Seth Johnson
State Rep. Chuck Clemons, R-Newberry, reviewed the past legislative session, spoke on his two bills that passed and endorsed a candidate for his seat during a public interview with Mainstreet Daily News on Wednesday.
Clemons has reached his term limit in office, forcing him to give up his seat. During this final session, Clemons served as speaker pro tempore within the House leadership. Clemons said he ran roughly 70% of the floor proceedings as part of the role.
Leadership also sponsors fewer bills, and Clemons only filed three bills this session, two of which passed.
The first designates State Highway A1A as Jimmy Buffet Memorial Highway. Clemons said renaming the full length of the road drew pushback, but he insisted that all 342 miles receive the designation.
The other bill, HB 781, allows governments to enter public-private partnerships with greater ease, particularly for unsolicited proposals. Clemons said the bill is designed to modernize the process and save taxpayer money.
“Democrats and Republicans, 100%, voted for this new way,” Clemons said about the House vote. “It’s just an arrow in the quiver. You can use the old way if you want to.”
Clemons pointed out that a city of Orlando’s worth of people moved to Florida in 2023, and for the past few years, he said the pace has stayed the same. Meanwhile, a road project can take 15 years before shovels hit the dirt.
The bill allows more innovation at the local level while still allowing cities and counties to keep their current practice of issuing request for proposals, he said.
Clemons also voiced support for the $38 million that the Legislature has earmarked for UF to buy 2,658 acres just west of Gainesville. The funds still need to pass the governor’s desk.
“I’m chair of the Gator caucus in the Florida House, and I was very pleased in any dollars that we can bring to the University of Florida,” Clemons said. “It helps our community ad infinitum.”
While chair of the caucus, Clemons didn’t file the House’s form requesting the funds because of his leadership position. Instead, he said his roommate, Rep. Bobby Payne, R- Palatka, filed the request. He noted that it doesn’t really matter who sends in the form.
“This area. . . is really the largest parcel of land in the western part of the county that could be used for conservation,” Clemons said. “It’s been on the drawing board for several years.”
Clemons also touched on a bill addressing homelessness. The city of Gainesville and Alachua County have taken recent votes about homelessness as tents on public property brought the issue before the dais.
The bill, he said, requires cities and counties to designate an area where homeless people can stay, providing water, restrooms and sanitary conditions.
The bill is intended to prevent homeless tents from popping up on public property without a sure way for local governments to react. Currently, the Florida Supreme Court has ruled that local governments can’t force people to move without a place to go.
“So, we will get the Supreme Court off of our back as far as being able to police and say, ‘You can’t live under the bridge anymore. You can go down here to this place, and they’ve got water, and the social services can be there as well,’” Clemons said.
In response to questions, Clemons said it is an unfunded mandate, and he noted that these happen all the time. He also said the state’s role is to intervene and control how all 67 counties and 411 municipalities—subunits of Florida government—react to major issues.
He said the same is true of plastic straws versus paper. Clemons said distributors would have an impossible job if each different local government began passing various regulations concerning the straws.
Clemons said he has no plans to run for another elected office. He endorsed Chad Johnson for his seat. Johnson graduated from Buchholz High School and UF and previously served on the Levy County Board of County Commissioners.
Republicans Raemi Eagle-Glenn and Robert Woody are running against Johnson for the party bid. On the Democratic side, David Arreola and Amy Jane Trask are currently running for the seat.
The Clemons interview took place in Gainesville as part of an event for Mainstreet members. Legislative recaps with state Rep. Yvonne Hayes Hinson, D-Gainesville, and state Sen. Keith Perry, R-Gainesville, are scheduled for the coming weeks.