MONTICELLO, Fla. (WTXL) — A city in Jefferson County along with Hamilton County were awarded funding by the state of Florida Tuesday.
According to an announcement by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office, the city of Monticello, was awarded more than $4.2 million with more than $5.4 million going to Hamilton County through the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund.
The funding will be used in Monticello to extend wastewater services to the Interstate 10 and State Road 59 exchange.
Hamilton County's funding will be used to facilitate the buildout of a 57-acre parcel at the intersection of I-75 and SR-6.
The governor's office noted the planned development in Hamilton County will include a logistics park and travel center and will have the potential for future manufacturing opportunities.
“Making long-term investments in Florida’s workforce is why our state continues to outpace the nation in job growth,” DeSantis, a Republican, said in a statement. “Making sure that Florida is in the best position for job growth is the best way to ensure that Floridians can support their families.”
However, the Florida Democratic Party said in a news release Tuesday a large portion of the funding for the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund was via the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
Part of the American Rescue Plan Act provided federal funding to address infrastructure issues across the nation.
Last year, the Florida Republican delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives and Florida’s two Republican senators in the U.S. Senate voted against American Rescue Plan.
The state's Democratic delegation in the House all voted for the American Rescue Plan.
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 passed in the House and Senate due to Democrat majorities in the House and Senate.
“Ron DeSantis is once again trying to take credit for the success of the American Rescue Plan by announcing infrastructure investments in Florida that were made possible only thanks to President Biden and Democrats," Florida Democratic Party spokesperson Travis Reuther said in a statement.
“To be clear, DeSantis has previously referred to the American Rescue Plan as ‘Washington at its worst,’ and he joined every Republican in Congress in staunchly opposing it.”
