Frost, Florida Dems Blast DeSantis Administration After State Leaves Millions in Federal Funds on the Table for Gun Violence Prevention Programs
WASHINGTON D.C. — Congressman Maxwell Alejandro Frost (FL-10) and his colleagues in the Florida Democratic Congressional Delegation sent a letter to Governor Ron DeSantis following reports that under his leadership, the state failed to apply for available federal funding that would have allotted Florida millions of dollars for gun violence prevention programs.
The Members’ action on this comes as the state and nation have been plagued by tragic gun violence incidents that have claimed countless lives, including a local Orlando shooting that left a 9-year-girl child, her mother, and a reporter dead.
In the Frost-led letter, the Members call out the state for missing not one but two opportunities to apply for funding to support extreme risk protection programs which would keep guns out of the hands of people at risk of harming themselves and others, and among other things, offer funding to mental health and veteran treatment courts that treat the root cause of gun violence.
“In the last decade, 9,229 Floridians were killed by someone using a firearm. In 2022 alone, 1,130 Floridians were killed by someone using a firearm. This is not acceptable. These are not just statistics; these are real people, each leaving behind a traumatized and grieving community of loved ones,” the Members write. “...Leaving money on the table that can save the lives of Floridians is a significant step backward in ending this senseless violence.”
Congressman Frost was joined by Reps. Lois Frankel (FL-22), Kathy Castor (FL-14), Darren Soto (FL-09), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25), Jared Moskowitz (FL-23), Sheila Cherfilus McCormick (FL-20), and Frederica Wilson (FL-24) in signing the letter.
For the full text of the letter, please click here.