org. Michael in Oceola County sent us this note, saying this is the standard procedure for the majority. First cut the money available, then use the reduction in service to eliminate the program.

Michael says it has been going in this direction for decades. Joy wrote us writing homestead exemptions have always existed in Florida, but never this broad and budget busting. What's the likelihood, Joy asks, of adding means testing or minimum age requirements to qualify in the future? Janelle and Jacksonville wrote, I'm opposed to the property tax proposal, not so much because there has not been an update in many years, but because this is too much too quickly.

It will wreak havoc with local government's ability to provide needed services, Janelle writes, it is a further attempt to take away local control. Radio at the florida roundup.org or we've got 305-995-1800. Journalist Jason Garcia is back with us on the program. he writes the substack seeking rents. Jason, welcome back to the program. Thanks for having me.

How did the state come up with an estimate of almost $12 billion in local revenue lost to local governments? Well, this is a group of economists, nonpartisan state economists. I should stress that whose job it is is to evaluate proposed legislation and proposed constitutional amendments for what they call the fiscal impact it will have. And to the point you raised, these are supposed to be done. These kinds of analysis are supposed to be done before the legislature actually passes something, right? In this case, they rush to pass this before they had these numbers in. But it comes from two things. And one thing to stress, that $12 million figure, that's annual, but it also keeps growing from there, right?

The impact of this amendment will continue to get larger every year because of one piece of it. constrains how fast the taxable value of non-homestead property so business property vacation homes can grow and basically what you found is this breaks down into there's a big upfront hit to finance to government revenue funding local government revenue funding from this increased homestead exemption but then the the impact continues growing rapidly from there because of this this assessment cap on all other property right this right stop the the taxable value from growing more than 5% a year and so that's how you get to 12 million dollars five

years in, but it keeps growing from there. How might different local governments, counties and cities be impacted? Yeah, so this is a really interesting thing. And in fact, the Revenue Estimating Conference did a follow-up analysis just last week, I believe, where they did a city-by-city impact. And what you find is that rural and exurban communities, suburban and suburban community, so places that don't have a lot of commercial property value, so they're very residential heavy. They get hit very hard up front. You'll see, you know, former state senator Jeff Brandis,

a Republican who's been pretty significantly, you know, a pretty important voice on this debate, has done some analysis that shows like a city like Palm Coast, which is a very suburban community on the Atlantic Coast, would have like a 40% hit up front, you know. Now, larger communities like the city of Orlando, where I am, the hit is on a percentage basis isn't as significant because they've got more commercial property. But what you see is that it grows very fast. Jason, can you still hear us? Yeah, yeah, can you still hear me? Yeah, go ahead. You're talking about the growth for like a city, like Orlando, a large city. Yeah. Yeah, what you see is places that have lots of commercial property and commercial property value. The initial hit is not as significant,

but it grows very fast. So just in Orlando as an example, it starts off at like $30 million a year of lost revenue in the first year from this homestead exemption. But by five years in, it is more than tripled to more than $100 million in years. So you've got this big upfront hit and then a choking effect from there. Yeah, stick with us, Jason. Jason Garcia is with us, a journalist who writes the substacks seeking rents talking about property taxes. One of those cities that's kind of bracing for the uncertainty here is Pensacola in the Panhandle. The mayor of Pensacola, D.C. Reeves, joins us. Mayor Reeves, welcome to the program. Thanks for your time. Mr. Mayor will get to you just as soon as we can.

Jason, are you still with us? I'm here. Yeah, all right, perfect. Yeah, no, you're there. All good here. So on this piece here, and we got the mayor here coming back in just a moment, what options do these counties have? Yes. And cities. What you're going to see is there will be, this will be paid through some inevitable

combination of both, of both service cuts, tax increases in terms of raising the property tax rate because remember your property taxes are a function of both the taxable value of the property but also the rates so what you will see is some of this revenue will get recouped by local government simply raise tax rates so the the sticker price of the tax cut isn't even exactly what it is but that the third piece of this will be there will be all sorts of new taxes and fees that you see coming in to help make up these shortfalls because i mean like again like a place like pomcoe simply can't cut 40% of its budget right yeah exactly it's going to have to make this revenue but there is an important dynamic to that in terms of who actually has the power when it comes to those other

