State agencies and Florida schools would have to update materials to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order to rename the “Gulf of Mexico” as the “Gulf of America,” under a measure filed this week in the state Senate.
Sarasota Republican Sen. Joe Gruters, who is a close ally of Trump, filed the proposal for consideration during the legislative session that will start March 4. It would require state agencies, county school districts and charter school boards to use materials that reflect the Gulf of America name.
Miami Republican Rep. Juan Carlos Porras filed a similar bill last week in the House.
Gruter’s bill also calls for a section of U.S. Highway 41, from Miami-Dade County to Hillsborough County, to be designated as the “Gulf of America Trail.”
Meanwhile, Republican Sen. Nick DiCeglie and House Majority Leader Tyler Sirois have filed bills that would change references in state laws from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
