Staff Reports
Americans for Prosperity-Florida is launching a campaign to salute state lawmakers who sponsored legislation to cut red tape in occupational licensing, thereby reducing roadblocks to creating jobs.
As part of the campaign, AFP-FL will release a series of direct mail and digital ads in the respective districts of House and Senate members who are sponsoring a variety of measures to reform occupational licenses.
AFP-FL’s campaign will include Sen. Manny Diaz (for SB 1238) and Rep. Ana Maria Rodriguez (for HB 729) for filing legislation to cut regulatory red tape; as well as Sens. Keith Perry and Diaz (for SB 1124), and Ben Albritton (for SB 474), and Reps. Paul Renner (for HB 707) and Michael Grant (for HB 3).
All those proposals seek to modernize, eliminate or streamline the current process of occupational licensing.
“Florida lawmakers have an opportunity to reduce barriers to opportunity to make it possible for Floridians to reach their full potential,” said AFP-FL State Director Skylar Zander in a statement.
“We’re encouraged that these principled leaders in the Florida House and Senate are following the lead of Gov. Ron DeSantis to eliminate needless red tape and barriers to work. Our activists look forward to working throughout the upcoming Legislative Session to activate their communities to encourage their lawmakers to pass these policies.”
AFP-FL argues that undue licensing — many of which don’t have a direct impact on public health or safety — can limit job opportunities and entrepreneurship by keeping people out of occupations that require licenses. The group is urging policymakers to help reduce the scope of these licenses and remove them in areas where there is no discernible impact on public health or safety.
A sample mailer heralding Rodriguez says the South Florida Republican wants to cut red tape “to make it easier to start a business,” “keep more money in your pockets” and “break barriers to entry for Florida workers.”
The bottom of the mailer asks recipients to call the lawmaker’s office to thank them and ask them to “keep fighting to cut red tape for Florida’s small businesses.”