revenue sources. But we can talk about that more in a bit if you'd like. Yes, we will get there. Let's talk about from the city level. D.C. Reeves is the mayor of Pensacola. Mr. Mary, are you with us? I am. Thanks so much for having it. Great. Thank you so much. Pensacola would lose an estimated $4.4 million in the next fiscal year if this amendment is approved by voters. Is that an accurate figure as you're doing your budget planning right now? Yeah, pretty close. And then of course, increases to the following year, almost doubles. And, you know, at the end of the day, you know, we do a lot of, I'm a data-driven guy. We do a lot of analysis around here. I mean, I can safely say we spent more time on the $8 increase to a city recycling program

in terms of financial analysis than what's taking place and what's going to be in front of voters in November. And I think that's really the issue at hand is if we're going to change the way we're going to do, something for a hundred plus years. Why are we making a decision over a long weekend about how to get it done? So, and listen, the folks that are for the cut, bottom line is the Trojan horse initiative, which is, hey, it's free money. Don't worry about what the ramifications are. My position with my constituents has been, listen, if this passes, we'll figure it out. The sky isn't falling. We'll figure it out. but you're probably not going to like the answer. So it sounds like you're...

Probably not like losing. As a voter, it sounds like you're a no on this. Is that right, Mr. Mayor? Yes. Very much so. And really, it's not about the cut. If we want to think through as a state, what's a smarter way to modernize how we fund local governments,

then I think that's perfectly fine. But this has not been researched. It's not been analyzed. as was just mentioned, I have a lot of constituents that come up to this and say, well, then why don't you just tax something else? And so, well, some of those things aren't allowed by state law either. But I do agree, this will end up being a aggressive tax. This will put a heavier burden on renters.

This will put a heavier burden on lower income people in the city of Pensacola. I can certainly speak to. And so if we want to figure out a cut, fine, but let's, just do it in the same well-researched way that we make other decisions that have billions and billions of dollars of impact in our state. Local governments right now are going through the budget process for the fiscal year beginning in October. D.C. Reeves is with us here on the Florida Rondeup. He's the mayor of Pensacola. Mr. Mayor, this is how you described your budget considerations as you're going through your budget process back in early July. If that amendment were to pass,

there is no doubt that there will be an impact on services. And the most prudent thing we can do representing the taxpayers money is start bracing for impact. Bracing for impact. All right, Mr. Mayor, what does that mean as you're putting together that budget? Yeah, so we have almost finished our budget. We have a hiring freeze starting September 1st. We have lowered the cost of living increases for all 875 of our employees. employees, we, there's zero operational change. And as a matter of fact, even with a 5.3% increase in property tax, our actual general fund that's being proposed to our city council is $275,000 less dollar for dollar than it was a year before. So, so again, when you're trying to sell an idea of how does free money sound without the other side of the story, a lot of facts get lost during that process. And so that's what we're doing now.

and it certainly would be significantly worse than that if this were to pass. Do you have a contingent budget ready if this passes in November because the increase in the homestead exemption would take effect January 1st? Yeah, we have discussed that. We had a big discussion about whether we prepare this budget as if it's going to happen or prepare as if it's not going to happen. I guess we've kind of landed somewhere in between. So there will be painful cuts that would have to take place mid-budget, no doubt.

But I think we've tried to kind of strike that happy medium that wouldn't make it as stark come Jan 1, but that we start preparing for it at the end of the day. Finally, Mr. Mayor, let me ask you about the storm that went through Pensacola here. It is the storm season after all, Bertha Tropical Storm. What's the quick storm report? Yeah, all good here. A couple of docks and sea walls at some community centers. Again, for better or worse, we're pretty well prepared for these types of things and used to it. But for the most part, pretty much all good. Good to hear that. Mr. Mayor, thank you for joining us. Much appreciated, sir. Absolutely. Thanks for having me. D.C. Reeves, the mayor of Pensacola talking about property taxes and the amendment that voters will decide in November. John has been listening and patient from the village. John, go ahead. You're on the radio.

Yeah, thank you. You know, I support, I'm in favor of three. I think the premise that I hear mostly on this radio station is that, you know, that people keeping their own tax money is a bad thing. I mean, that's just another way to look at, at this, you know, at this issue. Yet you can't forget that yes, maybe local governments will take a hit. Also, many, many, many people are going to keep their hard-earned wages and savings and, you know, tax money. So I don't hear anything about that part of the equation. Yeah, sure, the fungibility there. How might that, so if the dollars are kept in your bank account, John, as opposed to the check you got a stroke to the local government for property taxes, do you anticipate an effect on local services?

