Measure to allow campaign funds for child care expenses glides through first committee hearing

by Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix
February 18, 2025

A proposal to let candidates spend campaign funds used for campaign-related childcare expenses if the expense derives from the candidates’ campaigns advanced unanimously on Tuesday in its first hearing before a legislative committee in Tallahassee.

Existing state law prohibits a candidate or spouse of a candidate from using campaign funds to defray living expenses for them or their family other than for transportation, meals, and lodging for the candidate or family member during a campaign.

A 2018 advisory opinion from the Federal Election Commission declared that campaign funds may be used to pay for a candidate’s childcare expenses incurred directly from campaign activity. Since then, 13 states have enacted their own laws allowing candidates running in state and local contests to use financial contributions for campaign-related child-care expenses.

“The campaign’s funds cannot be used for general family living. They have to be directly tied to a campaign-related event, and they can’t cover just routine childcare,” said South Florida Democratic state Sen. Lori Berman in describing the legislation (SB 72) before the Senate Ethics & Elections Committee.

“I think that this is a great bill because we’re going to encourage more working families, more working parents, to be able to run for office,” she added. “And they certainly bring a different perspective because they are part of the workforce.”

Only about 8% of state legislators around the country are mothers with children under 18, according to a recently released report by the Vote Mama Foundation. That means that they’re represented in state legislatures at less than half the rate they appear in the general population.

A companion to the bill in the House (HB 61) is being sponsored by Sarasota Republican Fiona McFarland & Palm Beach Democrat Kelly Skidmore.

Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.

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SUMMARY: A new collection of essays by the late historian David McCullough, titled *History Matters*, will be released on Sept. 16. The book, co-edited by his daughter Dorie McCullough Lawson and researcher Michael Hill, includes both previously published and new essays. McCullough, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner who passed away in 2022, explored core American values such as optimism, determination, and character. His work, including biographies of Presidents Truman and Adams and *The Great Bridge*, emphasized history’s importance. The collection also includes McCullough’s advice on writing and insights into his early inspirations.

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SUMMARY: Florida lawmakers established a State Board of Immigration Enforcement, meeting for the first time on Monday. Created following a bill signed by Governor Ron DeSantis, the board aims to coordinate immigration enforcement and manage over $250 million allocated to support these efforts. The board’s members include the governor, attorney general, Florida CFO, and the agriculture commissioner, with Larry Keefe serving as executive director. A focus of the board is to streamline enforcement actions against immigration laws, countering criticisms from Florida Democrats who argue that immigration should be solely a federal issue. Other recent legislative actions include criminalizing illegal immigration and removing in-state tuition for DACA recipients.

A week after the Florida Legislature created the state Board of Immigration, the board held its first meeting Monday.

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