U.S. Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott and congressional Republicans sent a letter to U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo supporting Governor Ron DeSantis’ request to issue a federal fisheries disaster declaration to help the fishing industry in the Big Bend area rebuild.
“Florida’s iconic fisheries are foundational to the economy and way of life of many of the communities that have been devastated by Hurricane Idalia,” the letter stated. “A timely and robust response by the Department of Commerce, through the declaration of a fishery disaster in support of Florida’s fishing industries, is required to help these communities recover.”
Hurricane Idalia severely impacted Florida’s fisheries, a significant contributor to Florida’s economy and officials believe these small businesses need assistance to recover from this hurricane. Last week, the state of Florida requested the U.S. Department of Commerce to declare a federal fishery resource disaster to support fishery businesses affected by Hurricane Idalia.
Joining the Republican Senators were Representatives Daniel Webster, Kat Cammack, Gus Bilirakis, Anna Paulina Luna, Brian Mast, Mike Waltz, and Vern Buchanan.
The full letter can be found here:
Raimondo_FLCongressionallettersept2023