Well, I think your conversation points out that there will probably be in effect, yes. And so what's the answer to that? Well, the state still has taxing authority. and It has taxing authority for the state, that's right, but Sure. Right, but the state doesn't have

any taxing authority currently as it exists really for residential property taxes. That stays locally at the villages. Right. And that still, the state funds many, many, many services at the local level.

So I'm saying, I'm saying there 's another way around it and bring the fight, if you will, back to the local level. You know, we've talked so many years about think globally act locally.

Now it's time to start acting locally. John, we appreciate you listening locally there in the villages and joining the conversation. Sam in Miami on line three. Sam, thank you so much for your patience. You are on the radio. Thank you. I have to say,

there's no plan here. This is just eliminate state taxes on real estate. What's the plan for funding local services? Is it a local state tax, a sales tax? It's incomplete. I honestly believe that anybody who's listening needs to think of the whole picture because our state has never gone bankrupt

and we cannot let it go there. The real problem that this state is having is hurricane insurance. That's the real problem. It's not so much the taxes on real estate. Hurricane insurance is killing the market. People, the medium of the middle class cannot buy a house because hurricane insurance is almost $1,000 a month. Sam, we appreciate you joining the conversation there from Miami,

bringing up home insurance, who certainly is a big key there. Jason Garcia, a journalist writing the substack seeking rents is still with us. Jason, a couple of different points there from not only the mayor of Pensacola, then a supporter of the amendment in the villages. And Sam, of course, in Miami, sounds like she's in opposition for this. But what is the role of the state if this passes? Is there a state fund? Is there a state funding that would backfill some of these local governments?

Yeah, there is no state fund for that sort of purposes right now. But that gets at one of the most significant sort of dynamics here. Because to the point of the caller from the villages, one of the challenges is you don't really know how much you're going to save, right? The money has to go to somewhere. But like as we said, the money has to come from somewhere. But like as we said, you know, it is very likely that there will be some effort to raise property tax rates. So you won't get though, it won't be as if the money just goes entirely into the taxpayer pocket. There will be an effort to charge new fees and taxes.

there'll be an effort to cut services, which is a form of payment and stuff like that. So it becomes, it's, it is uncertain sort of like how the, the balloon ends up looking after you squeeze it in different areas, right? But one thing that is it certain is that this is an amendment that actually pushes power upwards, not downwards. This isn't local. And the reason I say that is, under the Florida Constitution, property taxes are the one

revenue source that is reserved solely to local governments, to cities, counties, and special districts. The Florida legislature, the governor in the legislature, cannot, generally speaking, touch property taxes. That's why they have to do this as a constitutional amendment, right? If you take, if you gut that service, if you cut, I'm sorry, that revenue source, all other revenue sources are ultimately controlled by the state. It has to flow through the state, either either directly in terms of the dollars or at least the approval mechanism has to go through the legislation. And for anybody who has followed the Florida legislature for any level, for any amount of time, you know, every single year, there are well-funded special interests that

have dozens of lobbyists on the payroll that run into some tax or fee locally that they don't like, and they go to Tallahassee and they get themselves an exemption for it. And you're setting up a situation where locals will have to come up with some way to pay for these services, but then people with connections in Tallahassee can go to Tallahassee and get themselves cut out of that. Jason, in a way that you can't do with property taxes. We got a role here on our end, but thank you so much for joining us, Jason. Thank you. Jason Garcia. Thanks for having me.

Journalist with the substack seeking rents. We've got the Democratic U.S. Senate candidates next here on the Florida Roundup. This is the Florida Roundup. I'm Tom Hudson. Great to have you along here. Next week on our program, it'll be more politics. Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins is scheduled to appear on the program. We'll talk with him.

He wants to be the next governor here in the Sunshine State. So what do you want to ask him? You can email your question, radio at the Florida Roundup.org. Home insurance question, public education, public education, data centers. What would you like to hear from Lieutenant Governor J. Collins, who is running for the Republican nomination for governor radio at the Florida Roundup.org? Today, the Democratic race for the United States Senate.

