Manatee County hit hard by governor's appropriation vetoes

Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed the four appropriation requests that Manatee County commissioners supported in the state’s fiscal year 2025-26 budget June 30. 

Commissioner Jason Bearden called the vetoes disappointing. 

"We've asked for more and gotten way more," he said of previous years. "But because there's this fight (between) the Manatee County government and the state, that just shows you that the state will put politics over people." 

Beardon was referring to the pushback the commission has received over its efforts to reinstate wetland buffers, raise impact fees, and repeal the ordinance that allows for development beyond the Future Development Area Boundary.

In January, commissioners were presented with a draft request that contained eight projects that totaled $43.9 million.

By February, Director of Government Relations Stephanie Garrison and legislative aide Crosley Jones asked commissioners to adjust the county’s requests down to just $4 million.

The county’s lobbyist, Amanda Stewart of Johnston & Stewart Government Strategies, had passed on a message from Florida Rep. Will Robinson that the House was trying to get all appropriations requests at or below $1 million.

“They’re trying to manage the size of the budget, and appropriations requests are the main way they’re trying to trim the budget,” Jones told commissioners. 

Four projects were completely cut from the commissioners' agenda:

• $10 million to demolish the existing Green Bridge Fishing Pier in Palmetto and design and construct a new structure.
• $5 million for design and construction of the Meadors Subdivision/Pennsylvania Flow Diversion Project in Bradenton to lower the flood stages.
• $5 million for Glen Creek Stormwater Improvements near Tropicana.
• $8 million for Sylvan Oaks Stormwater Improvements in Palmetto.

Four projects remained. But instead of requesting the funding all at once, each project was broken down into smaller requests for $1 million a year.

• $1 million to construct a Veteran Connections Hub in Palmetto ($5 million total)
• $1 million to connect the Gateway Greenway Trail from Palmetto to Parrish ($2.9 million total)
• $1 million to design and construct Washington Park to the north of Palmetto ($5 million total)
• $1 million to construct Fresh Start Manatee, a homeless facility in Palmetto ($5 million total)

Despite the cuts, Commission Chair George Kruse said Manatee County, as a whole, faired well because the city of Bradenton, the islands and institutions, such as the State College of Florida, had major requests granted. 

He pointed to approved appropriations for the Anna Maria Island Pier, SCF's future campus in Parrish and the city of Bradenton's utilities as examples.

"In the long run, money is fungible," Kruse said. "One dollar here is $1 there, so I'd rather have $2 million for a pier than $1 million for a trail because at the end of the day, that saves taxpayers money and could conceivably get us further along."

In total, SCF was allocated $40,019,591 in appropriations, and the city of Bradenton was allocated $8.3 million.

Photo by Lesley Dwyer 

Kruse said the City of Bradenton's utilities were especially important to the entire county due to pollution issues. 

In March 2024, the city's wastewater treatment facility dumped over 1 million gallons of wastewater into the Manatee River. 

The appropriations will pay for an equalization tank that will help to regulate the flow of wastewater to prevent surges and a sewer lining program that will strengthen the current sewer lines. 

The funding will also cover relocating a lift station, making drainage improvements and installing a storage pond at the Bradenton Water Reclamation Facility. 

Beardon still questions how Manatee County could have some of the most powerful representation in the state in Rep. Will Robinson and Sen. Jim Boyd, yet it couldn't secure $4 million when the commission's request was cut down from over $40 million.

"We submitted responsible, community-focused funding requests that would have directly benefited our veterans, seniors and working families," Bearden said. "When we have particular leaders who veto projects, such as the veteran connections hub, they're not trimming the fat, they're cutting into the heart of our community."

Bearden noted that the veterans hub will serve over 40,000 veterans in the area, and the county has already dedicated $4 million to the project. 

He referred to each of the four requests as infrastructure improvements that would have enhanced public safety, the quality of life and local tourism. 

"If we believe in limited government, then Tallahassee should trust counties like Manatee to identify and execute local solutions," Bearden said. "This veto undermines local control and punishes responsible governance."

Rep. Bill Conerly is new to the House, having been elected in 2024. He said it "stings" to have a project you support be vetoed. He agrees with Bearden that veterans should be prioritized.

He put a lot of his efforts into getting Washington Park and a trauma recovery center for Centerstone, which is a nonprofit mental health and addiction treatment center, onto the budget. Both projects were vetoed. 

As disappointed as he was, Conerly said the sting was felt across the state. 

"There tends to be a focus on Manatee County," he said. "But Brevard County got hit hard, too. It's not unique." 

In a letter addressed to Secretary of State Cord Byrd, DeSantis said Florida ranks second in the nation for the lowest per capita spending.

“The Fiscal Year 2025-26 Florida Budget once again spends less in the coming year than the previous and provides ample tax relief for families and businesses,” DeSantis wrote. “With today’s vetoes totaling $1.35 billion, which includes $576 million in line-item vetoes, our state reserves will be at a healthy $15.7 billion.”