A Florida senate committee met on Tuesday to discuss a bill aiming to prevent local governments from regulating presidential libraries.
Presidential libraries are maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The NARA preserves documents, records, and artifacts during a president’s time in office.
Republican senator Jason Brodeur originally filed Florida Senate Bill 118 last December. The proposed legislation states local governments “may not enact or enforce any ordinance, resolution, rule, or other measure governing the establishment, maintenance, or operation of a presidential library.”
Brodeur said the bill ensures a uniform approach to regulating these institutions.
“So this bill specifically preempts the regulation of the establishment maintenance activities and operations of any presidential library to the state and defers regulation of such institutions to the federal government.”
The measure passed unanimously in Tuesday’s Florida Senate community affairs committee meeting.
A companion bill, filed by republican representative Alex Andrade, is currently under consideration in the House of Representatives.
The bill comes amid speculation of Trump choosing Florida as the site for his presidential library. The Sunshine State is home to the Mar-a-Lago resort, a National Historic Landmark owned by the president. The resort has also served as his primary place of residence since 2019.
Brodeur said Florida should grant the commander-in-chief full control of the library’s construction if he chooses the state as the host location.
“In anticipation of Florida’s first presidential library, we should roll out the welcome mat and offer the President maximum flexibility to construct this historic landmark here in Florida,” Brodeur said.
Presidential libraries are funded through private corporations or non-federal donations. In December, ABC News agreed to contribute $15 million to Trump’s library to settle a defamation lawsuit.
Leave a Reply
