Is a states’ rights showdown coming?

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desire for an Artificial Intelligence “Bill of Rights” to combat what he calls an “age of darkness and deceit” could lead to a confrontation with the White House if it’s deemed Florida goes too far.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi may end up suing the state she served in the same role if plans to regulate artificial intelligence move from concept to ratification, given the White House belief that there must be “a minimally burdensome national standard — not 50 discordant State ones” to “sustain and enhance the United States’ global AI dominance.”

President Donald Trump’s AI executive order issued Thursday compels Bondi to “establish an AI Litigation Task Force (Task Force) whose sole responsibility shall be to challenge State AI laws inconsistent with the policy set forth in section 2 of this order, including on grounds that such laws unconstitutionally regulate interstate commerce, are preempted by existing Federal regulations, or are otherwise unlawful in the Attorney General’s judgment.”

DeSantis has said he’s not worried about a presidential executive order, since he believes it “doesn’t/can’t preempt state legislative action.”

But Trump’s order calls his bluff as well as that of other Governors who might want to go their own way.

The Commerce Secretary would also have a role in enforcement by publishing an “evaluation of existing State AI laws that identifies onerous laws that conflict with the policy … as well as laws that should be referred to the Task Force established.”

“That evaluation of State AI laws shall, at a minimum, identify laws that require AI models to alter their truthful outputs, or that may compel AI developers or deployers to disclose or report information in a manner that would violate the First Amendment or any other provision of the Constitution,” the Trump continues.

Florida could also be deemed not “eligible for remaining funding under the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program” if it joins the push to create “a fragmented State regulatory landscape for AI (that) threatens to undermine BEAD-funded deployments, the growth of AI applications reliant on high-speed networks, and BEAD’s mission of delivering universal, high-speed connectivity.”

Trump’s order also compels a legislative recommendation that would allow for some latitude, such as state regulation regarding “child safety protections” and “AI compute and data center infrastructure.”

So, Florida could regulate with those factors in mind.

DeSantis has decried overstretched stock market valuations for “Mag 7” companies Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla, all of which are in the AI space. He has also suggested the Founding Fathers would hate the technology, and argued it will be used to perpetuate fraud.

House Speaker Daniel Perez, presiding over his second and final Session with the gavel in hand, is predicting a “fiscally conservative” Legislative Session that responds to a three-year outlook that’s not, as he describes it, as rosy as some would like.

That means a potentially tight budget where lawmaker pet projects may not get the deference they once enjoyed.

Nevertheless, Perez said he believes it “will be a productive Session,” and he’s not backing down on what has become the banner issue for the upcoming 60 days: property taxes.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has called for a Special Session to be held after the Regular Session to address the property tax issue. Senate President Ben Albritton has also said his chamber is not currently working on the issue as lawmakers await further guidance from the Governor.

But Perez is full steam ahead.

“The House has said from the beginning, we agree with the Governor when he stated almost a year ago that we needed to abolish or diminish property taxes,” Perez told Florida Politics. But Perez lamented that the Governor himself has still not offered details of his own plan.

While DeSantis has said he wants property taxes eliminated entirely and has said his proposed budget will include funds to cover lost revenue for local governments in cash-strapped rural communities, he has offered few other details.

Perez and the House, meanwhile, initially proposed eight possible amendments to appear on the 2026 General Election ballot. Four of those cleared the State Affairs Committee earlier this month. All would protect the portion of property taxes used to fund public schools.

One would eliminate all other property taxes, while another would allow homeowners to transfer their accumulated Save Our Homes benefit to a new primary residence with no portability caps or restrictions on home value. A third measure would exempt seniors from paying non-school-related property taxes on their homesteaded properties, while the fourth would provide an additional $200,000 to the homestead exemption for those maintaining multiperil property insurance.

The Legislature could approve all, some or none of the proposals. If approved in the House and Senate, voters would then weigh in at the ballot box in November.

“Maybe our proposals could be tweaked. Maybe some are great. Maybe some are not that great. But we at least got the process started,” Perez said.

While there has been much speculation about Perez’s legislative agenda on property taxes being a slight to the Governor, he reiterated his stance that the House is not the sole source for good ideas. If the Governor announces his own proposal and both chambers approve, he is happy to see that move.

“The Governor deserves a lot of credit for starting this conversation,” Perez said. “We’re happy to consider that and move as soon as possible.”

The 2025 Legislative Session doesn’t seem all that far in the past, likely because it went weeks into overtime. No one, Perez said, is particularly keen on seeing that happen again. But that doesn’t mean he’ll slack off.

“I want Session to end on time just as much as anyone else. However, I’m not going to rush Session,” he said.