Alex Vindman is a retired Army lieutenant colonel who served on the National Security Council. We'll hear from him in just a few minutes. But first, Angie Nixon is a three-term state representative from Jacksonville who joins us. Representative, welcome to the program. Thanks for being here. Thank you for having me. Let's start with affordability because in a recent University of North Florida poll, half of Floridian say it's the cost of living that's the most important problem facing the state. How would you address it if elected to the U.S. Senate?

Yeah, sure. So my number one priority is making it easier for everyday hardworking people and, you know, for families to get ahead. And so actually on day one, I plan on filing a bill to really reinstate the ACA health care of. care subsidies and really force these corrupt insurance companies to bring down the same and ridiculously high premium costs. Medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcy in our country, and it's crazy because people, yeah, to think about it. People are going bankrupt simply because they're trying to say a lot. How would you have the insurance companies bring down premiums? What would be the incentives? So the incentives would be to extend those subsidies, number one.

They jacked up the premiums because the subsidies failed to extend. And so looking at that, right? And so also, I'm going to make a hardcore push towards Medicare for All. But, of course, we have to do things incrementally, and extending the ACA subsidies would be a help. How would you pay for Medicare for All, even in an incremental standpoint, given that the Medicare Trust Fund has a date that's not too far in the future

where the spending, overwhelms the revenue going into it? For sure. So I think it's important to note that a budget is a moral document and it tells us what our values are. And right now here in our country, the folks in Washington,

their values are displaced. They are with corrupt corporations and the greedy billionaires. And so what I would do is actually remove, though I want to remove and repeal the the big BS bill because that's what it is.

It was not beautiful. The big beautiful bills, the so-called big-beautiful bill. Yeah, but it gave those tax break to those billionaires and to the ultra-rich. And we need to make sure that they pay what they owe to help us with our Medicare for all. The Senate passed the War Powers Act recently, which would remove U.S. forces from action against or within Iran. Do you support the war that's going on right now between the United States and Iran? What I support is us looking at ways in which we can be more diplomatic and using a fine-tooth comb as it relates to any type of military spending, right?

We need to scrutinize everything. Again, our priorities are displaced. We literally have active duty military that are on food stamps. and veterans that are living homeless on the street. And I know that there were advisor, security advisors that warned against us even going into the war in the first place. Do you support the war now that it's underway?

Right now, I think we need to really reassess how we can get our troops home safely because right now what we're seeing is we are destroying lives and we just lost several men and women in uniform the other day. This week, 309 people were arrested during a four-day immigration enforcement operation in Palm Beach County. What would be your immigration priorities if elected to the Senate? Thank you for that question. And so right now we need a massive overhaul of the immigration system. I believe in a

compassionate and comprehensive and clear pathway to citizenship, especially from their status families. I also believe that we need to grant citizenship to the DACA recipients and the dreamers. And then right now we need to extend TPS for the Haitian community, Syrian community, and also we look at the Venezuelan community. What does that say about us that we only care about people's labor when they're actually bringing so much culture to our country? And also, it's just really important for us to stop allowing.

going ice to be weaponized, they are literally slaughtering American citizens in the street, as well as some folks who are immigrants. And we do not need that agency terrorizing our community, and that's what they're doing right now. Would you support continuing to fund immigration, customs enforcement? So I believe that we need to reroute that money, right, and actually put it towards modernizing the immigration system and allowing us to get more staff so that we can make sure that folks go, they're able to go to court

so that they can get their pathway to citizenship, right? And the courts are backed up, the immigration courts are backed up right now. And so we can use some of that money for that. We are speaking with Angie Nixon, State Representative from Jacksonville, running for the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate.

Representative, what do you make of recent and primary election wins by Democratic Socialists of America candidates? So what I make of all these recent wins across the country is that people are tired of status quo, establishment, political pandering. They want people who actually talk to people who aren't afraid and who don't run away from questions,

who are willing to debate, willing to, to go to meetings, even if it makes them uncomfortable, because people want someone that's really going to speak to their issues. Folks are ready for Medicare for all. They're clamoring for free childcare, and they are tired of people who, the status quo, who are saying, oh, we'll get to it, we'll get to it later.

So free childcare, the child care would be paid for. It's just, it may not be paid for by the parent receiving the child care itself. Someone has to be paid at some point. It's been reported that you're a, you have, are a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. Is that accurate, representative? I'm also a member of the Working Families Party.

