You Paid For It: Governor Scott proposes his biggest budget ever for restoring beaches

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – Buried in the middle of Governor Scott’s proposed $83.5 billion state budget, page 197, line 1609 to be precise, is $50 million in spending allocated to restoring Florida beaches.

That’s the most Scott has ever proposed during his seven years in office.

“I think it’s very important.  I love our beaches down here,” Scott said Wednesday during a visit to Tampa.

The governor also signed an executive order calling for an additional $71 million in emergency funding to repair beach erosion from Hurricanes Hermine and Matthew.

”We’ve got to keep them up,” Scott said.

Scott himself has a luxury beachfront mansion in Naples, but also loves Florida’s beaches for another reason—they draw tourists.

Scott predicts between 110 million and 115 million tourists will hit Florida beaches sometime this year.

“These things give us jobs,” Scott said.

Pinellas County already has $30 million in funding lined up to pump sand back onto the 8.7 mile stretch of Sand Key running from Clearwater to Belleair Beach. Much of that money comes from the local bed tax paid primarily by tourists. Now, the state funding, which mostly comes out of general revenue funds you paid for, may enable Pinellas to begin rebuilding Treasure Island beaches.

“In a way, I’m surprised, but happily surprised, because it’s badly needed,” said Andy Squires, who runs Pinellas County’s coastal management program.  Squires concedes that any beach re-nourishment project is, by its very nature, only a temporary fix to a permanent problem.  He said some beaches require replenishment as frequently as every three years and costs millions of your dollars in every cycle.

Squires believes that despite troubling predictions by climate change scientists about rising seas and disappearing shorelines, the millions of your dollars spent to replenish the sand is still worth the expense.

“We think it is, because the return in investment is tremendous,” Squires said. “It’s five or six to one and the money you put into the beach, you get it back in economic benefit.”

Governor Scott apparently agrees with that notion more than he ever has before.

“I think it’s very important that we keep our beaches nice,” Scott said.

The question is whether state lawmakers, who appropriate the state money, will agree during their upcoming legislative session.

“We hope so” said Squires.