Lindsay Cross doesn’t intend to let a GOP supermajority get her down this Legislative Session

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Working in the Legislature as a Democrat might feel futile at times. With a GOP supermajority, Democrats’ priorities are often dead on arrival.

But if you’re Rep. Lindsay Cross, it’s a hurdle that’s not necessarily insurmountable.

Speaking with Florida Politics this week, Cross, who represents House District 60 in St. Petersburg, said she was heartened by House Speaker Danny Perez’s speech at his designation in which he put great emphasis on this year’s legislative priorities of affordability and insurance.

“That gives me some hope that some of the policies I have been working on the past two years on affordable housing — I think there is some potential in those,” she said.

Cross was referring to, among other legislation she sponsored or co-sponsored, a measure (HB 1143) that failed to clear the finish line in this year’s Session that would have added flood inspection to the My Safe Florida Homes program and provided $205 million to fund the expansion. The program doesn’t currently provide grants for flood prevention.

A revived effort would put the issue back in play. After back-to-back hurricanes that impacted nearly the entire Gulf Coast, Cross is hoping that lawmakers who have seen or experienced widespread flooding are more inclined to support adding flood hardening — such as lifting homes — to the program.

And she is optimistic that another measure she pushed last Legislative Session (HB 1153) will gain more traction next year. The bill would have required advanced treatment of wastewater to ensure it is adequately treated to not contaminate waterways if a discharge occurs, along with reporting of information on sewage disposal facilities such as capacity and treatment protocols.

The issue is particularly prudent in St. Pete, where aging infrastructure for years has caused discharge issues during heavy or prolonged rains by overwhelming capacity. When issues first became prevalent among the public, in 2017, discharges were infrequent, and ones that did occur were billed as the result of once-in-100-year rain events. But such weather events are becoming more and more common, and St. Pete is not alone in struggling to keep up with climate change and expanding populations.

Cross said Perez has signaled that he wants to be “more strategic in how we spend our state funds.” That’s something she appreciates because, to her, it means equitable distribution of funds based on need and merit rather than “water projects that go to members for political reasons.” 

But she acknowledges that serving from the minority party — one up against a sustained GOP supermajority — is a challenge.

“I don’t think they’re going to be opening the doors wide open,” she said of House leadership hearing Democratic priorities.

Still, she said Democrats can be strategic in how they propose policy. That includes identifying co-sponsors across the aisle for true bipartisan policymaking.

“Anything I pass is going to have to be done in a bipartisan fashion,” Cross said. “I don’t have the need for the ownership of some of these ideas. I just want to bring money back to the district, but I may have to do that in a different way.” 

Water quality has always been a top issue for Cross, who works outside the Legislature as an environmental scientist. But while environmental issues are her area of expertise, she said she doesn’t want to be “pigeonholed into doing just one thing.” And she views environmental and sustainability-related policy as far-reaching issues that impact quality of life, health and economic vibrancy.

Cross says without clean water, families may not be able to maintain their health, locals may not be able to enjoy one of the region’s biggest assets, and visitors may stop flocking to the region’s beaches.

And that’s why Cross’ service from the minority is as much about mitigating what she sees as bad policy as it is advocating for good policy. She points, as an example, to a measure last year (HB 789) from Rep. Toby Overdorf that died on the House floor after considerable pushback, largely from Democrats. The measure was billed as a way to get more developers to develop on contaminated lands, known as brownfields, and clean them up in the process, by protecting those developers from being sued.

But environmental groups and Democrats, including Cross, saw it as a way to protect polluters and block accountability for their polluting.

“I think it will come back in some way,” Cross said, adding that is especially true as former President Donald Trump prepares to again take office. She fears federal rollbacks to environmental protections and further protections for polluters.

“States will have to be a stopgap to federal policies,” Cross said, adding that she’s hopeful Florida will maintain protections as a coastal state whose waterways are an outsized driver for tourism and economic activity.

And sticking with not wanting to be typecast into a particular sort of lawmaking, Cross also has her eye in the upcoming Legislative Session on property insurance.

“Speaker Perez kind of signaled to the insurance companies that they don’t get to run the show, and that is something I appreciate,” she said.

On this issue, Cross said she is hoping that work across the aisle — particularly with Rep. Hillary Cassel — will help usher some of her ideas across the finish line, though she’s not sure she’ll be the one to directly file any bills on the matter.

“I’m going to work to support other bills and maybe they can include some of the policy ideas I have,” Cross said, adding that it’s best to let people who are experts in a particular field lead legislation in those areas. Cassel is a lawyer who works directly on property insurance-related cases, including bad faith claims for policyholders.

Cross is also planning to work toward solutions for the state’s affordable housing crisis. Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are a big part of that solution, particularly in St. Pete, where many homes have detached income properties commonly referred to as in-law suites.

“I had an affordable housing policy last year that there was interest in,” Cross said. “But I think last year was a challenging time because I was a target, so I think there may be a little more breathing room this year.”

Cross was targeted this cycle by Ed Montanari, the Republican who unsuccessfully challenged Cross. Cross’ victory with 54% of the vote serves as a mandate from her constituents. So now, she is planning additional efforts to make ADUs more accessible.

Legislation she filed last year (HB 1299) would have authorized counties and municipalities to exempt ADUs from property taxes as an effort to encourage homeowners to utilize such income properties and thereby expand affordable housing stock.

“I’m just always hopeful that we can do better as a state and I’m going to play a role in that,” Cross said. “I’ll bring forward policies I think will help my constituents and I’ll work in whatever manner I need to accomplish that.” 

The 2025 Legislative Session officially kicks off March 4, but committee meetings have already begun. The 60-day Session is tentatively scheduled to end on May 2.