‘The Sports Fishing Capitol of the World’ is a term once frequently used to describe the quality of Florida’s recreational fishing. There are only a handful of places world-wide that are home to the great number and wide variety of gamefish species founded in Florida’s waters, and there is nowhere were this caliber of sport fishing is more accessible than in the Sunshine State.
After generations of mishandling the conservation of our marine resources, Florida is now one of the leaders in the world of sportfishing management. Unlike a generation ago, when unlicensed recreational anglers were allowed to keep excessive numbers of gamefish.
Back then anglers could keep fifty 12” redfish (red drum), and fifty 12” spotted sea trout a day, year-round; four 18” snook a day, year round and unlimited numbers and sizes of black drum, sheepshead, pompano, flounder, bonefish, permit, tarpon, mackerel and many other important fishes, year round.
In the early 1980’s this abusive tide changed under the leadership of the Marine Fisheries Commission chairman George Barley and MRC executive director, Dr. Russell Nelson. Under the command of George Barley the MRC voted to designate redfish a gamefish. This one defining action catapulted in a new era of fisheries conservation and management in Florida.
Today Florida’s marine resources face an unprecedented challenge. Our state leaders lack of the political will power and vision to properly protect the water quality and habitat needed for our gamefish and other marine species to flourish.
It is for this reason I strongly suggest you become familiar with the Florida Water and Land Conservation Amendment. This amendment will be on November’s ballot.
The Florida Water and Land Conservation Amendment dedicates funding for water and land conservation, management and restoration by amending the state constitution. The amendment sets aside one-third (33 percent) of Florida’s existing documentary stamp tax revenues (paid when real estate is sold) and guarantees that these funds can be used only for conservation purposes, such as acquiring conservation and recreation lands, managing existing lands, protecting lands that are critical for water supply and restoring degraded natural systems.
This important amendment will appear as Amendment 1 on the November 4, 2014 ballot. Voter approval of Amendment 1 will:
Ensure that our cherished beaches, rivers, lakes, springs and forests are protected for future generations. Vibrant and healthy natural areas supply us with clean water and improve our quality of life. Irreplaceable treasures like the Everglades and our world-class beaches also draw millions of visitors every year and form the backbone of our tourism economy. Yet almost 2 million acres of important water protection areas, beaches, springs and other vital natural areas remain vulnerable to unwise development decisions and deep funding cuts. This amendment creates stable and long-term funding for conservation programs like Florida Forever and Everglades restoration, ensuring that we safeguard our most treasured waters and lands for future generations.
This amendment will direct one-third of existing state revenues from “doc stamps” to fund restoration and conservation projects in Florida’s most critical water protection areas and lands. The amendment will dedicate funding to conserve and restore Florida’s most cherished waterways and natural areas using existing state revenues generated by real estate transactions. Fees on real estate transactions, aka “doc stamps,” have been assessed in Florida for decades to pay for important programs including land conservation and affordable housing. Yet since 2009, these fees have been diverted to the state’s general revenues while Florida Forever funding for water and land conservation projects has been slashed by 97.5 percent.
In 2012, the legislature allocated only $8.5 million to protect important water protection areas and conservation lands. Compared to the state budget of $60 billion, that means that for every dollar the state spends in 2012, less than two-hundredths of a penny will go to the Florida Forever program for water and land conservation. That’s less than $1 for every Floridian.
The amendment would provide more than $5 billion for water and land conservation in Florida over the next ten years and $10 billion over the twenty-year life of the measure, all without any tax increase.
Reinforce Florida’s long-standing leadership on water and land conservation. In Florida, conserving the water quality of our lakes, rivers and springs and acquiring lands necessary to protect drinking water sources historically has transcended party politics. Popular programs like Florida Forever—geared towards funding important conservation projects—have been a priority of every Governor for the last four decades, including Governors Graham, Martinez, Chiles, Bush and Crist.