Wearing reflective vests and hard hats, more than 400 transportation workers rallied at the Capitol on Tuesday, protesting any cuts to the State Transportation Trust Fund (STTF).
Led by the Florida Transportation Builders Association (FTBA), which represents more than 250,000 employees, the workers protested a proposal in the House budget that would remove $160 million from the trust fund. Leaders of the business community joined the workers, saying raiding the fund will increase the states record-high unemployment rate.
These cuts will ultimately put 11,000 jobs at risk, said Bob Burleson, president of FTBA.
Any reduction in the Transportation Trust Fund means a loss of thousands of jobs, said Dominic Calabro, president and CEO of Florida TaxWatch.
We can't afford to push the unemployment rate any further, warned Barney Bishop, president and CEO of the Associated Industries of Florida. We need jobs and we need jobs now.
The Senate budget does not touch the Transportation Trust Fund, a fact that transportation workers were reminded about during the hearing. Quoting General George Patton, Douglas Callaway, president of Floridians for Better Transportation, encouraged workers to give the Senate a pat on the back and the House a spanking.
If the Florida House of Representatives adopted the same attitude as the Florida Senate, we would not need to be here, said Burleson.
Rep. Greg Evers, R-Baker, who fought against the House plan, agreed, telling workers, The Senate has been your saving grace.
Speaking to the workers, Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, encouraged them to lobby the Legislature and expressed his support, saying that Floridas future relies on increased connectivity and transportation.
The business leaders also stressed how important transportation is to Floridas economy.
Transportation is the backbone of the Florida economy, said Gabe Sheheane of the Florida Chamber of Commerce. This is where it starts.
We should be using the Transportation Trust Fund for transportation-ready, shovel-ready projects, said Bishop, who noted that every $1 spent on road projects results in $7 for the economy. Thats a hell of a deal.
Noting that former Gov. Jeb Bush faced a recession during his tenure in office, Callaway said that Bush continued to fund the STTF. He called for the workers to ask the legislators, W.W.J.D-- What would Jeb do?
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or (850) 727-0859.
