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Gov. Ron DeSantis signed his eighth and final budget on Monday, June 29, approving $117.6 billion in spending after vetoing nearly $810 million, including three of Lakeland’s four legislative funding requests.
The governor struck $1 million for public safety radio replacement, $1 million for the city’s Septic-to-Sewer Conversion Project, and $115,000 for a Se7en Wetlands Water Education Center.
The lone survivor was a $1 million appropriation for the San Gully Drainage Stabilization Project — the next phase of a long-term effort to connect six west Lakeland neighborhoods from septic tanks to city sewer service.
| Project | Requested | Final funding |
| San Gully Drainage Stabilization Project | $1 million | $1 million |
| Public Safety Radio Replacement | $1 million | VETOED |
| Se7en Wetlands Water Education Center | $115,000 | VETOED |
| Septic-to-Sewer Conversion Project | $2 million | VETOED |
Lakeland had sought $4.115 million for four projects. Lawmakers approved $3.115 million during the legislative session, but the governor’s vetoes reduced the city’s final total to just $1 million.
A cautious, deliberate approach
Lakeland has felt the sting of the governor’s line-item veto pen before.
DeSantis cut $400,000 for the Se7en Wetlands education center. In June 2024, DeSantis vetoed the state’s entire $32 million arts budget.
Against that backdrop, city leaders entered the 2026 budget cycle with modest expectations and a tightly focused list of priorities.
At a November Legislative Committee meeting, then-Commissioner Sara Roberts McCarley said Lakeland was focusing on four budget requests and warned there would be “big cuts again this year.”
McCarley chaired the committee that developed the city’s legislative priorities before becoming mayor.
At the same meeting, lobbyist Dave Shepp told commissioners the city would need support from its legislative delegation and would have to convince committee chairs that Lakeland’s projects had value beyond city limits.
McCarley noted that Lakeland had earned praise during the previous session for “not over-asking.”
Higher ed avoided the governor’s veto
Florida Polytechnic University continued a multi-year streak of budget success. The budget includes $10 million of the $42.4 million it requested for the construction of a Student Achievement Center. That follows appropriations of $12 million last year and $5.7 million in 2024. However, DeSantis vetoed $11.2 million for the center in 2023.
The budget also grants $7.5 million of $15 million Florida Poly requested for its “Rising to 3,000” initiative, which aims to expand enrollment, academic programs, and campus capacity. Combined with last year’s $10 million appropriation, lawmakers have directed $17.5 million toward the effort.
Polk State College, which recently confirmed DeSantis’ commissioner of education, Anastasios “Stasi” Kamoutsas, as its new president, received nearly $25.4 million to remodel and renovate Building 3 on its Lakeland campus. The governor vetoed $1.5 million for the project in 2024, but allowed $6.1 million in 2023.
Polk State also received nearly $7.6 million for the final phase of its Northeast Ridge campus in the Haines City-Davenport area.
Florida Southern College received $5 million for a workforce-readiness expansion focused on agriculture, construction, architecture, and related fields. Several requested capital projects were not funded.
Courthouse project moves forward
The budget includes $13 million for a permanent courthouse for Florida’s Sixth District Court of Appeal in Lakeland.
A permanent courthouse has been a local priority since the court was created in 2022, but it faced a setback when DeSantis vetoed $50 million for the project that year. The latest appropriation moves the project significantly closer to reality.
The nine-member appellate court currently leases office space and judges’ chambers at 811 E. Main St. in downtown Lakeland. Because it lacks a dedicated courthouse, hearings have been held at Florida Southern College and the Orange County Courthouse in Orlando.
The funding may be used for architectural and engineering work, professional services, construction management, and site preparation.
PCPS and nonprofits
Polk County Public Schools received more than $10.5 million for workforce education programs.
The governor vetoed $250,000 that lawmakers had approved to help the district buy and outfit a mobile lab to visit schools throughout the county, offering students hands-on STEM and career exploration experiences. The total cost is expected to be $1 million.
Several Lakeland-area nonprofits also emerged from the budget process with state support.
One More Child is slated to receive a combined $1.645 million:
- $850,000 for anti-sex trafficking efforts
- $300,000 of $500,000 it requested for family support and prevention programs
- $495,000 for services for single mothers
Tri-County Human Services, based in Lakeland, is due to receive $1.5 million for community detox beds.
Other Polk County organizations receiving funding include:
- Peace River Center
- Heartland for Children
- ConnectED Polk
- $350,000 of $750,000 it requested for its Prosperity Through Career Pathways Initiative to renovate an existing high school to serve as a vocational trades high school
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