Sine Die: Florida Chamber praises policies to keep state competitive

Mark Wilson is cheering the passage of a bill to help service members transition to civilian life.

The Florida Chamber of Commerce praised a budget passed Saturday. The group said policy approved by the Florida Legislature this session keeps the state competitive.

“This session lawmakers took steps in the right direction to make Florida more competitive, but there’s still much more work for Florida to reach its potential,” said Mark Wilson, Chamber president and CEO.

Officials say the Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis honored the Florida 2030 blueprint for the future presented by the Chamber six months ago.

Among the legislative accomplishments celebrated by Chamber were school choice expansion and improving a talent pipeline, both priorities of DeSantis.

The Chamber also supported planning for the future with infrastructure, a sure nod the Senate President Bill Galvano’s toll road priorities.

The Chamber celebrated reforms to the assignment of benefits laws in Florida, which Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis made a top issue.

“This will help curb rampant litigation over homeowner property insurance claims, and help stop bad actors from abusing the system for their own gain. However, work remains to close auto glass AOB abuses,” reads a Chamber news release.

“The Florida Chamber considers this unfinished business, and looks forward to passing reforms next session.”

Funding VISIT FLORIDA’s continued existence in 2020 also won praise.

“To help keep Florida’s momentum going, lawmakers invested in Enterprise Florida, Inc., and VISIT FLORIDA, the state’s economic development and tourism marketing programs, and also invested in Space Florida,” reads a release from the group.

The Chamber also praised work done in prepping Florida for autonomous vehicles and other tech advances.

“The Florida Chamber’s Autonomous Florida program helped secure victories modernizing the autonomous vehicle regulatory structure to help make Florida the most autonomous-friendly state in the union,” the release said.

“Additionally, lawmakers reduced communications services barriers for deploying small cell devices to reliably boost 5G cellular coverage using a minimal amount of space.”

The organization praised restrictions on citizen petition gathering.

Of course, it also supported storm hardening for utilities around Florida.

The Chamber released its full Legislative summary and promised a much-anticipated Legislative Report Card to come out in the near future.