Florida Senate Elects New President, Wilton Simpson, Who Pledges To Cut Spending Amid Pandemic

From the Florida Phoenix:

By Laura Cassels

November 17, 2020

Sen. Wilton Simpson, sworn in Tuesday morning as the 89th president of the Florida Senate, pledged to cut spending and make “structural changes” to the state budget to reflect Florida’s pandemic-ravaged economy.

“We are going to tighten our belts. We will have less revenue, therefore we will have less government,” said the Republican senator, elected in 2012 to represent Citrus and Hernando and part of Pasco county.

But he called for ongoing investments in the northern Everglades, Florida springs, vulnerable children and state infrastructure.

Simpson thanked Gov. Ron DeSantis for his handling of coronavirus, but also paused for a moment of silence to acknowledge the COVID-19 deaths of more than 17,500 people in Florida.

Simpson, whose businesses include an egg farm, said he will lead a session to clean the “budget field” by removing “all the roots” that reflect past legislative priorities and policies, rather than new ones that reflect Florida’s new realities. The state’s fiscal experts estimate a $3.4 billion loss of state revenue this fiscal year and and other $2 billion loss in the next one.

He also called for cooperation between Republicans, who strengthened their control of the Senate in the rancorous Nov. 3 elections, and Democrats, who lost three seats.

“This is where campaigns end and governing begins,” Simpson said. “We are senators and we have a lot of work to do.”

In receiving the gavel from outgoing Senate President Bill Galvano, Simpson and Galvano, not wearing masks, embraced. Elsewhere, members in the Senate chamber largely wore masks and sat distanced from one another.

The Senate also elected Sen. Aaron Bean on Tuesday, as president pro tempore. He represents Nassau and part of Duval County.

This story was originally published by the Florida Phoenix. For more stories from the Florida Phoenix, visit FloridaPhoenix.com.