Continuing a trend that's persisted throughout the term of his administration, Florida Gov. Rick Scott is once again receiving high praise from the state's business community for four of the 36 bills he signed into law Thursday.
"Today, Governor Scott helped position Florida to become even more competitive by signing bills into law that protect Floridas environment, encourage high-skill, high-wage jobs in the space, aerospace and defense industries, eliminate costly and redundant environmental regulations and clarify transportation concurrency laws, David Hart, executive vice president of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement shortly after the signing.
As Florida prepares to pass New York to become the third largest state in the nation, the smart growth leadership measures Governor Scott has signed into law will help ensure Florida is poised for positive economic growth and competitiveness, he continued.
The four bills Hart referred to are:
SB 1808 (Numeric Nutrient Criteria)
Enacts water nutrient regulations agreed upon by the state and the federal government. The federal government's initial proposal would have imposed more costs on Florida taxpayers and agribusiness owners.
HB 4013 (Tax Refund Programs)
Lifts the lifetime cap on tax credits for the defense contractor and space flight industries.
HB 999 (Environmental Regulation)
Reforms Floridas environmental regulations to eliminate cost-burdensome redundancies.
HB 319 (Community Transportation Projects)
Restricts how counties collect fees from builders to pay for road improvements, so that developers don't pay more than their proportional share of a projects transportation costs.
Tom Feeney, president of the Associated Industries of Florida (AIF), echoed Hart's sentiments.
Helping to cut through multiple layers of costly bureaucratic red tape and streamlining environmental regulatory and permitting processes will encourage more companies to hang their shingle in Florida, he told Sunshine State News. By signing HB 999 into law, Governor Scott has shown his continued support for policies that promote a business-friendly climate in Florida.
Additionally, AIF and the members of its Numeric Nutrient Criteria Task Force are pleased that Governor Scott signed the Numeric Nutrient Criteria legislation that codified a landmark agreement between our state and federal governments on water-quality standards, he continued. As the leading business advocate for Floridas water issues, this has been at the top of AIFs agenda for many years. Our state will now have the most stringent water-quality standards in the nation and we can ensure our water is protected based on sound science.
Reach Eric Giunta at egiunta@sunshinestatenews.com or at (954) 235-9116.
