This week Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called a special session to address urgent concerns to Florida residents in light of the current circumstances in America and Israel. In the last month, hate crimes in the United States have increased exponentially, particularly those perpetrated against Jews. One of the session’s priority agenda items was assuring the safety of Florida citizens at risk of hate crimes; today, both the House and the Senate increased the state’s security funding to $45 million.
“Since the beginning of the current crisis in Israel, Governor DeSantis has stood firmly with Israel and with the Jewish people, disbanding student groups that were expressing support for terrorism, sending aid and support to Israel, and doing everything in his power to bring American citizens back home,” said Rabbi Moshe Matz, director of Agudath Israel’s Florida office. “We are extremely grateful to Governor DeSantis for calling this special session to support Israel and increase the security of our community and our state during this difficult time.”
The $45 million is coming from two different security funds: $25 million of the funding is earmarked exclusively for Jewish day schools, increased from the original $5 million. The remaining $20 million will be allocated through the state’s Nonprofit Security Grant program to all Florida nonprofits which are at high risk of attack, including shuls and other houses of worship.
This Monday, November 6, Rabbi Avrohom Luban, associate director of Agudath Israel’s Florida office, testified before the Senate Fiscal Policy committee and House Appropriations committee, in favor of this bill.
Agudath Israel has long been at the forefront of advocacy for establishing security funding on the federal and state level and continues to advocate for such programs’ expansion and funding. Such funding is vital for our community, helping to provide our institutions with safety and security equipment. The funding increase in Florida is a tremendous precedent showing what the government can and should do to ensure the safety of its citizens.