NOTICIAS

Florida’s Gulf Test Range is one of the United States’ most important testing and training areas. Located in the Gulf of Mexico, the range hosts a variety of military activities, including hypersonic weapons testing, high-altitude supersonic air combat training, air-to-air missile testing, drone targeting, special operations training, and more. That is why, for the past 16 years, the area has been protected from any type of exploration of development. In 2018, a report from the Office of the Secretary of Defense stated that “[t]he eastern Gulf of Mexico is an irreplaceable national asset… No other area offers the DoD a comparable combination of air space, water space, and existing infrastructure to support military activities.”
 
Buried in the Democrats’ $749 billion reckless climate and tax bill was a provision to strip those protections and open the door to the construction of offshore wind turbines in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. 
 
U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced legislation to prohibit energy exploration and development east of the Military Mission Line.
 

• “Any form of energy exploration or development in this critical area would jeopardize our national security and undermine our military readiness. Protecting Florida’s unique coasts and vital military assets has long been a priority of mine. We made great progress during the Trump Administration, but Democrats undid our good work. This bill would restore protection to Florida’s Eastern Gulf of Mexico.” – Senator Rubio

• “As Governor of Florida, I fought for and secured a commitment from the Trump Administration to prevent oil drilling off Florida’s coasts, and I’m glad they extended the moratorium on oil drilling for another 10 years. Achieving energy independence is critical and it can and must be done without sacrificing America’s military readiness and Florida’s pristine environment. The Senate should act today to reinstate the moratorium on all energy leasing and development east of the Military Mission Line in the Gulf of Mexico.” – Senator Scott

 
U.S. Representative Michael Waltz introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives. 
 

• “The Gulf Test Range is an irreplaceable national asset for our country’s defense infrastructure. The Department of Defense uses this area to test and develop our military’s weapons, such as hypersonic missiles, and advance our military’s capabilities in the air and on water. As our adversaries, like China, spend billions of dollars to modernize and build up their military capabilities, leasing water just off the coast of Florida for energy development would greatly hinder our country’s readiness and ability to deter military aggression.”

• “President Trump understood the importance of protecting the Gulf Test Range and preserving Florida’s coast and waters. But now, the Biden Administration and Congressional Democrats are stripping the protections President Trump put in place, opening the door for offshore wind development just off the coast of Florida. Not only will this jeopardize our national security, but it will forever alter Florida’s waters. We must protect the Gulf Test Range.” – Representative Waltz

 
Looking forward … Rubio will urge Senate leadership to prohibit energy exploration and development east of the Military Mission Line in the upcoming National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 2023.  
 
For the record … Rubio has a long record of protecting Florida’s natural resources from the threat of offshore oil and gas drilling. His advocacy achieved a major victory in September 2020 when then-President Trump signed an Executive Order to extend the moratorium on oil and gas drilling off the coasts of Florida to 2032. Rubio introduced the American Shores Protection Act to codify the moratorium.