State budget includes money for disasters, mental

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) – The state of Florida is getting ready to implement a $116 billion budget in a few weeks. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the budget Thursday, which begins July 1.

It includes money for many projects from disaster relief to increased mental health services and giving teachers raises.

The Florida Department of Emergency Management is still paying for damage from the 2005 season, the year Hurricanes Dennis, Katrina, Rita and Wilma hit.

Part of the department’s $2.3 billion disaster relief budget includes $350 million set aside for the Hurricane Recovery Grant to help counties affected by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole last year.

Florida Department of Emergency Management director Kevin Guthrie said the money will help speed up the recovery in those communities.

“We’ve sped that process up. They don’t have to recover with all of their housing so their tax base goes up and they have to defer this project for two, three, four, or five years. They can start it today,” Guthrie said.

The state is also spending $625 million to expand mental health services. This includes things like expanding Medicaid reimbursements for services, expanding state-operated mental health treatment facilities and expanding crisis intervention programs.

Melanie Brown-Woofter at the Florida Behavior Health Association said this is good news for everyone in the state.

“Now we’ll be able to immediately increase access, make sure these services are available in the long term for the Medicaid population and for others,” Brown-Woofter said.

The state will spend $1.1 billion on teacher raises this year, which is $250 million more than what was spent last year.

The president of the Florida Education Association, Andrew Spar, said when you divide that among every public school teacher in the state, it’s only an extra $20 a month. He said Florida needs to do more to support teachers.

“Florida is well-positioned to do a lot better for our schools. And this $250 million more for teacher salaries, keep in mind a lot of that is going to go to vouchers,” Spar said.

The state will have $15.3 billion in reserves.

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