Letter to Ron DeSantis, Governor of Florida - Hastings, Frankel Lead Florida Democrats in Urging Governor DeSantis to Immediately Reestablish Communications with the Congressional Delegation

Letter

Dear Governor DeSantis:

We write to express our deep concern about the lack of responsiveness from your office to our correspondence regarding the development of a statewide testing strategy as you move to re-open Florida, especially as we are now officially in hurricane season. Florida continues to suffer from, and address, the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis that has ensued, but any meaningful response will only succeed if we are all part of the effort, working together with open lines of communication.

While regular communication existed between Members and Florida's executive offices and agencies earlier in the pandemic, this is no longer the case. At a time when the confluence of hurricane season and the state's re-opening amid a pandemic could cause compounding disasters, we are unable to coordinate with you and other agencies to establish critical strategies, such as widespread testing, to track and prevent further spread of COVID-19. We believe the lines of communication must be reestablished and maintained at all levels of government in order to ensure that Floridians' concerns can be voiced and addressed by the most appropriate office in a timely manner.

We respectfully request prompt responses to our prior inquiries and that our offices resume regular conference calls, so that we can continue our discussion of policies that will help protect all Floridians. In a time of crisis, government unity and open communication are critical to serving the residents of Florida efficiently and effectively. We believe it is imperative that we have contact with you and your agency directors.

Thank you for your consideration of these requests, we hope to continue to work with your office to ensure Floridians' safety in the uncertain times ahead.

Sincerely,