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Senator Bill Nelson

Nelson, Rubio file bill to help newborns suffering from opioid withdrawal

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U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced legislation today aimed at improving the quality of care provided to newborn babies suffering from opioid withdrawal.

Opioid use during pregnancy can cause a newborn baby to experience the painful effects of a drug-withdrawal syndrome known as Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, or NAS. Babies suffering from NAS often experience painful withdrawal symptoms such as high-pitched cries, convulsions, fever and vomiting; and often require extended time in the hospital as they recover from prenatal exposure to opioids.

To better treat and care for the thousands of babies born in America each year with NAS, researchers first need to better understand the cause and effects of this heart-breaking syndrome. To help researchers collect the data they need, Nelson and Rubio’s legislation will provide states additional funding to track, analyze and research babies born with NAS.

“When you see an opioid-dependent baby, your heart just cries out,” Nelson said. “This bill will help us better understand this heart-breaking syndrome and what needs to be done to provide these innocent children with the best care possible.”

“The opioid crisis is wreaking havoc, destroying families and taking lives across our state and nation. Congress must fulfill its commitment to those dealing with opioid addiction, especially innocent babies born with an addiction,” said Rubio. “Our bill will help do that by ensuring we have the necessary tools to care for newborns facing opioid addiction. I’m pleased that the HELP committee has included language from our bill in its larger opioid effort, the Opioid Crisis Response Act, and look forward to getting our bill signed into law.”

Every 25 minutes, a baby is born suffering from opioid withdrawal, according to the National Institutes of Health. In 2016 alone, more than 4,200 babies in Florida were born with an opioid dependency.

A copy of the bill is available here. It now heads to the Senate HELP committee for consideration.

Nelson files bill to protect workers threatened by automation

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U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) filed legislation today to help millions of American workers who could soon find themselves out of job as our economy continues to shift towards more automation thanks to continuous advances in new technology.

According to McKinsey Global Institute, up to one third of the American workforce could be replaced by automation by 2030. As more and more businesses choose to employ new technologies – such as driverless cars, warehouse robotics and self-checkout kiosks – instead of traditional American workers, tens of millions of jobs could soon be obsolete.

To help ensure American workers are not left behind, Nelson’s legislation would create a tax incentive for companies that hire workers from fields most impacted by the shift to automation. It would also provide additional tax savings to help lower the cost of education for workers who choose to learn new skills and pursue jobs in fields with a short supply of skilled labor.

“The world is changing and we need to change with it,” Nelson said. “We need to do everything we can to create additional jobs and opportunities for the millions of hardworking people who could wake up one day and suddenly find their job obsolete.”

A copy of the bill (S.2648) is available here. It now heads to the Senate Finance committee for consideration.

A section-by-section breakdown of the legislation can be found here.

USDA announces $2.36 billion to help Florida farmers, citrus growers

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The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture announced today that it will provide more than $2.3 billion in disaster assistance to help Florida farmers and citrus growers recover from last year’s hurricanes.

The announcement comes just days after U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson (D-FL), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and others sent a letter to Sec. Sonny Perdue urging him to provide the much-needed assistance to Florida’s farmers. Congress approved the funding as part of the disaster supplemental bill it passed in February.

“Florida’s farmers and citrus growers are a vital part of our state’s economy and we need to make sure we’re doing everything we can to help them recover from last year’s storms,” Nelson said today following the announcement.

A copy of the letter Nelson and Rubio sent to Perdue is here.

And here’s a copy of USDA’s announcement:

USDA Implements up to $2.36 Billion to Help Agricultural
Producers Recover after 2017 Hurricanes and Wildfires

2017 Wildfires and Hurricanes Indemnity Program’ to Aid Recovery in Rural Communities

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will make disaster payments of up to $2.36 billion, as provided by Congress, to help America’s farmers and ranchers recover from hurricanes and wildfires. The funds are available as part of the new 2017 Wildfires and Hurricanes Indemnity Program (2017 WHIP). Sign-up for the new program, authorized by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, will begin no later than July 16.

USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) will make these disaster payments to agricultural producers to offset losses from hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria and devastating wildfires. The 2017 calendar year was a historic year for natural disasters, and this investment is part of a broader suite of programs that USDA is delivering to rural America to aid recovery. In total, the Act provided more than $3 billion in disaster relief by creating new programs, and expediting or enhancing payments for producers.

