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Former House Speaker Jon Mills: Don't Create Chaos in Protection of Natural Resources

user icon CIVIC Concern | Mar 30, 2009 | there are 3 comments 3

Jon L. Mills is Dean Emeritus of the University of Florida Levin College of Law, where he founded and currently serves as director of the Center for Governmental Responsibility.  Mills is the former Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives.  Among his many legislative accomplishments was the passage of the Growth Management Act.

Former Speaker Mills wrote this guest column to oppose the Legislature's current plan to dismantle the Department of Community Affairs and weaken Florida's growth management process.

After you read his column, please share your thoughts in the comments.

Let's Not Create Chaos in the Protection of our Natural Resources

Deserting the protection of our natural resources for future generations at this moment would be like turning over the treasury to the bankers that buried our economy in the last five years. Deregulation did not work too well in that arena, and the consequences of the Legislature's plan to dismantle the Department of Community Affairs could be equally disastrous for Florida's environment and quality of life.

DCA is the watchdog for Florida's fragile lands. They stop the draining of wetlands.  They demand that costs of new roads be paid by those who will use them not the taxpayers.  They also work with local communities to help them control and manage new growth and development.  It is a hard job and certainly not popular with everyone.

Legislators should be  focused on rebuilding our economy and adding jobs, tasks that won't be made easier by enabling sprawl and environmental degradation.  Florida has struggled to maintain the environment that makes our state a great place to live in, work in, and visit.  

There are already thousands and thousands of vacant homes and condos in our state. Do we need to drop our land use rules to build more right now? Have we been too restrictive on building condos and homes in the past? Apparently not.  

Now is not the time to abandon our commitment to a sustainable future by vaporizing the Department of Community Affairs and creating chaos in the oversight of land use in our state.  It certainly makes sense to review governmental operations and eliminate inefficiencies, but completely eliminating DCA is unwise. Any administrative savings would be more than offset by the cost in taxpayer and private dollars to fix the confusion and problems that would ensue.

I agree with the bipartisan environmental coalition that believes we should be preserving the extraordinary long term value of our natural resources in bad economic times, not promoting their destruction.

tags DCA, Growth Management, Environment (all tags)


Former House Speaker Jon Mills: Don't Create Chaos in Protection of Natural Resources | 3 Comments | Post a Comment
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DCA, Growth Management, Environment

Building more homes & businesses is the LAST thing Florida needs!
    There are town houses on Socrum Loop rd. in Lakeland that cannot be given away.  They offer free rent or a flat scren t.v. if you move there.
      There are paved roads in several spots In Lakeland with no homes on them, only native weeds growing, since they cut down all trees when they built these here in Lakeland.
     Tampa is crying they do not have enough water, to water the sod they put down instead of leaving native grasses and trees.
     Perrier (I believe) is pumping millions of gallons  of water from what was once a beautiful place to swim...Crystal Springs, in Zephyrhills.  This needs to be stopped immediately!
    The GREED of some individuals is unfathomable.
    DCA NEEDS to do a better job regulating this, so I do not know if getting rid of it will matter one way or another.
     AS the fresh water is pumped out the salt water from the oceans seeps in, and the missing trees that are cut down & replaced with non indigenous plants & trees add to global warming, along with the asphalt.
      It may be too late to save MY state!  I love Florida and it's native Flora & Fauna.  Politicians, such as the greedy county commissioners in Lakeland surely don't care.
      I hope Florida can be saved.  It is a very unique place.  Humans are not the only residents.  We have some beautiful creature who share this place with us. (some are no longer here).
     Use the empty buildings already here!  Stop the UNNECESSARY building!
     The Florida Aquifer below us would greatly appreciate it!  So would I and many like me!
Melody Heilmann
Polk County, Florida
 

user icon nativefloridian | Apr 05, 2009 | rated none by 0 others

Czar Pelham

Bipartisan Environmental Coaliton..what does that mean?
What about property rights of individuals who want to build on their land but can't because of  growth management personel in  local government  or an edict from DCA ?

The House of Representaives and the business are very upset  with Pelham. Everyone knows that it is always Tom Pelham's way or no way. His staff fears him. Heck, I remember when Chiles was running against Gov. Martinez, all he had to mention that he was going to fire Pelham and he would get a standing ovation. Where is Linda Shelley and Steve Siebert...help!

user icon Ynot | Apr 29, 2009 | rated none by 0 others

Coastal Oil Drilling

Drilling off the Florida coast makes no sense as all the reasons sited as cons are true. We all must be proactive and call concressman immediately to voice oposition NOW!

user icon talboomt | Nov 06, 2009 | rated none by 0 others

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