Play fair with those line-item vetoes, Governor | Editorial

In five-plus years as governor, Ron DeSantis has made liberal use of the line-item veto, nullifying thousands of state and local spending decisions made by the Legislature.

It’s that time of year again, and DeSantis has more potential veto targets than ever before.

That’s because the current crop of lawmakers spent like never before, so there are more projects than ever —  nearly 1,500, totaling more than $2.5 billion — according to a line-by-line review by the staff of the House Democratic caucus.

The analysis shows that 94% of budgeted project money went to Republican-sponsored projects and 6% to Democrats.

Chronic unmet needs

It may be a record level of parochial and in some cases pork-barrel spending. But it doesn’t necessarily justify rampant line-item vetoes, because many projects address chronic unmet needs throughout the state.

The 523-page budget, which passed as House Bill 5001, has not yet been transmitted to the governor. Knowledgeable sources tell us that DeSantis’ staff budget experts have briefed him on the details and have contacted potential recipients of state funding with questions.

They include mental health services, homelessness, inmate re-entry programs, courthouses, jails, roads, bridges, fire-rescue buildings and equipment, food banks, water and wastewater improvements, hurricane shelters, literacy programs, dementia care and much more.

Among critics, these projects, typically sponsored by a single senator or representative, have been derided for decades as “turkeys,” the product more of insider influence by lobbyists and vendors than a well-documented need.

Many lobbyists have cultivated a lucrative cottage industry in Tallahassee, securing millions of dollars in projects for cities and counties after shepherding them through budget committees.

A flawed process, but …

The process is seriously flawed, no question. Many projects receive too little public scrutiny or appear for the first time in the closing days of the session, a telltale sign of backroom deals.

Some projects are funded more than once, an age-old legislative trick, while others are lumped together with a powerful lawmaker’s priorities as “veto insurance.”

Whether a local homeless shelter gets state money or a fire station gets a replacement roof should not be at the whim of a single, powerful legislator who’s writing a budget.

But there’s no chance of eliminating politics from spending your tax dollars, and the governor usually has the final say. (Legislators can override line-item vetoes by a two-thirds vote of both chambers, but that is exceptionally rare.)

‘A little trimming’

In a celebratory event after the annual session ended on March 8, DeSantis promised to cut spending, but offered no clues as to his approach.

“There’ll have to be a little trimming to be done but, you know, that’s just the way the cookie crumbles,” DeSantis warned legislative leaders.

The final budget of $117.5 billion is about $3 billion more than what DeSantis proposed.

DeSantis has every right to use the line-item veto, and he should be especially wary of any expenditure that’s steered to a specific vendor, without the assurance of a competitive selection.

But he should act with care, compassion and fairness.

Helping the homeless

People will be watching these line-item vetoes closer than ever, because some Republican legislators never endorsed DeSantis for president, endorsed Donald Trump instead, or — worst of all, perhaps — switched from DeSantis to Trump as the governor’s campaign was tanking last fall.

Let’s take homelessness as one of many examples.

At least two dozen local homeless initiatives are funded in the new budget, one of them for a mental health housing program for Fort Lauderdale for $500,000.

The city would match the state grant with an equal amount of local money to provide housing and care for up to 100 homeless people.

The project is sponsored by a freshman Democrat, Rep. Lisa Dunkley of Sunrise, and would benefit a community whose leaders have been highly critical of DeSantis’ policies, including his recent signing of a law that makes sleeping in public a crime.

Weeks after DeSantis signed a law (HB 1365) criminalizing homelessness, it would be even more cruel to veto a program to help the homeless.

Privately, some lawmakers worry that DeSantis might try to veto spending up to a target of his choosing, such as $1 billion or $2 billion.

Others speculate that he will wield the veto pen more aggressively to show that he’s still fully in charge, and not weakened politically by his unsuccessful run for the White House.

Whatever DeSantis does, he owes the people of Florida an explanation for why he would approve one senator’s hometown project while rejecting another’s.

To not explain would naturally encourage speculation that he’s motivated by politics or personal spite.

The Florida Constitution states that the governor “shall submit signed objections” to any vetoed appropriations.

The people of Florida deserve no less. It’s their tax money.

The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Opinion Editor Steve Bousquet, Deputy Opinion Editor Dan Sweeney, editorial writer Martin Dyckman and Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson. Editorials are the opinion of the Board and written by one of its members or a designee. To contact us, email at letters@sun-sentinel.com.