“America’s farmers feed our nation and much of the world, and throughout history they have known good years and bad years. But when significant disasters strike, we are ready to step in and provide the assistance they need,” Secretary Perdue said. “USDA is working as quickly as possible to develop procedures and a system by which affected producers can access disaster assistance. For producers new to FSA programs, we encourage you to visit your local USDA service center now to establish farm records.”

About 2017 WHIP Disaster Payments

The new 2017 WHIP will provide significant disaster assistance and be guided by the following principles:

  • Eligibility will be limited to producers in counties that experienced hurricanes or wildfires designated as presidentially-declared disasters in 2017;
  • Compensation determined by a producer’s individual losses rather than an average of losses for a particular area (where data is available);
  • Producers who purchased higher levels of risk protection, such as crop insurance and noninsured crop disaster assistance program, will receive higher payments;
  • Advance payments up to 50 percent; and
  • A requirement that payment recipients obtain future risk protection.

Other USDA Disaster Assistance

WHIP disaster payments are being issued in addition to payments through our traditional programs, some of which obtained increased funding or had amendments made by the Act to make the programs more responsive, including the Emergency Conservation Program, Emergency Watershed Protection Program, Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-raised Fish Program, Tree Assistance Program and Livestock Indemnity Program.

During 2017, the U.S. experienced a historic year of weather-related disasters, with an economic impact totaling more than $300 billion. In total, the United States was impacted by 16 separate billion-dollar disaster events including: three tropical cyclones, eight severe storms, two inland floods, a crop freeze, drought and wildfire. More than 25 million people – almost eight percent of the population – were affected by major disasters.

More Information

FSA will distribute more information on how producers can file claims for WHIP disaster payments at a later date. For questions on how to establish farm records to be prepared when WHIP disaster signup begins, or to learn about other disaster assistance programs, producers are asked to contact their local USDA service center.

Nelson, Rubio call for investigation into Puerto Rico’s ongoing power woes

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More than a half-dozen U.S. Senators today called on leaders of the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee to investigate Puerto Rico’s ongoing power outages and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to begin reducing the number of utility repair workers on the island while thousands of residents still do not have power.

The request for an oversight hearing on the Corps’ actions was made in a letter led by U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Marco Rubio (R-FL and sent today to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA).

“The Army Corps of Engineers is reportedly drawing down the number of utility repair workers on the island,” the senators wrote. “We would welcome an opportunity to discuss the Corps’ decision to begin reducing this workforce on the island while our fellow Americans in Vieques, Caguas, and elsewhere continue to struggle.”

In addition to Nelson and Rubio, the letter was signed by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tom Carper (D-DE), Bob Casey (D-PA), Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).

Nelson, who has been an outspoken leader in pushing the federal government to do more to help the people of Puerto Rico recover in the wake of Hurricane Maria, was in Kissimmee, Florida earlier today to meet with local Puerto Rican community leaders and discuss the island’s ongoing recovery efforts.

Yesterday, Nelson and Rep. Darren Soto (FL-09) sent a letter to President Trump urging his administration to do more to help the island. Nelson and Soto called the federal government’s response in Puerto Rico “slow, tepid and completely inadequate.”

Copy of the letter Nelson and Soto sent to the president yesterday is here.

A .PDF copy of the lawmakers’ letter today requesting a Senate Committee investigation is available here.

Background article on the issue can be found below.

Contractors Are Leaving Puerto Rico, Where Many Still Lack Power

By FRANCES ROBLES
Published: Feb. 26, 2018

SAN JUAN, P.R. — Though hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans remain in the dark five months after a devastating hurricane trampled the island’s power grid, the federal government has begun to scale back the number of contractors it has working to get the lights back on.

The United States Army Corps of Engineers is in charge of the federal effort to repair the power grid on the island, where a Category 4 storm last fall knocked out electricity to every home and business. The corps gave major contracts to two companies, Fluor Corporation and PowerSecure, and coordinates their work with the efforts of the island’s government-run power utility, which has also hired contractors and brought in crews from mainland utilities.

