the state capitol in tallahassee david this is nearly 30 minutes. [applause] thank you very much. [applause] mr. speaker, madam president, members of the legislature and fellow citizens, my duty under the constitution is to inform the legislature concerning the condition of the state and to

recommend measures in the public interest. what we used to do in that military, here is the bluff. the bottom line up front. florida is number one and working together we will ensure florida that remains the one state in these united states. [applause] florida is the fastest growing states in the nation. we rank number one for net in migration. we rank number one and the nation for new business formations. we are number one and economic growth amongst large states. florida has more people employed today than before the pandemic. our unemployment rate is one of the lowest on record it is significantly lower than the national average.

and of course as many of you know in this room the largest surplus in the state of florida. [applause] [applause] we do that with have the lowest per capita estate tax and lowest debt burdens amongst all large states. we rank number one and the nation tourism and we just experienced yet another record-breaking year for visitors to the sunshine state. we are number one law enforcement recruitment, and support. florida's crime rate stands at a 50 year low.

[applause] we rank number one in education for parental involvement we rank number one fourth grade reading and amongst all large states in number one education system in the country. we are number one amongst large states states for the quality of our roads. florida has the top three cruise ports and the entire world. we rank number one for space related development, manufacturing and flight and maybe most famously we rank number one for citizens against the biomedical security states from prohibiting job mandates to banning vac and visitation rights.

we just by the experts we ignore the chatter we did our way florida way number one destination are looking for a better life. [applause] working together we have met big challenges and we have led the nation on many big issues. we don't make excuses, we do not complain we just produce results.

florida stepped up in times of crisis hurricane ian smashed into southwest florida at left catastrophic damage in its wake including the disruption of the pine island bridge the sanibel causeway. it would take six months or more we took up the challenge and three days later we opened a rebuilt pine island bridge. [applause] and two weeks after that we were able to reopen the causeway after it had been severed in three locations. [applause] were joined today by steven solway if you can stand and be

recognized he is the business owner on pine island the immediate after storm is helping residents by boat to bring supplies for people who were in need. he has said the reopening of the bridge was a godsend for the folks on pine island for they are coming back and god bless you sir. [applause] julie is a fourth grade teacher at the sanibel school she lost everything in her home and in her classroom. they had to have this school take place on the mainland. but because of that rebuilt causeway, a faster recovery has been facilitated thank you for

your service. [applause] also with us today is barbara morgan. a resident of lee county. she was displaced from her home, very bad damage. she was trying to get a temporary trailer from fema. they were not moving fast enough in the first of its kind of program and the nation, stepped up to the plate and created our own program for travel trailers and we were delighted to be able to get barbara in a trailer on her own property as she works to rehab her home. thank you for being here and god bless you. [applause]

for all floridians much needed economic relief the worst period of sustained inflation we work together to reduce the pain of inflation and enacting in the current year's budget, and by slashing tolls by 50% for florida commuters for this calendar year. that will save some families more than $1000. thank you legislature for stepping up for our consumers. [applause] florida is proud to stand for law and order. we are tough on crime. we support the men and women of law enforcement. we have made it very clear to prosecutors who believe they can

disregard the law, you will be held accountable. [applause] [applause] thanks to action and the legislature we enacted a recruitment bonus program to recruit law enforcement officers from other states. that program has surpassed expectations. joining us today as officer mercedes phillips from the paid coral police department. she was able to take advantage of this program but received the $5000 signing bonus this summer, leaving montgomery county maryland not working in cape coral and guess what she got here just in time for the hurricane. but she would not trade what she has done and she made a great move. thank you for your service and we are happy to have you in

florida. [applause] we believe that borders matter. we have fought against illegal immigration in the state of florida. from banning sanctuary cities deceivingly biting administration over its catch and release a policy transporting illegal aliens to century jurisdictions. we have put floridians first and we will continue to do that. we've also provided robust support for k-12 education paid we have enacted record increases in teacher salaries. we have expanded school choice and we have protected the rights of parents appear joining us here today is to keisha a webb fifth-grade teacher from renaissance charter schools in wellington u.s. army veteran.

