Scott Powers
Gov. Rick Scott‘s proposal to spend $5.8 billion to beef up state counterterrorism drew a joint endorsement Thursday from the Florida League of Cities and the Florida Police Chiefs Association.
The two groups’ leaders signed a statement applauding Scott’s proposal and urging the Florida Legislature to approve it.
On Wednesday during stops in Orlando and Tampa, Scott and Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Rick Swearingen announced plans to seek $5.8 million in the next budget to add 38 special agents and eight intelligence analysts specializing in counterterrorism. The new agents and analysts would beef up existing FDLE units allowing them too coordinate with all federally-organized counterterrorism task forces in Florida.
Florida. League of Cities President Susan Haynie, who is mayor of Boca Raton, and Florida Police Chiefs Association President Albert “Butch” Arenal, police chief of Coconut Creek, issued a statement reading:
“The majority of Florida’s 20 million residents live in our cities, towns, and villages, and our municipalities face the constant threat of being targeted by terrorist acts. Governor Scott’s plan will institute a dedicated team of highly skilled, well-trained, and resolute experts whose sole mission will be to address the modern scourge of terrorism. This smart, forward-thinking, and unfortunately necessary proposal represents a cost-effective way to provide Floridians with a measure of assurance that their public servants are doing everything possible to protect them. We applaud the Governor’s leadership in advocating for these 46 agents and analysts, and we urge the Legislature to help protect the people of our state, not on the basis of what this costs but because of what it likely will save: lives.”