At one point, there were a total of 6,200 workers repairing transmission and distribution lines across the island, about half of them working for the corps. Now that power has been restored to more than 1.1 million people, by the utility’s count — about 86 percent of the island’s customers — the corps said it would begin a “responsible drawdown” of its work force.

Nearly 1,000 power workers have left the island in the past two weeks, according to Twitter messages posted by the corps. Fluor still had 1,600 people in Puerto Rico as of Sunday, but its contract period is “nearing the end,” and PowerSecure is scheduled to wrap up work by April 7, the corps said.

The decision to scale back was met with “indignation” across the island, said Jorge L. González Otero, the mayor of Jayuya, a town in the central part of the island, where about half the residents still lack power.

Fluor has already billed the maximum amount allowed under its $750 million contract, and its subcontractors were told last week to pack up.

“Fluor was among the first companies to get here, about a month and a half ago,” Mr. González Otero said, referring to Jayuya. “They said the contract was over, and they left everything half-done.”

“Imagine, I have people here without power for five months who are 80 years old, disabled, bedridden,” he added, “and they were just beginning to see people 50 meters away get their electricity back. They are growing desperate.”

Fluor’s crews would not be the first contractors to leave abruptly. After a scandal erupted over the Puerto Rico government’s award of its first power restoration contract, worth $300 million, to a small Montana firm, Whitefish Energy, the government canceled the deal.

Many people involved in power restoration said that officials overseeing the work were disappointed with the Army Corps of Engineers contractors. Fluor in particular was criticized for working sluggishly and using up the money available under its contract without accomplishing as much as expected.

Fluor is a Texas-based construction giant that has done more than $30 billion in government work over the past four decades, much of it for the Defense Department, federal records show.

“I understand that they were slow — super slow,” Mr. González Otero said. “Now we don’t have anyone, slow or at all. We have no one.”

Justo González, the interim executive director of the island’s government-owned utility, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, also was critical of Fluor’s performance.

“We compared, and saw better work from other companies,” Mr. González said in an interview.

Even so, he said, the corps’s decision to let the Fluor workers leave was worrisome.

“It concerns me,” he said. “It can affect our ability to energize. We wanted them to continue. What do I want? To energize as quickly as possible.”

A spokesman for Fluor denied that there had been any questions about its work.

“To date, we have restored power to 250,000 customers by fixing 7,500 poles, installing 462 miles of wire, more than 20,000 conductors, and repaired 170 transmission lines,” the company said. Under the limits set by the contract on the time and money to be expended, the company said, “we are reaching the end of both, and have been directed by the corps to begin transitioning people and equipment off of the island.”

The corps said that restoring power to some of the hardest-hit areas of Puerto Rico, including Arecibo and Caguas, would take a few more months. The “right number of restoration workers” were “actively engaged” in completing the job, the corps said in a statement.

“We will not rest until we have the lights back on for all of our fellow American citizens in Puerto Rico,” Col. Jason Kirk said in the statement.

Ahsha Tribble, who oversees power efforts for the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Puerto Rico, said it was unfair to single out Fluor for leaving before restoration was complete, because other private companies that came to the island from New York and other states under mutual assistance agreements were also considering scaling back soon.

“At 86 percent restoration, we are starting to shave off people,” Ms. Tribble said. “In any normal course of restoration, you ramp up until you start getting your successes, and then you begin to start ramping down.”

Many of the remaining areas without power are in mountainous regions where it is not possible to squeeze in thousands of workers at once, she said.

Island residents, many of them still struggling to get basic services, were surprised by the corps’s announcement.

“We are so appreciative of everything these people have done — these workers risked their lives coming here, working in dangerous helicopters and all of that,” said Nydia Guzmán, 72, who spent Friday at one of the utility’s customer service offices, along with dozens of other customers who were disputing their bills.

“But they can’t leave now,” Ms. Guzmán said. “There’s too much left to be done.”

Nelson, FL lawmakers call on state to help communities facing economic hardship

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U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and a group of Florida lawmakers sent a letter to Gov. Rick Scott Thursday urging him to designate communities in Florida facing the greatest amount of economic hardship as “opportunity zones,” to encourage more private investment and economic growth in those areas.

