Where's the jobs, Florida edition!TALLAHASSEE — In a year where lawmakers promised to focus on jobs, jobs, jobs, the Republican-led Florida House spent more than seven hours Tuesday talking about abortion, guns, gambling and religion.
"It's God, guns and freedom day," Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Destin, said last week in anticipation.
The House spent most of the day on six bills that limit access to abortions, two that help gun owners and one that would allow taxpayer funding of religious organizations.
Another five hours of debate and votes on the abortion and religious organization bills is scheduled for today.
"We should be focused on the jobs we all were sent here for — to create jobs, and to pass a budget," said Rep. Scott Randolph, D-Orlando, after a news conference challenging the abortion bills. "Yet, for whatever reason, that's not what we're doing."
More than a dozen of the chamber's 39 Democrats raised the jobs issue during floor discussion of HB 1397, an abortion bill sponsored by Rep. Rachel Burgin, R-Riverview. Among other things, the measure would expand the state's prohibition on third-trimester abortions to include a ban once the fetus is viable. It also would require ethics training for physicians who perform the procedure and that abortion clinics be owned by doctors.
Hand on her hip, Burgin fired back at Rep. Rick Kriseman, D-St. Petersburg, who questioned what her bill does to advance job creation.
The House spent a significant amount of time last week on legislation to fight pill mills, which also is not a job creator, she said.