she has had to leave the teaching profession for the time being for part of the reason she came back is because they were increasing salaries. she has brought her u.s. army experience back into the classroom. thank you for what you do every day for students. god bless. [applause] joining alyssa barrow is a set she is a seventh grader math teacher from clay county and she is the 2023 florida teacher of the year. [applause] thank you for what you are doing. [applause] can keep up the great work.

i thank you so much. we are also joined by alicia farren she's the mother of five to attend orange county public schools. she was a concerned parent a year or two ago because she saw there was inappropriate material in her children's library and school. things are even pornographic so she raise the issue. she got positive results but she decided to get more involved in this past november she was elected to the orange county school board as a parents right candidate. congratulations to you and best of luck. [applause] we believe in workforce education expanded opportunities for floridians to obtain certificate and credentials for

your degree from a traditional brick and ivy university is one way you can be successful. it is not the only way. kurt corwin is a driver, he was able to get his commercial drivers license through one of our programs here in the state of florida. he was also spared his job when the legislature came in and we protected against the vaccine mandate. thank you for stepping up. and thank you for filling an important role in our economy. [applause] four years ago the state was producing about 600 truck drivers a year. and now through all of our initiatives over the past four years we are capable of producing 3500 truck drivers each and every airport you want to talk about supply chain but he want to talk about making sure economy runs these guys are really important for that.

we are also here with champion who fulfilled another important role in the state of florida. she has recently graduated from the nursing program at seminole state college produce many of you know there is a nationwide nursing shortage. what we've been able to with the help of the legislature is put record resources into our systems so we can train more floridians to become nurses. thank you for what you're doing for i know everyone appreciates having a great nurse, god bless. [applause] >> florida has provided the strongest protections for medical freedom during the coronavirus pandemic of any state in the country. we have prohibited covid shot mandate in schools but we have

banned vaccine passports and we have protected floridians from losing their jobs due to their personal decision about whether to take or not take the covid job at printer joined by doctor tim he is a radiologist in his job at a hospital in the panhandle wasn't saved to the actions of the legislature to provide protections for all floridians. no floridian should have to choose between a job they need and a shot they don't want. thank you doctor for standing strong. [applause] [applause] with your support we have ushered in a new era of stewardship for florida's natural resources. securing historic funding for water quality and everglades projects, improving our water policy and utilizing technology

to combat things like algal bloom and red tide. we promise to leave florida to god better than we found it and we are making good on that promise. november's election results represent a vindication of our joint efforts over these past four years. invest in us the responsibility to lead and provide us the opportunity to shoot for the stars. boldness, be our friend in this endeavor. we have a lot we need to accomplish. r2 billion dollar tax cut package is the largest tax cut package in florida history pit will help many who need relief from inflation, especially our florida families. by permanently eliminating sales tax on all baby supplies diapers, wipes, close, cribs, strollers, will be able to say in florida having a child will be tax-free. we are proud to be pro family and we are proud to be pro-life in the state of florida.

[applause] [applause] [applause] celebrity ends are also harmed by inflation when it comes to the prices of prescription drugs. especially due to pharmacy middlemen. we must bring transparency to the system so that floridians can save money on their drugs. we need reform of the pbm's. [applause]

while our economy is consistently outperform the nation as a whole, florida's lawsuit happy legal climate is still holding us back. the legal system should be centered on achieving justice not line the pockets of lawyers. speaker paul is stepping up to deliver much-needed legal reform. i thank him for helping florida it reached its full potential. thank you sir. our state is growing. americans are voting with their feet and we went to ensure were getting ahead of the population expansion bite celebrating infrastructure projects. twenty major interstate and

roadway projects in four years this will allow projects to be completed a decade ahead of schedule. i'll save floridians from having to sit in the awful traffic they sometimes have to do. we also to ensure our supply of housing is adequate to meet the needs of those in our workforce. workforce to make our economy tick should be should be able to find a place that's affordable and their general area of their jobs. i would to thank president kathleen for tackling this issue head on. i look forward to working with her to deliver big results. [applause] we must continue our stewardship of florida's natural resources by supporting additional water quality and everglades restoration enhancing protection for our coastline and

