By Joe Murphy
At the time this column was being written, two things were occurring. First, the Florida Legislature had failed to pass a reconciled budget and was going into post-session negotiations to do so. Second, the Legislature had failed to fully fund the Florida Forever program. While both events are disappointing, the latter is catastrophic.
As of now, the Florida House’s proposed budget has allocated zero dollars for one of America’s most respected and effective conservation lands programs. The Florida Senate allocated $35 million. Neither allocation is even close to what this program needs and deserves. Failure to fully fund the Florida Forever program will represent a failure to respect the needs and wishes of Floridians.
I want to make a straightforward and urgent plea to the Florida Legislature: Fully fund Florida Forever! Reconcile the budget, be heroes to the people and go home proudly having stood up for public lands.
I assert there are at least five compelling reasons to fully fund Florida Forever.
Kayaks along the water at Wekiwa Springs State Park (iStock image)
Working Floridians don’t respect leaving a job halfway done. Abandoning Florida Forever leaves the noble work of creating public lands for people and for wildlife only partially done. Willing sellers will not have the opportunity to sell. Critical public projects will be in limbo. Development will gobble up even more of wild Florida while willing sellers wait for future opportunities. Floridians expect more from their legislators.
While the Florida Rural and Family Lands Protection Program will indeed conserve valuable land, and should be fully funded as well, it is only one of the tools needed to truly conserve natural and recreational lands. There are critical habitats and recreation areas it can’t or won’t conserve. It is designed to work with Florida Forever, not be in competition with it for funding.
Working Floridians know you use all the tools you can and need to complete the job. An electrician would not leave half of the tools in the truck before going into a job site. A mechanic would not leave half of their tools at home before working on a car in the garage.
When my friends, family, and neighbors go fishing we don’t leave half of our tackle boxes at home. Florida needs all of the tools in the conservation toolbox and needs them all fully funded.
For many it is a matter of faith. For many Floridians of faith, we have a sacred and moral obligation to cherish and protect creation. We can do that by fully funding Florida Forever and protecting creation from destruction. We can protect species from the dark night of extinction from which there is no dawn. We must be responsible stewards of creation.
Working families deserve the affordability of places to engage in outdoor recreation and honor Florida’s sporting legacy. Floridians want more affordability. Fully funding Florida Forever creates more free or low-cost places for families to hunt, fish, camp, ride horses, watch wildlife, swim, paddle, hike or ride all-terrain vehicles.
Public lands purchased through Florida Forever are affordable to use. This is a chance for the Legislature to actually offer some relief with affordability. Average families can build memories and bond with time spent in nature and create deeper sporting legacies – my family did.
A small investment in public lands and Florida Forever offers a huge return on the money allocated. When a willing seller negotiates a fair price with the state of Florida to sell their land, the return on the investment for the state of Florida is huge.
Joe Murphy
Natural areas store and clean flood waters. Nature has a tremendous ability to provide clean air. Nature can sequester carbon. Without pollinators, agriculture in Florida would suffer. Green space, open space, recreational areas and wildlife habitat don’t require new schools, more roads, more police, more firefighters and more infrastructure. Nobody ever got stuck in endless traffic because of Florida Forever.
Future generations deserve better. If we fully fund Florida Forever and invest in outdoor recreation and wildlife, we ensure our grandchildren have a small chance to know some of the Florida their grandparents knew. If we show that we valued the rights of future generations and created and protected legacy, we will be well respected and regarded. If we fail to do so, our legacy will be crowded roads, endless rooftops, fewer places to hunt and fish, and species lost forever
Future generations deserve better. So do we. Fully fund Florida Forever.
Joe Murphy is a native and lifelong Floridian who lives in Brooksville, along the Nature Coast. You can follow Joe on Instagram @naturecoastjoe. Banner photo: A Florida nature trail (iStock image).
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