This Friday, March 17th at 11am in Tallahassee, the Alachua County Legislative Delegation will decide whether to take utility owned land, electricity, water, telecommunications, and more away from the citizens who own it and hand it to political appointees of Governor Ron DeSantis. For over 100 years, Gainesville Regional Utilities has been owned by the people it serves. These appointees would have one mission: to be pawns in the hostile takeover of GRU and sell it to one of the Florida GOP’s favorite campaign donors, Florida Power & Light. This takeover comes on the heels of another FP&L rate hike approved by Florida Republicans – a glimpse of what life would be like with GRU under the Governor’s authority.

Governor DeSantis’ appointees would have incredible power over Gainesville, including:

• Raise GRU rates as much as they want without oversight

• Tear down protected environmental land along our creeks

• Lay off employees, cut pensions, and slash employee benefits

• Sell off thousands of acres of public lands

• Cut funding for core services from our government like police, fire, and roads

• Hurt our city bond ratings, forcing higher borrowing costs on residents

The GRU Takeover Bill would fundamentally change the way citizens interact with their government, taking over half of the services of our city and giving it to a Governor appointed board unaccountable to the people who live here. We need everyone to email the Alachua County delegation and tell them you oppose this bill and that it should be put on the ballot for a referendum for the taxpayers to decide, just as their own rules say it should.

Speak at the Meeting

Friday, March 17th, 2023,

11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Room 12 of the House Office Building, Florida Capitol,

402 South Monroe Street, Tallahassee Florida, 32399-1300