Washington, DC – The following statement was issued by J.P. Brooker, Director of Ocean Conservancy’s Florida Conservation Program, to announce Ocean Conservancy’s endorsement of Florida Senate Bill 1954/House Bill 7019 for Statewide Flooding and Sea Level Rise Resilience:

“The new sea level rise and flooding initiatives included in this legislation are a good step in the right direction for Florida’s ocean and coasts. By requiring the development of and providing funds to implement an annual statewide Sea Level Rise and Resilience Plan that includes projects to address flood vulnerability and sea level rise, Florida is poised to make tremendous progress in facing these challenges.

“But now we need to ensure that there is leadership in place responsible for overseeing and implementing this important work. We urge Governor DeSantis and the Florida legislature to establish and fund the creation of a statewide Office of Resilience in Florida to actually guide a cohesive and unified resilience response. The potential progress offered in this legislation is only possible with an Office of Resilience leading it.”