Key West business owners lobby legislators over port bill
Key West organizers then assembled at the Governorâs Mansion, where they hoped to send a message to urge the governor to threaten a veto.
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In this photo provided by the Florida Keys News Bureau, Kim Stamps, left, photographs Michigan newlyweds Tyler Gillet, middle, and Ashley Gillet, right, by the Southernmost Point marker Saturday, Aug. 31, 2019, in Key West, Fla. New measures in the Florida Legislature ban cruise ships in Key West with more than 1,300 passengers from docking at the city port and limit the total number of cruise visitors who can disembark each day to 1,500. A similar bill, HB 267, is barreling through the House. [ CAROL TEDESCO | AP ]
by John Haughey, The Center Square | April 15, 2021 09:00 AM Print this article
Charter captains, biologists, poets and local elected officials were among dozens of Key West residents who boarded a 3 a.m. flight to Tallahassee to get their 2 minutes to testify Wednesday against a bill that would preempt local governments from regulating ports.
But it didn’t matter and the 20 Key West residents who testified against the bill were dismissed by the bill’s sponsor, who implied they don’t represent the rank-and-file of Key West.
“You heard a lot of passionate testimony today from the side that could get up here, said Sen. Jim Boyd, R-Bradenton, “but the side that couldn’t get up here that’s down there struggling to make ends meet are who you didn’t hear from.”
Ports preemption bill drudges up opposition from the Keys
Floridians from the state s southernmost point left home at 3 a.m. to speak in Tallahassee.
A bill prohibiting local governments from writing their own seaport restrictions is on its way to the Senate floor after hitting turbulent waters in committee.
The controversial bill (
SB 426), filed by Bradenton Republican Sen.
Jim Boyd, would prohibit local ballot initiatives from restricting seaport activity and preempting seaport restrictions. On Wednesday, the Senate Rules Committee approved the bill for the full Senate’s consideration.
Voters in Key West in November
amended the city’s charter to block large cruise ships from docking. Around two-thirds of Key West voters voted to limit the capacity of cruise ships that can dock at the tourist destination’s port, to limit the number of passengers who can disembark and to prioritize cruise lines with the best health records.