What’s in a name? House wants ‘Gulf of America’ in statute, schoolbooks

Measures that would see Florida adopt the “Gulf of America” name in state law and teaching materials are positioned for House votes.

The legislation would change 92 statutory references in Florida law to refer to the body of water along Florida’s west coast as the new name (HB 575) and put “Gulf of America” in K-12 instructional materials (HB 549). The bills, sponsored by Rep. Tyler Sirois and Rep. Juan Porras, respectively, look to align state standards with federal guidelines promulgated by the Donald Trump administration.

Democrats had their say before the inevitable outcomes, with Sirois’ bill passing 78-27 and Porras’ passing 78-29.

Rep. Anna Eskamani said voters didn’t want Sirois’ statutory revision bill and it played into a “hostile political climate.” Rep. Ashley Gantt said both the Sirois bill and the Porras bill about academic materials represented an unfunded mandate on local governments. Rep. Mike Gottlieb spoke to the need to teach “unvarnished history.”

However, Republicans made their own arguments affirming the bills.

Rep. Meg Weinberger framed Sirois’ bill as a blow for the “America First agenda.” And Porras framed his own bill as a sign of a “new era of American exceptionalism.”

The companion bills are coming in for a landing in the Senate as well. SB 608 and SB 1058 both are on the Second Reading Calendar.

Tallahassee Republicans have quickly embraced the new name for the body of water that was called the Gulf of Mexico without controversy until earlier this year.

Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson is backing the President’s preference regarding government documents, pushing for changes on behalf of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

Simpson’s goal is to rename the body of water as the Gulf of America “as quickly as possible … in all department administrative rules, forms, maps, and resources.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis was the first state official to use the new name in an executive order declaring a State of Emergency over a Winter storm last month. That order said the inclement weather was headed to Florida across the “Gulf of America.”

The declaration came the same day Trump made the name change official in his own executive order.

While there’s more controversy outside Tallahassee (The Associated Press and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum haven’t accepted the Gulf of America designation), that’s not germane to the legislative process in the Sunshine State.

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