establishing the lagoon protection program we are truly making history with their conservation efforts let's not stop now. [applause] [applause] we have rejected the biomedical security state in florida provided protections for floridians against unwanted medical intervention. those protections are set to expire in july. it is important we make all of these protections are permanent, protection for medical authoritarianism should not have an expiration date and the free state of florida. [applause] we also need to protect the free

speech rights and conscience rights of physicians. the medical establishment lift an awful lot during covid and physician to file the evidence should not be penalized simply because they buck a stale consensus. we must continue our momentum with k-12 education by increasing teacher salaries enacting a teacher's bill of rights paired providing paycheck protection for teachers, expanding school choice and fortifying parents rights. our schools must deliver a good education, not a political indoctrination. [applause] it is sad that we have to say this but our children are not guinea pigs for science

experimentation. we cannot allow people to make money off mutilating them. chloe is now a young adult. but she was receiving puberty blockers at age 13. she underwent a double mastectomy at age 16. she is now an advocate against allowing these procedures for our children. chloe, thank you for your bravery and the people of florida and the legislature should heed your advice and provide protection against these procedures. [applause] [applause] [applause]

the massive amount of fentanyl being trafficked across the southern border has devastated families across our nation. tim kelly from jacksonville is joining us. she recently lost her son palmer to fentanyl poisoning. she is sharing palmer story because she wants to see additional accountability. thank you for your bravery we are so sorry for your loss. [applause] we need to increase penalties for sentinel dealers. especially those who target our children. to do that we must treat them like the murderers that they are.

[applause] we must further strengthen our laws against illegal immigration by enhancing employment verification, increasing penalties for human smuggling in further dis- incentivize in illegal migration to the state of florida. florida is not a sanctuary state. we will uphold the rule of law. [applause] joining us here today is stacy, she is from sarasota. nearly two years ago an illegal alien broke into her home and sexually assaulted her. he should have never been in this country in the first place. and if the federal government had done its job like it is supposed to, stacy would never

have been victimized. enough is enough. thank you for being willing to speak out and share your story. we also need to check in the bail system is conducive to public safety. dangerous criminals should not simply be put back on the street like we see in states that have gone so far as to abolish cash bail entirely. police officers should not repeatedly risk his life to apprehend the same criminal over and over again. we also understand part of fighting crime is to protect a floridians right to defend themselves. the constitutional right should not require a permission slip from the government. it is time we join 25 other states to enact a constitutional

the state of florida. [applause] [applause] the chinese communist party represents the greatest economic strategic and security threats that our country faces but we in florida have long recognized this and have taken action such as by bending the ccp confucius institute at our state colleges and universities. now we see the ccp trying to make strategic land purchases across the u.s. and our message is very simple. we will not allow land grabs by ccc backed businesses in our states.

[applause] i am happy to be joined here by our first lady, my wife casey. we've got mason on the left, there he is sitting there. over the past four years she spearheaded efforts to help our youth avoid drugs, promote in schools and provide a pathway to transparency for the less fortunate. she also gave birth to our daughter and, most recently fought a battle against breast cancer. i was here last year saying we would be able to announce she was cancer free. i can tell you she is cancer free and doing better than ever. [applause]

[applause] [applause] [applause] [laughter] [applause] she has taken her experience and help to lots the cancer connect collaborative which will rethink florida's battle against cancer by breaking down long-standing silos between research cancer facilities and medical providers to provide an improved research and treatment. i want to thank her for taking her experience as difficult as it was and applying it in ways that are going to help people

battle cancer. thank you so much. [applause] the front lines for grabbing freedom we made florida the most desired destination and we have produced historic results. but now is not the time to rest on our laurels. we have the opportunity and indeed their responsibility to swing for the fences so that we can ensure florida it remains number one. do not worry about the chattering class. ignore all the background noise. set the compass to true north paris will set strong. we will hold the line. we won't back down. and i can promise you this, you

ain't seen nothing yet.

rebates of $400 for alabamians her remarks are about an hour. [applause]