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A wide-ranging agricultural bill that would prohibit local governments from adding fluoride to water supplies is ready for a full Senate vote. The measure (SB 700), approved along party lines by the Republican-controlled Senate Fiscal Policy Committee on Tuesday, in part revises the definition of “water quality additive.” The bills come amid debates in communities throughout Florida about whether to continue the longstanding practice of adding fluoride to drinking water to help with dental health. A longtime critic of fluoridation in Escambia County, Pueschel Schneier told the committee the issue is about “medical freedom” and claimed there is no excuse for someone to claim they don’t have access to a toothbrush. “No government entity has the right to medicate us against our will,” Schneier said. “They have no right to medicate an entire population because they believe maybe a small portion of that population will benefit.” But Jackson Oberlink, legislative director for Florida For All, maintained that fluoridating water has been one of the nation’s most successful public health initiatives. “Are cavities the new culture war? Is the water too woke?” Oberlink said. Calling it “public health malpractice,” Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo in November advised local governments to stop adding fluoride to their community water supplies. The American Dental Association responded by claiming Ladapo was “misinformed.” Local officials in Port St. Lucie, Naples and Niceville are among communities that have agreed to remove fluoride from their water. The wide-reaching bill approved Tuesday also would allow the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to create rules to prohibit plant-based products from being “mislabeled” as meat and poultry products. The bill also would ban most drone operations over agricultural lands and preempt local governments from regulating the construction of housing for “legally verified” agricultural workers. A similar housing preemption was vetoed last year by Gov. Ron DeSantis, who claimed the 2024 measure lacked enforcement related to illegal workers.
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