A First: New Fiscal Year With No
Florida Forever Funding
TALLAHASSEE, FL — July 1, 2009 — For the first time since the creation of Preservation 2000/Florida Forever 20 years ago, the state of Florida will make no new annual investment in this essential qualify-of-life program.
UFlorida’s new $66.5 billion state budget — which goes into effect today, the first day of the new 2009-2010 Fiscal Year — contains no new bond funding for Florida Forever.
“The failure to fund Florida Forever prevents us from utilizing current market conditions to increase land conservation, it sends a message of uncertainty to the citizens of Florida who overwhelmingly back Florida Forever, and it makes the restoration of funding next year a new challenge,” said Andy McLeod, government affairs director for The Nature Conservancy in Florida. “This cut in funding represents a major setback for Florida’s environment and quality-of-life.
Yet, while this cut is disheartening, the resolve of The Nature Conservancy to fight for Florida Forever is undiminished. “We are committed more than ever to obtaining future funding to protect Florida’s extraordinary natural resources.” McLeod said.
McLeod noted that some Florida Forever projects will continue — utilizing past bond funding — due to the support of Gov. Charlie Crist and the careful legislating of Senate President Jeff Atwater, Sens. J.D. Alexander, Carey Baker, Al Lawson, and Dan Gelber, and others in the Florida Senate.
The vast majority of Florida voters support funding for Florida Forever at its historic levels, according to a statewide survey conducted for The Nature Conservancy and the Trust for Public Land by Public Opinion Strategies. Fully 81 percent indicated they have a positive impression of Florida Forever, with 44 percent having a very favorable impression of it. Support was exactly the same with voters of all partisan affiliations, as 67 percent of Republicans, 67 percent of Independents and 67 percent of Democrats supported maintaining funding. Voters in major areas of the state were consistently supportive of funding this program:
Tampa Bay 73 percent support
West Palm Beach 73 percent support
Jacksonville 71 percent support
Miami/Ft Lauderdale 67 percent support
Orlando 66 percent support
Panhandle 60 percent support
The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. With funding from the Florida Forever program and our generous donors the Conservancy has helped protect more than 1.2 million acres in Florida since 1961. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org/florida.
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