Environment

Florida's Local Governments Can No Longer Consider Climate or Diversity in Spending Decisions

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Under a new policy signed into law by Ron DeSantis on Tuesday, state agencies and local governments are now legally barred from considering climate ramifications or diversity factors when making spending decisions in Florida. The bill, known as the Government and Corporate Activism Act, was approved by both chambers of the state legislature before reaching Governor DeSantis's desk.

Like much of the high-profile legislation DeSantis has championed in recent months, this act targets what he refers to as 'woke culture', effectively anything which incorporates or advances a traditionally non-conservative view on a social issue. It specifically targets an informal set of values known as 'environmental, social, and governance principles', or ESG.

Critics of the law have contested that it may prevent untold amounts of dollars from making it to worthy causes. The boat was already rocked on that front when the state pension fund began pulling funds from companies which incorporate ESG, but according to a report by The Orlando Sentinel, at least some of those funds were redistributed to other ESG-supporting companies.