Budget conference: $25 million earmarked for coronavirus response

The budget chiefs of the Florida House and Senate have agreed to a dedicated budget line item for a response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The number, expected earlier this week to be between $10 million and $20 million, looks to be closer to the $25 million Gov. Ron DeSantis wants.

“The request has been made, and we’re going to meet that request,” Senate Appropriations Chair Rob Bradley said Saturday after lawmakers convened to kick off final negotiations on the budget.

“The system is built to respond quickly to those circumstances,” Bradley said, noting the Executive Order the Governor issued gives him emergency powers.

House Speaker Jose Oliva lauded the response on the state level, a “very good collaborative effort” with the federal government.

Economic concern, meanwhile, causes “panic” on the economic level.

“We’re supporting the Governor. The Governor has asked for $25 million,” Oliva said.

Oliva said that the Governor and the executive branch, in concordance with the federal government, are best equipped to handle the process.

“I spoke with the Governor as late as this morning. He wanted to ensure that we were going to be supportive of him,” Oliva said.

“I would say we’re taking our cues from them,” Oliva said, adding that the Legislature is “not looking to come up with solutions on our own.”

Two people who tested positive for the new coronavirus have died in Florida, marking the first deaths on the East Coast attributed to the outbreak in the U.S., health officials said.

DeSantis directed the Florida Division of Emergency Management to raise the State Emergency Operations Center to Level II, the preparation level before a full scale activation. The division will coordinate the state’s response and provide critical support to the state and county health departments.