St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch speaks at a recent Black History Month celebration outside of City Hall. State legislation would ban such ceremonies. Photo: City of St. Petersburg.
Municipal leaders from across Florida are warning residents and business owners about the unintended consequences of ambiguous legislation that bans any actions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
For example, the entire Miami Beach City Commission recently signed a letter stating that the rapidly advancing companion bills could jeopardize cultural heritage celebrations, Jewish and Black film festivals, emergency alert translation services, and health initiatives – such as free mammograms. The proposed legislation would also require businesses that work with local governments to abstain from promoting diversity, equity, or inclusion (DEI).
St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch, Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis, Tallahassee Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox, Leon County Commissioner David O’Keefe, and Fernandina Beach Commissioner Genece Minshew participated in a virtual press conference on Wednesday to highlight the potential economic and social consequences of House Bill 1001 and Senate Bill 1134. They also noted that the legislation, if approved, will result in taxpayer-funded litigation.
“It may sound ridiculous, because it is ridiculous,” Welch said of the bills. “Rather than address the real issues of housing affordability, insurance, and resilience – and maybe passing a budget on time – the legislature is wasting time and money on culture wars.
“Florida can and must do better.”
Trantalis explained that the legislation would outlaw any local ordinances, resolutions, rules, regulations, programs, or policies that merely reference historically protected classes, including race, color, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis at a Stonewall Pride Parade. Photo: City of Fort Lauderdale.
HB 1001, which goes before the House for consideration on Thursday, prohibits municipal participation in and public funding for DEI-related events. Trantalis said an upcoming St. Patrick’s Day parade, along with intended impacts to people of color and the LGBTQ community, would “be a goner.”
SB 1134, which the Senate subsequently passed on Wednesday, provides “allowances for Black history and federally-recognized patriotic observances,” Williams-Cox said. However, that is “not enough specificity.”
The legislation enables residents to sue for perceived noncompliance. Williams-Cox noted that local governments cannot recover spent attorney fees, “even if we prevail.”
Local elected officials also face removal from office for alleged violations. “This is a penalty typically reserved for the worst kinds of public corruption,” Trantalis said.
“It’s almost getting to the point of absurdity, the extent to which these representatives in Tallahassee are taking their cultural agenda,” he added. “In reality, we’re just trying to run a city.”
Shunning several demographics in a state that relies on tourism could cause an economic downturn, Trantalis said. Williams-Cox worries that the loss of local government contracts could bankrupt minority and women-owned businesses.
Welch called the legislation “dangerous and undemocratic.” The latest attempt to “demonize” DEI efforts also subverts Florida’s constitutional principle of home rule, he said.
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill banning DEI initiatives in public colleges and universities in May 2023. He is also a staunch supporter of the exponentially more vague and sweeping legislation advancing through the legislature.
Welch believes the bills will impede the ability to address community needs, create operational uncertainty, and “weaken the public’s trust in government.” He said significant unintended consequences could impact programs supporting women and religious communities.
Residents of the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) should also take notice, although Welch said it was created to reduce poverty rather than uplift a specific demographic. While he hopes the legislation will not affect a funding mechanism that keeps tax dollars in the community, the city has seen “attempts to preempt our use of CRA dollars in the past, as well.”
“If we’re not able to continue to use small, minority, and women-owned businesses for CRA projects, then there will be an economic impact,” Williams-Cox added.
Tallahassee Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox. Photo: City of Tallahassee.
The legislation, if signed into law, would take effect in June 2027. Welch said he would look at every option, including litigation, to mitigate the impacts.
He refuses to accept “this new version of DEI as being discriminatory and prejudiced.” Welch and Williams-Cox noted that their cities have conducted exhaustive structural racism studies that highlight the need for socioeconomic equity.
“I don’t think anyone sent a legislator to Tallahassee to kill DEI – I just don’t believe that,” Williams-Cox said. “Now what I do blame residents for is not keeping up, because everybody’s busy living their life.”
While time is running out, she encourages residents to “check your folk, and let them know what they’re doing is harming you.” Welch pledged that he would continue to “stand firmly in the defense of local self-governance and the right of our residents to shape our own futures.”
Share Your News with Us
To share news with the Power Broker, connect with reachout@powerbrokermagazine.com. To sign up for our twice-weekly e-newsletter, visit www.powerbrokermagazine.com; and to join our online conversation, subscribe to our YouTube channel at Power Broker Media Group – YouTube.
