3/9/18
Working together, this week, our state took quick action to secure Florida schools and protect students. I am extremely proud of Governor Rick Scott and every member of our legislature who voted in favor of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, to make sure what happened in Parkland, less than a month ago, never happens again.
This legislation provides $400 million to hire more school resource officers and increase mental health services, gives law enforcement more authority to keep weapons out of the hands of mentally ill people courts have deemed a threat, bans bump stocks, raises the age to purchase a firearm and more crucial steps to keep students safe.
It also provides funding for my office to create a secure-reporting app to allow students to anonymously report concerning behavior. Students who survived the shooting are helping us develop, design and name the app.
I am in awe of these students and the parents who lost children in this horrific attack. While their grieving will last a lifetime, they fought through the pain and took immediate action. Days after the shooting they headed to Tallahassee to demand change.
It’s because of them, less than a month after the shooting—at least for a brief moment—grieving turned into celebrating, as the state legislature brought change in the name of their children and Governor Scott signed the bill into law.
This bill is not perfect, and sadly it will not bring back the 17 lives lost in the horrific school shooting, but the safety of our children is not a political issue—it’s simply the right thing to do. Republicans and Democrats put politics aside and passed historic school safety changes and I am so proud of what these survivors have accomplished.
