On Tuesday, Governor Ron DeSantis vetoed three bills, one of which would have imposed more limitations on members of university boards of trustees and the Board of Governors of the state university system.
The bill (HB 1445) would have mandated that Board of Governors members either be residents of Florida or have earned a degree from a state university. In a similar vein, it would have mandated that trustee board members be either Florida citizens or graduates of the universities they would be supervising. Following DeSantis’ contentious appointments to at least two university boards, the law was nearly unanimously approved by the Legislature in May.
He named Boise State University professor Scott Yenor, for instance, to the University of West Florida Board of Trustees. After being criticized for remarks made in 2021 that referred to working women as more drugged, intrusive, and argumentative than they should be, Yenor resigned in April after being swiftly chosen head of the UWF board. According to DeSantis’ veto letter, the bill seeks to impose extra eligibility requirements, which are already included in the state Constitution for university trustees and members of the Board of Governors.
Additionally, DeSantis vetoed HB 1133, a bill that would have required Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission members to reside in the state. Five regions would have been created by the bill, and each would have needed a commission member. At-large members would include two additional commissioners. For instance, Northwest Florida does not currently have a member on the commission.
Florida News Service
