Senator Montford provided these comments with the legislative session in Tallahassee coming to a close, “Nearly seven months after the catastrophic category five hurricane washed over the panhandle the state legislature is ending session with a near $2 billion commitment to recovery. The state has been forced to step up and fund significant portions of the debris cleanup and even immediate infrastructure needs because the federal government has refused to act on a disaster relief package. Recovery from Hurricane Michael will be one of the most difficult challenges our community will face in the next century. For more than half of a year neighbors have relied on neighbors and friends have helped friends but federal support has been non-existent. My colleagues in the state legislature have ensured that the incredible needs do not go unmet, but with the scope and enormity of the problem, the state legislature can merely fill gaps, barely scratching the surface of what will likely end up being a decades long and tens of billions of dollars problem. During the legislative session I sponsored a resolution to urge the federal government to act, which the Senate passed unanimously. I plan to keep delivering that message to Washington, partisanship has to be set aside when it comes to the life and death decisions still being made every day. North Floridians deserve the immediate response from our federal government and nothing less.”
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