The bills, which include creation of a Resilient Florida Grant Program in the Department of Environmental Protection to aid local communities, came only a few years after Republican lawmakers began to openly acknowledge the impacts of climate change.
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The Nation’s Oldest City knows all too well the havoc that flooding and sea level rise.
The city of St. Augustine offered backup to the Speaker of the Florida House last week on resiliency legislation.
Mayor
Chris Sprowls supporting his proposal to create a
Resilient Florida Trust Fund. An official proclamation to this effect will follow reflecting the backing of local commissioners.
For St. Augustine, the stakes are as high as the floodwaters can get.
The House is looking to budget $25 million next fiscal year and establish a program to help local governments cover costs of addressing flooding and sea level rise. The plan, which would set up the Resilient Florida Trust Fund within the Department of Environmental Protection, calls for funding to jump to $100 million annually starting in the 2022-2023 fiscal year.