After cuts, Florida added more dollars for springs

Gov. Rick Scott sang a greener tune in his second campaign following criticism over his handling of environmental issues.

In a second term, Scott said he would add money for springs restoration and alternative water supply programs, according to his "Let's Keep Florida Beautiful" proposal.  

That promise was a switch-up from his first-term water policy. In addition to cutting $700 million from water management in 2011, Scott in 2012 canceled a springs restoration program started by former Gov. Jeb Bush. During his first term, his administration also oversaw big cuts in Department of Environmental Protection funding and eased permitting rules.

Specifically, Scott said he would propose 10-year spending projects for springs restoration and expanding the state's alternative water supply with an emphasis on conservation, each totalling $500 million. (Editor's note: We deleted an overlapping promise on springs and water project spending from the Scott-O-Meter before publication.)

Scott did get more money for springs. But he did not get what he wanted for projects that would diversify the state's supply of water — a growing concern as the state's population increases.

As part of his more environmental approach, Scott in 2016 signed the Legacy Florida bill (HB 989), which established a recurring fund of up to $50 million in state funding per year for Florida springs projects.

Department of Environmental Protection spokeswoman Lauren Engel said that since 2011, investment in Florida's springs was more than $450 million. She said that including projects proposed for the current fiscal year, this funding would make "a direct impact to protect" Florida's springs.

Engel said these projects were projected to "reduce more than 11 million pounds of nitrogen from Florida's springs, save 339 million gallons per day of water to improve spring flow and protect more than 10,000 acres of land surrounding springs through strategic acquisitions."

Some springs advocates said it didn't go far enough. Ryan Smart, the executive director of the Florida Springs Council — a coalition of 45 springs advocacy organizations — said that losses from previous cuts to Florida's water management districts under the Scott administration "more than wipe out any gains" from the Florida Legacy Act.

Robert Knight, director of the Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute, said that while Scott's administration then supported springs restoration funding at historic levels, much of that funding did not directly benefit Florida's springs, instead going to public works projects and agricultural producers.

"The fact is Gov. Scott's administration was pretty much a disaster for protection of springs and other natural environments in Florida," Knight said.

During his second term, Scott also pushed to increase alternative water supply funding. The governor's office pointed to his proposed budgets for the 2016 through 2019 fiscal years. For nontraditional water supply projects, DEP asked for between $30 million to $50 million each year.

The Legislature never went for it.

The state's Water Protection and Sustainability Program was last funded in 2010, before Scott took office. That money should be gone by the end of the 2019 fiscal year, according to the most recent annual report on regional water projects.

The Department of Environmental Protection is still trying. In its 2019-20 legislative budget request, the agency asked for a $15 million grant program.

Florida has invested more into springs restoration funding, although some environmentalists have remained critical of his administration's efforts. He had less luck securing funding for alternative water supply projects, as the Legislature rebuffed his request each year of his second term.

We rate this a Compromise.