“One thing we should all be able to agree on is that more needs to be done to help expand economic opportunity in the state, particularly in those communities with limited access to affordable healthcare, quality education, and affordable housing,” the lawmakers wrote.

Under the tax code, governors can designate up to 25 percent of eligible low-income communities in each state as opportunity zones—whereby investors can get a tax break if they invest in the area.

The lawmakers went on to highlight areas of the state facing the greatest challenges: “As you know, many parts of Florida have not fared well over the last several years, including many rural areas and communities of color. Therefore, we ask that you designate areas as opportunities zones based on the amount of economic hardship they face—with special consideration for Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones) … areas with a readily retrain-able workforce, economically-depressed rural areas, and other areas that have not benefitted from some of the decisions made by state officials in recent years.”

There are over 1,699 low-income community census tracts in Florida, allowing Gov. Scott to designate more than 400 communities.

In addition to Nelson, the letter was signed by Florida Reps. Charlie Crist, Kathy Castor, Val Demings, Alcee Hastings, Al Lawson, Stephanie Murphy, Darren Soto and Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

Following is text of the letter and a .pdf copy is available here.

March 22, 2018

The Honorable Richard Scott
Governor, State of Florida
Plaza 05, The Capitol
400 South Monroe St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399-001

Dear Governor Scott,

We are writing about the designation of opportunity zones in Florida and the need to help communities facing economic hardship. One thing we should all be able to agree on is that more needs to be done to help expand economic opportunity in the state, particularly in those communities with limited access to affordable healthcare, quality education, and affordable housing.

As you know, many parts of Florida have not fared well over the last several years, including many rural areas and communities of color. Over 2.9 million Floridians live in poverty, including 21 percent of children in the state. Meanwhile, over 2.4 million Floridians lack health insurance and around 52 percent of the state is burdened with student loan debt, amounting to about $80 billion in total outstanding debt. Around 70 percent of low-income renters are stuck paying more than 40 percent of their income to rent, over 32,000 Floridians are known to be homeless—living on the street, in shelters, or in places deemed uninhabitable for humans—and far too many homeowners in the state still have underwater mortgages. All the while, since 2015, there’s been over 250 mass layoffs.

Federal law gives you the opportunity to fix this and finally give these communities the attention they deserve. Under the new tax law, you can designate 25 percent of eligible census tracts as opportunity zones—where investors can earn investment income tax-free and, in the process, help these communities emerge from years of neglect. Regardless of how you feel about the new tax law, we believe it’s important to work together to ensure the law is working in the best interests of those most in need, and not just for the well-connected.

Therefore, we ask that you designate areas as opportunities zones based on the amount of economic hardship they face—with special consideration for Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones), areas with attractive private investment opportunities that can leverage existing assets such as transit infrastructure and access to other investment incentive programs, areas with a readily retrain-able workforce, economically-depressed rural areas, and other areas that have not benefitted from some of the decisions made by state officials in recent years. In making this decision, we also ask that you listen to local leaders, who know their communities best.

We greatly appreciate your attention to this matter and stand ready to help you build a better and brighter Florida.

Sincerely,

Nelson secures federal funding for Florida defense projects

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The $1.3 trillion spending package Congress unveiled last night includes funding for projects important to national security and Florida’s defense industry.

The bill includes a number of projects that U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), a senior member on the Senate Armed Services Committee, pushed for:

  • B-21 Long Range Strike – Bomber. Senator Nelson fought for full funding of the B-21 Raider Long Range Strike-Bomber, a dual-purpose, long-range, stealthy, penetrating bomber capable of delivering conventional or nuclear weapons.  Designed and engineered at Northrop Grumman facilities in Melbourne, the B-21 is key to modernizing the strategic bomber capability and full funding in FY18 is important to ensure the program remains on track to deliver capability in the mid-2020s
  • Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Program.  Nelson advocated for an additional $100 million for the program over the President’s Budget which will support vital commercial and military space operations at Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral.
  • Israeli Defense Cooperative Missile Defense and Anti-Tunnel Defense cooperation. Senator Nelson was proud to continue his support for Israel by fighting for $558 million for U.S.-Israel cooperative missile defense programs and additional funds to develop anti-tunneling technology.
  • MQ-4 Triton. Senator Nelson fought for full funding for research and development for the Triton.  The Triton is critical to national security and helps meet maritime information, surveillance, reconnaissance and targeting needs as well as for homeland security, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief and other missions.  Mission crews for the Triton are based out of Mayport and the vehicles and maintenance crews are out of NAS Jacksonville.
  • Eglin Test and Training Range. Senator Nelson fought for a $62.4M increase for DODs Eastern Training Range in the Gulf of Mexico. As test and training of 5th Generation aircraft continues to ramp up, there is a growing need for a modern, large training area, and the Eastern Range is critical to our Air Force and Navy.
  • Littoral Combat Ship. Senator Nelson fought for the purchase of two additional Littoral Combat Ships—three total—in FY2019. A number of Littoral Combat Ships are based out of Mayport.
  • DOD Partnerships for Cancer Research. Senator Nelson fought for language encouraging DOD to expand partnerships with private cancer research centers for sharing data, information and treatment responses.