I'm a member of a union, and I am a member of any organization that looks towards ensuring that people's quality of life are improved. Like, I believe that hardworking everyday people deserve the opportunity to shape their communities as well as their economies. And those are the things that all of the organizations that I am a part of, you believe. The Democratic Socialists of America platform includes a position to abolish the United States Senate, the institution you're running to join.

Is that a platform that you support as a member of the DSA? You know, I support a lot of things that the DSA stands for, especially when it comes to their pushback and they fight against anti-Semitism and Islamophobia and racism. But they, most importantly, they fight to put the power back in the hands of the people to ensure that folks actually have a say in their government. I believe that we need to build a multi-racial working class and actually allow them to decide the trajectory of our country. Does that include abolishing the Senate? You know, I don't always agree with everything that all the organizations that I'm a part of,

but that's something that I can definitely look into. Representative Angie Nixon, a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate. Representative, thanks for joining us. Appreciate it. Thank you for having me. Sure thing. The representative will face Alex Vindman in this Democratic primary. Vindman is an Army veteran, former member of the National Security Council. He was a witness in President Donald Trump's first impeachment trial.

Alex, thanks for your time today. Let's start with affordability because half of Floridians say the cost of living is the most important problem facing Florida. So how will you address that if elected to the U.S. Senate? Tom, good to be on with you. It is very much true, and it's true across the political spectrum that we are in an affordability crisis. People are fleeing the state or just simply struggling. It's a desert for young people in their 20s. I see that in places like the villages, where I'd been twice. The first time was actually during the morning of a Trump rally when people were waiting in the line and I was wearing my veterans baseball hat

talking to fellow veterans and hearing them express their deep concerns about their neighbors leaving the state, young folks leaving the state. It's the same. The state population though, Alex, actually has been increasing. I mean, there's some places in the state it has been decreasing, the highest cost areas such as South Florida, but overall the state population has continued to grow. Oh, it's a shifting population for sure. I think the folks that are here on fixed income feel it very much. Young folks feel it very much. I think we're in flux right now. The data sets that you're probably looking at show the hardships that people are facing with regards to homeownerships, homeownership utility prices. So that's true. So what's the priority for you

if elected to the Senate about attacking that? So the first thing, and I've got a whole Florida first agenda at Alexvenman.com, is tackling something unique and singular to Florida, which is the highest insurance rates in the country. Home insurance you're talking about, or health insurance or all insurance? Home insurance in particular, it's both, but it's home insurance. So home insurance is regulated at the state level. What can the federal government do? It is both the state and the federal have a role here at the federal level.

We're thinking along the lines of a national flood insurance program that is a backstop for catastrophic losses. So we have a national flood insurance program already. This is different. This is focused on a home backstopping for natural disasters. And the theory here is that, you know, the insurance companies will still pay their first dollar. But if there is a massive loss, this doesn't bankrupt the insurance companies or make their business insolvent. And I'm frankly less concerned about the insurance companies and more concerned about keeping them here where they could compete against each other and drive down costs. This is very much focused on a cost agenda.

We have surging utility prices, food prices. Everything is going up and partially because we are making some terrible decisions with this. administration and the rubber stamp my opponent Ashley Moody signing on, for instance, to a war 10 times voting to give this administration a free pass that is surging the cost of gas. Let me ask you about the war in Iran. You served in the United States military in the Army, and thank you for your service. The Senate passed the War Powers Act that would remove U.S. forces from action against or within Iran. Do you support the war with Iran? I don't. I think it's a foolish and dangerous war. I'm a 21-year Army.

veteran combat veteran purple heart recipient i understand the real cost of war and it's not just dollars and cents it's our real treasure it's our american american soldier so it really bothers me that ashley moody voted against this 10 times she voted to give this administration a free pass and what is a consequence we've squandered a hundred billion dollars we've got nearly 20 killed and hundreds injured and the prices for floridians that are already struggling are going through the roof. What can you do if elected to the U.S. Senate if the war in Iran is still ongoing in January of 27? Yeah. So this is very much in the powers and purview of Senate. What I would do is I would conduct hearings to understand not, I wouldn't look backwards, although I have lots of questions

about why we're in this war. I look forwards about our way out that keeps our country safe, advances our national security. So I'd ask Pete Hackseth, who I think is deeply unqualified, the Secretary of Defense. Secretary of Defense about how he's conducting this war. I'd want to understand what the objectives are. Right now, it's unclear. The theory was very quick regime change. That's not going to happen.

Punishing the regime sufficiently where they capitulate is not going to happen. They're now in control of some key terrain, and that's driving up prices for Americans here thousands and thousands of miles away. Let me ask you about one rule in the U.S. Senate that has been key. regarding several pieces of legislation is the filibuster, essentially the parliamentary rule in the U.S. Senate that it requires 60 votes in the Senate to get major pieces of legislation passed. Do you support the filibuster?

I'm very much reform-minded, looking at different areas that we need to catch up with regards to our democracy and make sure that we hold ourselves accountable. I am very much for a talking filibuster where there's skin in the game. And if you feel strongly about an issue, that Mr. Smith goes to Washington. Yeah, to stand up at the podium or the lectern then

and kind of speak for hours on hours. But what about that 60 vote threshold? That 60 vote threshold is a bit of a mirage that's already been eroded in certain pockets under this administration. It is important to protect the voices of the minority so that there's some sort of balance and check on accesses. I'm very much thinking through other prescriptions in the Supreme Court transparency and, you know, term limits in the Supreme Court are something that we should be looking at.

There's no stock trading should be banned. Regarding the Supreme Court, are you satisfied with the nine Justice Supreme Court? I think that I'm looking at the first step here is going to be making sure that they are held to the same standard as any federal judge on reporting their same way that I am right now having to report on any of my income. income or any of my contacts. They should be obligated to do the same thing. I think term limits is a practical way to place to go. There is a one of the most essential pieces of maybe transformative legislation which would pass is a ban on stock trading. No no stock trading at all for anyone serving in the U.S. Congress or Senate. My opponent Ashley Moody, she's traded more than two million dollars in stock on insider information only Congress gets. That should be wrong and I want to make

sure people go to jail. Now, what kind of evidence do you have to accuse her of trading on inside information? Because any information that you get in Congress is singular and specific. She sits on the house. And you know she's using that information in her stock portfolio? So let me, let me be clear about this, because this is a very important point. She sits on the help committee, health services, overseeing big pharma stock. And she trades their stock. Well, so it oversees the pharmaceutical industry, not the stock market of the pharmaceutical companies. But do you have direct? evidence that she's used some inside information to make stock trades. Yes, it's the fact that she sits and has unique information that the general public doesn't

have. That's why this should be illegal. The general public fully understands that this is wrong. That, in fact, part of the reason that they're suffering is because we have politicians that are corrupt and corrupted by these special interests in the pockets of special interests. What do you make of recent primary election wins elsewhere in the United States by Democratic socialist of American candidates. I think that those kinds of candidates may resonate in pockets, in

urban cores like New York, but in fact, those are islands. Floridians are not interested in that brand of politics. What they're interested in is somebody with a track record. In my case, again, a 21-year combat veteran served as a diplomat, served in the Pentagon and the White House on the National Security Council.

a track record of delivering on some of the biggest challenges we face. And frankly, somebody that's going to be thoughtful and pragmatic, fighting the fights that need to be fought, and then also recognizing that in order to get anything done, we need to end the dysfunction and make sure that bipartisanship is not an option. It's a necessity. That's how we get things done. Alex Vindman is a Democratic candidate for the United States Senate here in Florida.

Alex, thank you so much for your time. Appreciate it. I'm terrific. Looking forward to the next time. You can let us know your thoughts on the United States Senate. Senate race here in the state of Florida by emailing radio at the Floridaundup.org. Radio at the Florida roundup.org. What are the issues driving your vote during this primary election and on into the general election this fall? Radio at the Florida roundup.org. Stick around. Plenty

more to come here. You are listening to the Florida Rondup from your Florida Public Radio Station. This is the Florida Roundup. I'm Tom Hudson. Thanks for being with us. Florida's education system has a new leader now. This week, the State Board of Education named Henry Mack as the next education commissioner. Governor Ron DeSantis recommended Mack, who's a former senior chancellor at the United States Department of Education, and most recently he was the U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor. Mack has been critical of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, and he's been a supporter of what's referred to as a classical education. That's a teaching approach backed by many political conservatives. It is an honor beyond words to be entrusted with stewarding Florida schools at this pivotal moment, and I approach this responsibility with the utmost respect for the work that you've already accomplished. Mack replaces Anastasios Kamutsas, who became president at Polk State College. There may be a new chapter being written in Florida's era of book removals from public school libraries. After pulling hundreds of books from the shelves, one Florida school district is now questioning whether traditional high school libraries are still needed at all.

From our partner station WUSF in Tampa, Douglas Sol has more. Could high school libraries have a different purpose? Clay County School Board member Ashley Gilhousin asked the question at a recent workshop. One thing that would be helpful is hearing from our second day. education folks and our principals about what did they see as the benefits of the media center, what would be a high level function for that space in their school. Chief academic officer Roger Daly floated them as research centers and more. School stores make sense.

There's all kinds of. There's a big room. But right now most of the senior high libraries, I hate saying this, but you know, these kids sit in there at lunch because it's quieter than the cafeteria. But he says one thing high schoolers are not doing is checking up. a lot of books. We're spending a lot of resources on a problem that I acknowledge exist, and at the same time, kids aren't actually reading the books at all. They're not reading the good ones either. But who decides what's good or bad? The district has removed classics, like the Handmaid's Tale,

Slaughterhouse Five, and the color purple. Stefano Farrell from the Florida Freedom to Read Project says libraries aren't supposed to only have books that appeal to everyone. Libraries are a place of self-selection and volunteer reading. If you don't like a book, you don't have to read it. And I think we've lost sight of that. But Daly says there's a quote, in the supply of stuff that's totally inappropriate. He says the district should apply the same standards to library books

it uses for textbooks. Daly also mentions options like pulling fiction books off the shelves than putting them back on after review or removing all books from certain, quote, problematic authors. And he says books need to be more aggressively weeded out. I think you're going to continue to see empty shells at the high school and collegiate level in the future because the younger generation, they consume information digitally, not on paper. Farrell says that doesn't mean books have to be sacrificed. She suggests giving high schoolers

scheduled library time. And it's not that she's against libraries changing. There are definite ways that you could update a space. We see our public libraries adding podcast booths and conference rooms and project stations. These are all great things to have, but what they also have is a large collection of books. She and other book access advocates warned these kinds of conversations aren't just happening in Clay County.

William Johnson, director of Penn America's Florida office, says they're the next step in Florida book banning. So this is a bigger conversation that goes beyond any single book. It's a conversation about the future of reading, intellectual freedom and what school libraries should look like in Florida. Clay County has removed more books than most school districts in the state. The vast majority of challenges have come from a single conservative activist. Not every school board faces as many complaints, but the Florida Freedom to Read

projects, Stefana Farrell, says they fuel similar pressures. For the most part, fear is taken over. Districts interpret new library laws differently, while private school vouchers have left many with fewer resources to review books. Meanwhile, several major First Amendment lawsuits over book removals await rulings from federal appeals courts. The Clay County School District says in a statement, its exploratory workshop was an effort to modernize learning environments. It says it's trying to maximize student engagement and promote digital success. April Dawkins, president of the American Association of School Librarians, agrees libraries should evolve with the times. However, the conversation that I saw in that meeting did not make me think that that was what they were doing, that that was the intent of that

conversation. It felt more like this was a way to remove books that they found objectionable. The school board says it plans to research and revisit the topic. Docins hopes the board talks with parents and students too. I'm Douglas Sol in Tallahassee. One more note about education in Florida this week. It was 120 years ago that the University of Florida moved from Lake City to Gainesville. The reaction to the move was, shall we say, divided at the time. Francis Sled Blake was the daughter of the university's first president, Andrew Sledd. Back in 1974, she was interviewed about that move of UF, and she remembered that Lake City residents were none too happy about losing the state university. They did not like the losing, or actually the money that came in from the

students and from the college. They didn't want to lose the business. Now, Lake City was the university's flagship home before that move back 120 years ago this week. And Blake remembered one person living in Lake City tried to intimidate her father in a particularly early 20th century way. They threatened father with tying and feathering him if they could catch him. And, of course, that was a dare, but she accepted. Well, the move took place without incident, and UF was in its new home in Gainesville for the first day of school back in September in 1906. Yeah. The semester started in September 120 years ago. I'm Tom Hudson,

and you're listening to the Florida Rundup from your Florida Public Radio Station. Let's move on to some environmental news starting with the River of Grass. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Florida finalized a major deal this week to have the state takeover a critical piece of the multi-billion dollar multi-decade-long Everglades restoration. As environmental editor Jenny Stalettovich from our member station W. Lerin and South Florida reports, the agreement will help speed up the critical work. I don't want to alarm anybody, but the salinity levels at Florida Bay have been spiking. Those of us in the game have been paying attention to that. Pedro Ramirez is the superintendent of Everglades National Park. He spoke at the signing ceremony

