Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn spoke today at the Military Roundtable hosted by Governor Rick Scott. Mayor Buckhorn discussed the critical impact that the Florida Defense Alliance has on MacDill Air Force Base.
Mayor Buckhorn said, “…This issue of the Defense Alliance, I’m going to take you back very briefly 1991, 1993 and 1995, I was the assistant to the Mayor. I was the city’s point person when MacDill was on the base closure list. Many of you that have been around for a while will remember that. We were dead. We were on that list and very few cities get off that list once you get there. The economic impact of MacDill Air Force Base for the Tampa Bay area, it is our number one economic engine in the Tampa Bay area, followed only by Port Tampa Bay. If we were to lose that base and we almost lost that base partially because we didn’t have an organized strategy. We weren’t expecting BRAC [Base Realignment and Closure] to come around. We didn’t anticipate that we would be on the list. There was no Defense Alliance to present a statewide effort in opposition to this. Keeping that Defense Alliance and keeping an organized effort in Washington, D.C. to fight for our bases. And I’m going to be parochial here to fight for MacDill in particular is hugely important…
“…It is very very important to us and to the veterans that live in this area that we fight for the Defense Alliance and make sure that when MacDill is at risk, that we’re organized, that we’re funded and that we’re prepared to do battle…”
Florida Defense Alliance
Florida House Votes to Kill Florida Defense Alliance
Governor Rick Scott today criticized the Florida House’s vote to eliminate the Florida Defense Alliance, which is included in HB 7005 that eliminates Enterprise Florida, during the Fighting for Florida Jobs Roundtable in Seminole. The Florida Defense Alliance, which is part of Enterprise Florida, is a crucial partner to the Florida Defense Support Task Force, which protects and strengthens Florida’s military installations ahead of any potential Department of Defense realignment or closure actions. The Florida Defense Alliance also advocate for both active and retired Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, National Guard, reserves, and family members that rely on these installations. Florida’s military installations contribute more than $79.8 billion in economic impact, and the defense industry supports more than 774,000 jobs in Florida.
Governor Scott said, “[The Florida House] didn’t just vote to get rid of Enterprise Florida and make it very difficult for VISIT FLORIDA to operate, they did other things. We have 20 military bases and three unified commands in this state. It’s a big part of our economy- in different parts of our state, it’s very big. They said they want to get rid of the [Florida Defense Alliance.] That’s what helps keeps our military bases here. Every so often, as you know, they have BRAC [Base Realignment and Closure], where they review whether they’re going to keep military bases. So we, every year, try to figure out how we can help our bases solve all of their problems. We make sure they don’t have encroachment issues, make sure their kids can get in the right schools, all of these things. The [Florida Defense Alliance] helps do that. They voted to eliminate it. And there are other programs that help jobs. It doesn’t make sense.”