Nelson secures federal funding for Floridians

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U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) today announced that the $1.3 trillion spending package Congress unveiled last night includes funding for several projects and programs important to Floridians including: increased spending  to fight the opioid epidemic, additional funding for citrus greening research and significant funding for democracy programs in both Venezuela and Cuba, as well as provisions Nelson co-sponsored to address gun violence.

Funding for the following Florida projects and programs sought by Nelson have been included in the federal spending package:

  • $3.3 billion to fight the opioid epidemic and mental health crises. An estimated 2.6 million Americans suffer from opioid use disorder. In Florida alone, more than 5,200 people have died from an opioid-related event in 2016 – a 35 percent increase from 2015. Nelson requested additional funding for treatment, prevention and research.
  • $67.47 million in total funding for citrus greening research and the Citrus Health Research Program. As citrus greening has hurt growers across Florida, Nelson has advocated for increased funding to study and address the problem to help the state’s citrus industry.
  • $895 million for Kennedy Space Center to modernize launch facilities, more than doubling what the center received last year.  Nelson requested the increased funding to bolster work on launch and processing infrastructure needed for NASA’s initiative to explore deep space.
  • $121 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to purchase a reliable backup for its aging hurricane hunter jet.  Nelson has been pushing for a replacement since 2015. The funding comes in the wake of several incidents over the last two years when the jet NOAA uses to gather hurricane measurements was grounded during hurricane season.
  • $76.5 million in total funding to protect and restore the Everglades. U.S. Army Corps budget was also increased, allowing additional funding for Everglades restoration.
  • $82 million to repair the Herbert Hoover Dike. U.S. Army Corps budget was also increased, allowing for additional funding for dike repairs. 
  • $279.6 million, a 14-percent increase, in funding to support Historical Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The four historically black colleges and universities in Florida—Florida A&M in Tallahassee, Florida Memorial University in Miami Gardens, Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach and Edward Waters College in Jacksonville – prepare over 16,000 students for careers in STEM, aviation, law, nursing and other fields.
  • $250 million in federal funding for positive train control grants.  Positive train control technology will help prevent deadly crashes on our railroads. It’s critically important for those railroads that carry passengers, like Sunrail and Tri-Rail.  Nelson, the ranking member on the Senate Commerce Committee, pressed for the funding to help passenger railroads meet a federal deadline to install the lifesaving technology.
  • $100 million for research and development program for automated vehicles. The SunTrax facility at Florida Polytechnic University is a qualified proving ground and will have the opportunity to benefit from the program.
  • Restored and increased funds to $35 million for democracy programs in Venezuela and Cuba.Nelson requested Congress “redouble, not eliminate support for democracy and human rights” in Venezuela. The democracy programs support civil society organizations and promote human rights.
  • Included $60 million for the Nonprofits Security Grant Program. The program helps certain non-profits harden their facilities against attack, such as organization like the Jewish Community Centers (JCCs) in Orlando and Miami and elsewhere. Nelson requested this funding after JCCs across Florida received a series of telephone bomb threats.
  • Increased funding for the Holocaust Survivor Assistance Program to $5 million. Nelson requested $5 million in funding to provide long-term support and services for Holocaust survivors.

