The new fiscal year for the state of Florida officially began on July 1, meaning the new budget year is underway. And when Governor DeSantis signed the annual budget in early June, he did not veto any University of Florida or UF/IFAS funds. Mary Ann Hooks, director of governmental affairs for UF/IFAS, told Southeast AgNet’s Randall Weiseman they were pleased with their final budget.
According to Hooks, the final budget report included $4,023,769 million ($2,586,139- Recurring $1,437,630- Nonrecurring) for workload, which increased their base funding for IFAS. Plus, all of their recurring projects were fully funded.
The existing programs that were fully funded include:
- Animal Agriculture Industry Science & Technology
- Cervidae Disease Research
- Florida Shellfish Aquaculture
- Forestry Education
- Statewide Water Budget Data Analytics Pilot Project w/ DEP
- Invasive Exotics Quarantine Facility
- Lakewatch
- IFAS/Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory
And the new funding this year includes:
- $4,023,769 million for IFAS Workload
- $1,681,844 non-recurring for Fertilizer Rate Study
To view the 2021-2022 Florida State budget highlights, click here.