Scott Cuts Deep With Veto Pen

Todays News

Budget items approved for Southwest Florida projects felt the sting of Gov. Rick Scott’s veto pen Tuesday. Whether it was sports programs like the Modern Pentathlon, cultural efforts like the Circus Arts Conservatory or medical endeavors like a residency program at Manatee Glens, some $461.4 million in cuts to the budget left leaders in the region scrambling to find new ways to move forward.

Scott in a budget statement said he wanted to eliminate any special funding in the $78.2-billion state budget that wasn’t going toward efforts with direct benefits. Dubbing the budget as the “Keep Florida Working Budget,” he stressed job creation and investment in education, but also cited a need for efficient use of tax dollars. “Tax revenue is generated by Floridians who are working hard to provide for their families and we are committed to effectively using these dollars by investing them in areas with proven results,” Scott said. 

Mary Ruiz, president and CEO of Manatee Glens, said the loss of $300,000 in money dedicated by the Florida Legislature for a residency program there but vetoed by the governor, will affect the ability of the hospital to produce mental health professionals at a sufficient rate. “We’re very disappointed that the needs of Florida’s counties, 17 of which have no psychiatrist and six of which only have one, will be pushed out to the future,” Ruiz said, “but there is always next year.” Ruiz said the program could have been grown from five to six residents and expanded to include fellowships and address addiction and children’s issues. 

At The Circus Arts Conservatory, the institution got news of $500,000 in funding getting vetoed. That happened after Scott vetoed $1 million in last year’s budget. Managing Director Jennifer Mitchell said the institution suffers some stigma from the word ‘circus’ being in its name, but she had been hopeful having the dollars earmarked for economic development instead of simply culture might spare veto pain on a second year. “If you aren’t from Sarasota, I don’t know that you recognize the historical significance of circus arts to the state,” Mitchell said. She also expected the high-profile fights between the state Senate and House, the latter of which ended session without approving a budget this year and forced a special session, led to greater scrutiny on project funding. The conservatory will seek private sector support to make up for the lost funding. 

Modern Pentathlon Organizing Committee chair Katherine Harris seemed shocked by the veto of $250,000 in funding. “It’s completely essential funding,” she said. In coming days, Harris said the committee will meet to discuss how to handle the loss in funding as it prepared for a series of world-class sporting events at Nathan Benderson Park.  

Plenty of other projects saw slashes as well, with IMG Academy losing out on more than $2 million in one of the biggest line item vetoes in this year’s budget. South Florida Museum lost $250,000 for its Backyard Universe program. The Sarasota County Agricultural Fair Association missed out on $500,000 in approved funding, and an $850,000 special funding transfer to the Unviersity of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee got vetoed as well. A $500,000 budget item for an emergency room diversion program in Manatee County got slashed, and $250,000 for the Sarasota Bay Restoration Project’s Phillippi Creek Septic System Replacement Program was cut as well, as was $300,000 in security improvement funding for Port Manatee. The Roskamp Institute’s oncology drug development program missed out on $250,000.

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