The spending package included several provisions Nelson co-sponsored to address gun violence in Florida and across the country, including:

  • Fix NICS Act. Nelson cosponsored this bipartisan bill, which requires federal agencies and states to develop implementation plans to upload to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) all information prohibiting a person from purchasing a firearm, rewards states who comply with these plans through federal grant preferences, and reauthorizes and improves programs that help states share information on criminal records with NICS, among other things.
  • STOP School Violence Act. Nelson co-sponsored this bipartisan bill that would allow schools to access federal funds to invest in programs, training and technology to keep students safe.
  • CDC Gun Violence Research. The spending package included language to clarify that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) can conduct research on gun violence.

Nelson secures funding for backup hurricane hunter jet

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The $1.3 trillion spending package Congress released late Wednesday included $122 million long sought by U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to purchase a reliable backup for its aging hurricane hunter jet.

The funding comes in the wake of several incidents over the last two hurricane seasons when the jet NOAA uses to gather hurricane measurements was grounded due to maintenance issues.

“It’s long past time for NOAA to get a suitable replacement for its aging hurricane hunter jet,” Nelson said after learning appropriators had included the money in the broader spending plan. “I’ve been relentless on this because 20 million Floridians are in the potential path of a hurricane and the data from this aircraft saves lives and property.”  Nelson has been pushing for a replacement since 2015.

NOAA maintains a fleet of three aircraft currently based in Lakeland, Florida. The planes are designed to fly in and around hurricanes and tropical storms, collecting data used to track and measure the intensity of these powerful storms.

NOAA’s current fleet of hurricane hunters include two P3 propeller aircraft, known as Miss Piggy and Kermit, that fly into storms, but only one Gulfstream jet, named Gonzo, capable of reaching altitudes high enough to fly above storms.

The measurements taken by Hurricane Hunters are essential to weather forecasters.

The $1.3 trillion spending bill, which funds the government through September 30, must pass by Friday for Congress avert another government shutdown this year.

Below is the hurricane hunter language added to the bill. 

NOAA Aircraft Recapitalization.-The agreement adopts the Senate language regarding aircraft recapitalization and provides $133,000,000 for this purpose. Within funds provided, $121,000,000 is included to procure a suitable replacement for the Gulfstream IV-SP (G-IV) Hurricane Hunter in order to meet the requirements of section 413 of Public Law 115-25 and ensure back up capabilities.

Sen. Nelson statement on gun violence provisions in spending bill

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Following is a statement from U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) in response to the gun violence provisions included in the spending bill that the Senate is expected to vote on later this week:

“Today, we’re moving a little closer to turning the voices of the students marching across the country into action. While we still have so much work to do, I am happy to see some movement on bipartisan legislation I’ve worked on with Senator Rubio to help address gun violence in our country, including the Fix NICS Act and the STOP School Violence Act, which funds programs to help keep our schools safe. Furthermore, the legislation will finally allow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to do the necessary research on gun violence. We’ve shown how we can get things done – if we just work together.

“The fight doesn’t stop here – we need to do more if we really want to reduce the gun violence problem in our country. I’m hopeful we can continue to work together on a universal background check requirement for anyone who wants to buy a gun and find a way to get these assault weapons and high-capacity magazines off of our streets.”

Zinke: “Florida did not get an exemption” on offshore drilling

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Interior Secretary Zinke doubled down on confusing lawmakers in Congress when he admitted in the House Natural Resources Committee this morning that, “Florida did not get an exemption,” referencing the agency’s five-year offshore drilling plan and his announcement in January with Gov. Scott saying Florida was “off the table” for oil drilling.

Zinke’s statement comes just two days after he made a similar statement at a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, where he claimed, “Florida is still in the process.”

Asked by Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA) why California wasn’t considered for the same exemption Florida received, Zinke responded sharply, “Florida did not get an exemption.”

Both statements from Zinke this week contradict his announcement in January with Gov. Scott, where he claimed he took Florida, “off the table,” which many agreed at the time, was nothing more than a political stunt.

“It’s becoming clear that no one really knows what offshore drilling deal Secretary Zinke cut with the governor of Florida, including Zinke himself,” Nelson said after learning of his remarks.  “More and more, it’s beginning to sound like no deal really exists and, as feared, it’s all one big political sleight of hand.”

Here’s a link to Sec. Zinke’s exchange with Rep. Torres: