Profile
Sections
tv
Featured
More From NBC
Follow NBC News
There are no new alerts at this time
An NBC South Florida meteorologist railed against Gov. Ron DeSantis after he signed legislation that would make climate change a lesser priority.
“On Thursday, we reported … that the government of Florida was beginning to roll back really important climate-change legislation and really important climate-change language,” meteorologist Steve MacLaughlin said in a video he shared Saturday.
“In spite of the fact that the state of Florida over the last couple of years has seen record heat, record flooding, record rain, record insurance rates, and the corals are dying all around the state,” he continued.
As MacLaughlin spoke, a graphic showed that it was the hottest April on record and the 11th straight hottest month.
MacLaughlin said the “entire world is looking to Florida to lead in climate change, and our government is saying that climate change is no longer the priority it once was.”
DeSantis signed controversial legislation last week that opponents say removes the word “climate” in nine places and moves Florida’s energy goals away from efficiency and reducing greenhouse gases that contribute to a warming planet.
DeSantis said in a post on X that the bills are “restoring sanity in our approach to energy and rejecting the agenda of the radical green zealots.”
“The legislation I signed today—HB 1645, HB 7071, and HB 1331—will keep windmills off our beaches, gas in our tanks, and China out of our state,” he wrote.
The legislation takes effect July 1.
MacLaughlin ended by telling viewers that “the most powerful climate change solution is the one you already have in the palm of your hands.”
“The right to vote,” he said. “And we will never tell you who to vote for, but we will tell you this: We implore you to please do your research and know that there are candidates that believe in climate change and that there are solutions. And there are candidates that don’t.”
Minyvonne Burke is a senior breaking news reporter for NBC News.
© 2024 NBC UNIVERSAL