Jim Rosica
Faced with a call from Florida’s leading growers for the state’s Department of Citrus to “be scaled back considerably,” Gov. Rick Scott has put restrictions on the nearly $7.7 million in general revenue given to the agency in the 2016-17 state budget.
One condition, The Lakeland Ledger reported Friday, is that the Governor’s Office will look over any new contracts using state money “to ensure transparency and competitive procurements,” quoting a letter from Scott’s office. FloridaPolitics.com also requested a copy of the letter.
The department is overseen by the Florida Citrus Commission; the governor appoints all nine of its commissioners.
“I ask that the commission review the department’s programmatic and budgetary needs to identify a level of tax relief for the (Florida citrus) industry, recognizing that it may redefine the department’s mission during this challenging time,” Scott wrote, according to the Ledger.
A dozen growers, including Florida Citrus Hall of Famer Ben Hill Griffin III, sent a letter in February to Florida Citrus Commission Chairman Ellis Hunt Jr., with copies to Scott, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, House Speaker Steve Crisafulli – scion of a prominent citrus family – and others.
The growers said they “do not believe current marketing programs are generating an economic return.” A so-far incurable disease called citrus greening is attacking fruit, causing it to turn green and bitter, and eventually killing the tree. Florida’s famous oranges are most at risk.
The department is “charged with the marketing, research and regulation of the Florida citrus industry” and is funded “by a tax paid by growers on each box of citrus,” its website explains.