just north of the park, describing what's essentially the plumbing project needed to move fresh water from Lake Okeechobee into the park and Florida Bay. This is exactly what we need to be doing in order to avoid having to be concerned about what happens downstream every single year when we have events like this. Drought and water not getting to the right places at the right time. Because the Everglades have been chronically dry and cut off from water flow, extreme drought conditions remain in the middle of the marshes even two months after this year's rainy season started. That can leave Florida Bay too salty and vulnerable to seagrass. die-offs, algae blooms, and fish kills. This project, the Blue Chantee Flowway, will remove about 10 miles of levees and berms. Eliminating barriers that have disrupted the flow of water

for longer than I have been alive, and that's a long time. Ramirez says the deal speeds up work by about five years. I'm Jenny Stoledevich in Miami. A week ago, the Trump administration announced it was redefining the word harm to exclude the destruction of habitats, for protected plant and animal species. This week, the Trump administration made another environmental announcement, more regulatory changes to the Endangered Species Act. Central Florida Public Media's environment reporter Molly Dureg tells us how the changes could affect Florida's favorite mammal, the manatee.

One change eliminates what's known as the ESA's blanket rule for threatened species. It automatically protects against harm, harassment, and death for any species listed as threatened, even though it's a less severe designation than endangered. The other change requires agencies to consider economic and national security interests when designating critical habitat for a protected species. Elizabeth Neville with Save the Manatee Club says it's a dangerous change for manatees. What it really is going to do practically is it's going to put a weight on the scale

in favor of economic interests over conservation. Neville says she's concerned if the changes could lead to more watercraft collisions, a leading cause of death for manatees. So far this year, those collisions have killed 72. The Department of the Interior says the changes will advance the Trump administration's directive to strengthen America's energy independence. In Orlando, I'm Molly Durig.

All right, from mammals to reptiles now, three small and stealthy Florida native reptiles were added to the endangered species list this week. The Keys mole skink, the Rim Rock Crown Snake, and the key ring-necked snake. All three, can now only be found in parts of the Florida Keys or Miami-Dade County. And they're the first animals to be added since the second Trump administration began.

These species represent millions of years of unique evolutionary history. And they're only found here in Florida where habitat loss is pushing them to the brink of extinction. And unfortunately, once they're gone, they will be gone forever. That's Reagan Whitlock, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, which first petitioned to have the animals listed back in 2010 and 20, 2012. And then finally this week on the Florida Roundup, Ryan Carney knew what he wanted to do with his life for many years. He just didn't know how he was going to accomplish it. I don't know how I'm going to do it, but one day I'm going to X-rays scan an archaeopteryx reconstruct its entire

skeleton in 3D and figure out if it could fly. Archaeopterychus. It lived about 150 million years ago in what today is Germany. It's thought to be an ancestor to are modern birds. Well, today, Carney is a professor at the University of South Florida, and he's done it. He's accomplished it. He's created the most scientifically accurate 3D reconstruction of the Ariopterykis. Today, his model greets visitors at the National Geographic Museum of Exploration in Washington, D.C. And he has used animation software to determine that, in fact, yes, this dinosaur could fly.

His research has even figured out the color of its feathers, matte black. So, no, not the Florida pink like our American flamingos here in the Sunshine State. That is our program for today. The Florida Roundup is produced by WLRN Public Media in Miami with assistance from WUSF in Tampa. The show is produced by Bridget O'Brien. Denise Royal is W. LRN's senior producer of content streaming and news products. WLRN's director of live original programming is Katie Munoz. The vice president of radio is Peter Merritt.

The program's technical director is M.J. Smith. engineering help each and every week, Doug Peterson, Harvey Bissard, and Ernesto J. Our theme music is provided by Miami jazz guitarist Aaron Leibos at Aaron Leibos.com. Send us a quick email. The inbox is always open, waiting for you. Radio at the Florida Roundup. org. What backyard birds are you spotting this time of year? Radio at the Florida Roundup.org. Thanks for calling, emailing, listening, and above all, supporting public media here in the Sunshine State. I'm Tom Hudson. Have a terrific weekend.

Thank you.