Senator Doug Broxson (R-Pensacola), Senator George Gainer (R-Panama City), and Senator Bill Montford (D-Tallahassee) expressed serious concerns to the proposed legislation by Senator Greg Steube (SB 858) that would move every county in Florida to the Eastern Time Zone.
Senator Broxson stated, “Senator Gainer, Senator Montford, and myself represent people who live and work in the Central time zone and we adamantly oppose any move to change to Eastern time zone. We have heard our constituents loud and clear that they want to us to maintain our historical place in the Central time zone.”
“This is a much bigger issue than the convenience for my constituents. Parents, understandably, do not want their children waiting for the bus in the dark, just as one example. It becomes a safety issue for our school districts,” said Senator Montford. “We need to look at this issue from a more comprehensive standpoint, because there will much more far-reaching implications than I think people realize. I have constituents in both time zones and if we look closely at this issue, we might see that it could cause more problems than remembering to reset your watch when you come across the river.”
“We do not need the state legislation to tell us what time it is. Anything of this magnitude that affects our daily lives should be put to a vote by the people,” said Senator Gainer.
