Protecting Our Coastline and Our Communities:

We must protect the places we love — from our beaches and rivers to our inland neighborhoods and wetlands. We face a dangerous combination of environmental neglect, out-of-control development, and state policies that silence local voices.

The climate crisis is real, but it’s being made worse by lawmakers and developers who prioritize short-term profits over long-term stability. We see the consequences every time it rains, every time we patch a seawall, and every time a neighborhood floods that never used to.

Beach Erosion: The Front Line 

From Crescent Beach to Daytona, our coastline is disappearing. Stronger storms and rising seas have eroded our beaches, damaged public infrastructure, and increased flood insurance costs. This puts pressure on homeowners, local economies, and public safety systems.

Yet state lawmakers continue to weaken local authority. Recent legislation like:

• SB 180 (2025) prevents local governments from tightening development rules after a hurricane without developer approval,
• SB 1080 (2025) fast-tracks building approvals with minimal environmental oversight,

…have taken power from our cities and handed it to developers — even when the science says it’s time to pause and reassess.

Inland Flooding: The Hidden Crisis in Our Backyards

It’s not just our beaches. Communities across the interior of FL-06 — including parts of DeLand, Palm Coast and unincorporated multiple other cities and towns within the district — are now facing regular flooding in areas never before considered at risk. Because new developments are being allowed to fill in wetlands and low-lying areas, destroying the natural drainage systems that once protected these neighborhoods.

These actions are:

• Redirecting water into nearby streets, backyards, and stormwater systems that weren’t designed for the volume,
• Overburdening infrastructure that hasn’t been upgraded in decades,
• And putting working-class families at risk of property damage and higher insurance rates — all while developers cash in.

This is happening because of weak zoning laws, preemption by the state, and the absence of federal pressure to demand smart growth practices. It’s unsustainable, and it’s unjust.

As your Representative, I’ll fight for both coastal and inland communities by pushing for federal tools, funding, and oversight that support local governments — not override them.

Coastal and Inland Resilience

• Expand federal Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grants to support both beach renourishment and inland stormwater improvements.
• Increase Army Corps and FEMA support for dune restoration, seawalls, and flood mitigation projects in low-lying inland areas.
• Require the use of updated flood maps and climate data in any federally backed development.

Support Smart, Science-Driven Development

• Tie federal infrastructure funding to local floodplain preservation and wetlands protection.
• Incentivize green infrastructure (like retention ponds, greenways, and natural buffers) in housing developments.
• Penalize practices that artificially elevate land or redirect water into nearby communities without adequate mitigation.

Restore Local Zoning Authority

• Push back against state preemption laws that block cities and counties from managing growth responsibly.
• Create federal standards for climate-resilient zoning that ensure local governments aren’t overridden by developer influence.

Fight for Working Families

• Ensure that affordable housing doesn’t mean flood-prone housing.
• Prioritize federal dollars for communities hit hardest by flooding but left behind by state leadership.

Whether you live along the coast or further inland, you deserve a representative who will protect your home, your neighborhood, and your future.From the beaches of Ormond and Flagler to the neighborhoods of Deltona and Pierson. We can’t keep paving over wetlands, silencing local officials, and pretending this is normal.

It’s time for common sense. It’s time for smart growth. It’s time to rebuild with nature — not against it.