by Jason Bellamy-Fults, Recording Secretary, IBEW Local 1205, proud member of the North Central Florida Central Labor Council
Particularly given the heavy-handed role that our state legislature and Governor have been choosing to take in the local affairs of our communities, it’s important to be aware of who our state legislators are and what the heck they’re up to. Over the course of our next few columns, we’ll be discussing this year’s legislative session and what it meant for working Floridians. Our emphasis will be on the Alachua County legislative delegation, but a similar methodology can and should be applied to other counties throughout our state.
- Who our local legislators are.
- What the major bills of concern were and how these legislators voted.
Later, we’ll also discuss the state’s final budget for the year, which came much later than expected due to intra-party Republican bickering.
The Alachua County legislative delegation
Our delegation is composed of two Senators and three Representatives. Below are the details on these legislators, including their contact information. Senator Bradley and all three of our Reps will be up for re-election in 2026. Time to hold some folks to account! (See chart on next page.)
Major bills impacting working people in the 2025 legislature
Fortunately, this year the same infighting that led to a much-delayed budget also meant that the legislature wasn’t nearly as “effective” in their attacks on workers and our rights as in recent years. Many of their most egregious bills failed this year. Some of them sure tried though, and we get a glimpse through these bills of what is likely in store for us in the future. Hopefully though we have hit our low point in this state and voters will be ready to start the long, slow process of righting the ship in next year’s election.
Here are some bills that we were watching this session:
Weakening Minimum Wage Rights (FAILED)
SB 676/HB 541
AFL-CIO OPPOSED
Forida’s Constitution guarantees all workers in Florida a state minimum wage, currently $13 per hour for non-tipped workers and set to rise in September to $14. These bills would have changed state law to allow workers/students to “opt-out” of their right if they work in structured work-study, internships, pre-apprenticeship programs, apprenticeships, or similar work-based learning opportunities. This would have been a huge loophole in a hard-fought constitutional right.
Rep. Hinson voted NO on this bill during its hearing in the Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee. Rep. Johnson voted YES during the Careers & Workforce Subcommittee hearing. Rep. Brannan voted YES during the Commerce Committee hearing. Senator McClain voted YES during the Commerce & Tourism Committee and during the Govt Oversight & Accountability Committee hearings.
Eliminating the Labor Pool Act (FAILED)
SB 1672/HB 6033
AFL-CIO OPPOSED
Temporary workers and day laborers are some of the most abused workers in Florida. These workers are often trying to start careers or enter the workforce while providing for their families. Florida’s Labor Pool Act provides some basic legal protections for these workers, who, in most cases, are not fully protected by other state and federal laws. Some unscrupulous labor pool agencies and politicians wanted to take these protections away by completely repealing the Labor Pool Act so that they can abuse these workers at will to increase their profits. These bills would have stripped away critical protections for nearly one million workers in Florida. The defeat of this bill, however, was as amazing a David vs. Corporate Goliath struggle as we’ve seen here in Florida in a while. Check out this great Orlando Weekly article and/or Florida for All post detailing the temp-worker led fight to beat this bill.
Rep. Hinson voted NO on this bill during its hearing in the Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee. Rep. Brannan voted YES during the Commerce Committee hearing. Senator McClain voted YES during the Commerce & Tourism Committee hearing.
Charter School Industry Takeover of Local School Districts (PASSED)
SB 140/HB 123
AFL-CIO OPPOSED
The charter school industry has been taking more and more money and power from our local school districts for years and these bills accelerate this trend exponentially by allowing for the conversion of public schools into charter schools without the input of educators or school officials and giving charter schools more control over the conversion process. The listed bills (140 & 123) failed but, unfortunately, in a last-minute, late-night move, this language was tucked into another education bill that passed (HB 1105).
Rep. Hinson voted NO on this bill during its initial hearing in the Education & Employment Committee but then YES on the substitute bill (1105). Rep. Johnson voted YES on the substitute (1105) during the Careers & Workforce Subcommittee hearing. Senator McClain voted YES during the Community Affairs Committee hearing, which he chairs. Senator Bradley voted YES during the Rules Committee Hearing. Both Bradley and McClain voted YES on the Senate floor.
See something on here you didn’t like? Want one of these legislators to explain their votes to you? Now is a great time to reach out and ask that they do so. Once you have your answers, let’s start organizing to hold them accountable.