TALLAHASSEE, Florida — A state House committee on Thursday advanced a House bill to the floor that would prohibit weather modification after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized the chamber for “gutting” the measure.
The House State Affairs Committee voted 15-9 to advance the bill, FL HB477 (25R), amid concerns from Florida’s 128 public airports about their role in enforcing the proposed ban on aircraft dispersing chemicals to control the weather. Two Republicans joined Democrats in voting against the bill.
The committee added Senate bill language requiring airport operators to file monthly reports describing the activities of any aircraft equipped to disperse contaminants into the air with the purpose of affecting weather, climate or the intensity of sunlight.
Tiffany King, executive director of the Florida Airports Council, said if airports are required to have a formal role in enforcement, that “could be somewhat problematic.”
