Gov. Ron DeSantis has vetoed $7.5 million that was budgeted to help solve the water troubles for east Orange County residents.
Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, an Orlando Democrat, and Rep. Erika Booth, a St. Cloud Republican, had requested state dollars to help residents pay for expensive water rates to a private company due to contaminated water in the Wedgefield subdivision, according to local media reports.
The $7.5 million would have been spent on capital improvements to the existing water reclamation facility, water treatment facility, wastewater collection system, and water distribution system to address deferred maintenance issues and residents’ concerns.
“I’m deeply disappointed that Governor DeSantis vetoed the $7.5 million in funding we secured in the state budget to address long-overdue water infrastructure upgrades in Wedgefield,” Smith said Monday night. “This investment would have gone a long way towards addressing the water quality issues these residents have been dealing with for too long. Regardless of this short-sided decision, I remain committed to fighting for Wedgefield families and will continue advocating for the resources they deserve.”
WESH 2 reported that Pluris, the private water and sewer provider, services 1,750 homes and 16 businesses in Wedgefield. Residents are paying $184 a month for water that stinks and tastes bad, the TV station said.
In a statement late Monday, Orange County Utilities said, “Orange County Utilities sincerely appreciates the efforts of Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith and Rep. Erika Booth for their support of Orange County and our residents in Wedgefield. We have an update scheduled on July 15 to the Orange County Board of County Commissioners to discuss next steps regarding Pluris.”
The Orange County government has considered purchasing the Wedgefield facility. However, a 2024 consultant’s report stated that it would cost the county approximately $84 million to acquire and upgrade the facility, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
“This is a major problem that we have,” Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said, according to the Sentinel. “I’m concerned for the people who live in Wedgefield, those now and in the future, and I’m concerned about our county taxpayers.”
Demings warned residents that “to fix this problem requires a ton of money” during a public meeting earlier this year, WESH reported.
DeSantis announced that he was vetoing approximately $600 million from the lawmakers’ $115 billion budget as he signed the spending plan on Monday at a news conference in The Villages.
“Signing the budget underscores the fact that Florida is the best fiscally managed state in these United States,” DeSantis said. “How many places are spending less year over year? Not a lot.”
He told journalists that his vetoes were aimed at hitting targets to keep the budget in line with his budget recommendations from February.
“Sometimes there’s just a lot of stuff that you kind of have to veto,” DeSantis added, though he did not mention the Orange County water project in his remarks.
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