The budget will boil down to simple conservative principles, Perez explained. Perez aims to stop what he describes as wasteful spending and ensure future legislative leadership doesn’t face budget shortfalls.

“The three-year outlook isn’t as joyous as people believe,” he said, adding that he wants “to leave the state better than we found it.”

Perez is hoping DeSantis agrees.

“I’d love to see the Governor’s recommendation be a little more conservative than it was last year,” he said.

To be sure, it is not.

Perez spoke to Florida Politics just hours before DeSantis released his recommended budget for the next fiscal year. It clocks in at $117 billion, more than $1 billion higher than his recommended budget was for the current fiscal year. The Legislature’s approved budget came in at $115 billion, about a half-billion less than DeSantis had pitched and $1.5 billion less than the prior year’s budget.

Perez had proposed a much smaller budget for the current fiscal year, at just shy of $113 billion, offering a hint at what may come ahead of the 2026 Session. There was plenty of daylight between Perez and his Senate counterpart, Senate President Ben Albritton, who had pitched a more than $117 billion budget.

Perez doesn’t anticipate there being as big of a gap between the two leaders’ this year, however. And budget chiefs for both chambers agree.

Sen. Ed Hooper, who will lead the upper chamber’s budget process again this year, told Florida Politics he has been in regular communication with Rep. Lawrence McClure, the House budget chief. Hoope said both are acutely aware of a three-year budget outlook Hooper described as being more like around 2018, in pre-COVID days, when the budget only barely approached triple-digit billions.

He added that he expects to adjust the budget downward anywhere from $1 billion to $4 billion compared to the current fiscal year.

Perez, meanwhile, also said to watch for talks to reignite regarding a budget stabilization fund. DeSantis vetoed a plan to invest $750 million into a rainy day fund.

“We believe that that’s our responsibility and we’re going to look at that again,” Perez said, adding that he doesn’t want to “leave future legislative bodies between a rock and a hard place” if budget outlooks become constrained.

That’s already happened to some degree. The expected cuts to the next fiscal year budget are in large part due to federal funds drying up from the COVID years.

Tallahassee has its share of graybeards, but only one GrayBeard.

GrayBeard Strategies is the latest venture for veteran lobbyist Matt Bryan, whose four decades of experience in state capitols nationwide have made him a go-to adviser for businesses, nonprofits and government contractors navigating Florida’s political landscape.

“When it comes to policymaking, state procurement and political strategy, the stakes are higher than ever before. Organizations need a trusted adviser who brings decades of wisdom, strong integrity and deep relationships to develop policy agendas and guide decision-making,” Bryan said. “This new adventure is informed by my life’s experiences in the rough-and-tumble field of governmental relations and fueled by my relentless drive to make an impact for those who have chosen to invest in me.”

GrayBeard Strategies is built around exactly that premise. The firm offers executive-level guidance on government engagement, from crafting legislative strategies and shaping policy agendas to navigating appropriations, procurement and major state contracts. Bryan also positions the firm as a partner for organizations looking to strengthen or rebuild their in-house government relations teams.

Bryan’s reputation in Tallahassee and beyond is anchored in a long track record of results. At Smith Bryan & Myers — now SBM Partners — he assembled a wide-ranging client portfolio touching health care, transportation, taxation and agriculture.

His achievements include securing tens of millions of dollars in recurring state appropriations, helping drive more than a billion dollars in Medicaid reimbursement increases over six years, establishing incentives that bolstered Florida’s short rail lines, and winning a first-of-its-kind supplemental insurance contract for state employees and retirees.

Those who have worked alongside him say the record speaks for itself. Lantern CEO John Zutter credited Bryan with making “the difference between success and failure” in navigating state governments, and Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ & Owners’ Association CEO Lonny Powell described him as a strategist who can “connect the dots” across politics, policy and public affairs like few others.

GrayBeard also launches with a strong endorsement from former Gov. Jeb Bush: “I had the pleasure of getting to know Matt during my time as Governor. His honesty, work ethic and strategic insight stood out from the start. I’m confident he will be a valuable asset to growing businesses across the country in this venture.”

Beyond the résumé, Bryan is known for cultivating deep relationships across the political and business spectrum. He remains active in the National Association of State Lobbyists and has mentored a generation of rising government relations professionals in Florida and elsewhere.

With GrayBeard Strategies, he says the mission is simple: give organizations a roadmap to success.

“Throughout my career, I’ve seen what works — and what doesn’t — when it comes to building effective advocacy teams,” Bryan said. “GrayBeard Strategies exists to share that institutional knowledge with organizations looking for more than representation: they want results.”