We are very lucky to once again have a Florida Senate President from our region. Senator Bill Galvano was officially elected Senate President last month. Senator Galvano has been an excellent friend to Sarasota and has served in Senate leadership in differing capacities over the years. He was sworn in as Senator in 2010. Prior to that, he served in the state house for eight years.

The Argus Foundation hosted Senator Galvano, then Senate Majority Leader, at our Annual Meeting in 2015. Four years later, we are hosting now Senate President Galvano at our Annual Meeting on January 15th to get a preview of his Senate Presidency and what we can look forward to in the 2019 legislative session.

In listening to his speech at the November 2018 Senate organizational session, The Argus Foundation is optimistic about what is to come. He gave a hint of his broad priorities, but more importantly, he gave an outline, which we think local governments should also be following in their budgeting. 

This is a hint to local governments seeking statewide monies, if you want access to statewide money, you should follow the Senate playbook and show them you are doing so.

Senate President Galvano first expressed the importance of safety and welfare and essential government services. Then he turned to infrastructure: 

“And as we prioritize, I still believe that the future of our economy and its ability to diversify and grow, is tied to our infrastructure and our investment therein. I am talking about it at all levels, from transportation to water to communications to power. We need together to think innovatively when it comes to infrastructure, so we are not just meeting the needs of today, mitigating the needs of yesterday, but anticipating the needs of tomorrow.”

Kudos to Senate President Galvano for his clear understanding of government prioritization. He clearly gets that our economic development and growth is tied to infrastructure. Infrastructure should be a priority after essential government services. We are excited by his vision and hope that the whole legislature will follow his leadership.

This sort of investment on the statewide level is difficult and hard to do. It doesn’t make a splash, it doesn’t make for sexy headlines, and it is hard to get people to rally around asphalt, sewer pipes, power lines, and water conveyances. But it is important to our future and our economics.

It is an exciting time in Florida right now. We are at a turning point in terms of investing in the future. We invite you to come hear more from Senate President Galvano at our Annual Meeting luncheon on Tuesday, January 15th. Go to http://argusfoundation.org/events/ for details and registration information, seating is limited.

Christine Robinson is executive director of The Argus Foundation.