Secretary of State Cord Byrd: Governor Ron DeSantis’ Floridians First Budget Preserves Our History & Heritage

Proposed Investments to Reopen Museum of Florida History, Administer Secure Elections, Preserve Florida's Historic Properties, and Support Programming of High Integrity

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. -

Today, Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd issued the following statement related to Governor DeSantis' Floridians First Budget recommendations:

"Under the Floridians First Budget, Floridians of all generations will have more opportunities to explore and discover our state's rich history and heritage-right in time for America's Semiquincentennial," said Secretary of State Cord Byrd. "Florida has played an impactful role in the American Experiment since the beginning. From St. Augustine to the Space Race, to establishing first-of-its-kind election integrity standards, Florida has and continues to shape and influence America's story. This budget invests in maintaining that momentum to ensure the Florida we know today is preserved for tomorrow."

Preserving Florida's History and Heritage

In conjunction with America250FL, the Floridians First Budget invests in improvements to state historic properties to ensure our families can experience the Florida of yesterday and today, tomorrow, including:

$10 million to renovate and reopen the Museum of Florida History, including refreshed exhibits, modernized audiovisual equipment, and interactive features for schoolchildren.

$4 million in additional recurring funds to expedite the preservation and maintenance of historic properties, beginning with iconic coastal properties and historic lighthouses, to preserve our state's seafaring legacy.

$500 thousand to double the annual upload capacity onto Florida Memory, the state's official photographic archive, beginning with vintage advertisements, creative trademarks, and folklore.

Promoting Classical Arts & Culture

$5 million for grants to promote classical arts and culture with priority under newly established grant award criteria.

Prioritizing Community Libraries

$21 million in grants to Florida's locally managed community libraries. As proposed, prioritization will be given to new programming and content to aid in the interpretation of classical literature, history, philosophy, and the foundational principles of Western civilization-principles that led to the formation of the United States.

Protecting Florida's Election Integrity Efforts

$4.5 million in additional funding to verify the accuracy of election results, to empower local supervisors of elections to perform audits for 100 percent of the votes cast each election.

###

About the Florida Department of State

Established under Florida's 1838 Constitution as the Office of the Secretary of State, the Florida Department of State is the keeper of the Great Seal, the clearinghouse for corporate filings, and custodian of the Laws of Florida. Today, the Department leads Florida's election integrity efforts, preserves the state's rich history and heritage, oversees arts and cultural programming, promotes civic literacy, and maintains the Florida State archives, the Museum of Florida History, and several additional historic properties. The Department is also the lead agency for America250FL, Florida's observance of America's Semiquincentennial.