“It feels like we’re taking away some of our focus around how we invest in, how we work with historically disadvantaged communities,” Spencer said. “Investment in these communities … creating these opportunities for folks within DOT is a way for folks to kind of lift themselves up.” 

He later provided an example of how the current law helped a small business in one such community.

“One business was able to get a large contract, and, through that large contract, they were able to employ over 100 people in a community,” he said. “That same business owner was able to provide scholarships to all of the students, all of the children of the employees, so that they could go to college.”

Spencer, along with his fellow Democrats on the subcommittee — Ranking Member Dianne Hart, Lindsay Cross and Dan Daley — voted against the proposed measure. Abbott, who spoke for the bill at the committee, responded that those disadvantaged businesses would still be defined as small businesses and the repeal would not remove any contract opportunities.

The subcommittee’s chair, Republican Rep. Jason Shoaf, who represents Dixie, Gulf, Franklin and Hamilton counties, also supported the measure.

“You and I both represent a ton of rural small cities and counties, and I know that we both are small business owners in those rural small areas,” Shoaf told Abbott. “I know you would never do anything to harm that, and I don't like it when government puts their finger on the scale for one small business over another small business, especially when they’re competitors.”

Abbott added that he would ensure “small businesses are represented and represented well. But the limitation of that is that I want small businesses represented, and I don't want one to have an advantage over another.”

Among the many other things HB 1397 would do is provide a platform for one of Bankson’s pet projects: vertiport construction. Bankson has said that he wants to bring that industry to the state and for Florida to be the leader in vertical-takeoff vehicles. Last year, his stand-alone bill died in committee; this time, the legislation is bundled into this broad transportation bill. 

The transportation bill would also provide project funding, planning and reporting for seaports and spaceports; establish the Florida Transportation Academy to support workforce development efforts in the transportation sector; and create the Florida Transportation Research Institute, which would be a consortium of higher education professionals to “drive cutting-edge research, innovation, transformational technologies, and breakthrough solutions."

Spencer was also working to get his first bill as a legislator passed. His House Bill 827 — which would require a statewide study about the economic impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and the consequences of automation on the workforce — is currently with the Transportation and Economic Development Budget Subcommittee after the Careers and Workforce Subcommittee passed it 17-0 on March 31. Bankson, who is a member of the latter subcommittee, voted for the bill.

“The study will look at which industries in areas are most affected, who’s most at risk, and how we can strengthen our workforce training to keep people employed and competitive in the global marketplace,” Spencer said at the Careers and Workforce Subcommittee hearing.

The freshman legislator said it was his first-ever bill presentation. Of the seven bills Spencer filed ahead of the session, this is the only one to advance. He fielded questions about HB 827 from the subcommittee members.

Republican Rep. Paula Stark, who represents parts of Orange and Osceola counties, asked if private sector studies had already been conducted. Spencer said that currently there were no Florida-focused AI studies on employment. 

Spencer said he checked with the Florida Department of Commerce and the Bureau of Workforce Statistics and Economic Research, which would conduct the study every three years in partnership with businesses, higher education and local leaders, to verify no other studies were in progress.

Republican Rep. Mike Caruso, who represents Palm Beach, asked if the bill had any fiscal impact. Spencer said there was none since the bureau could conduct the study with its current resources.

Caruso also asked Spencer why AI couldn't conduct the study itself. 

“We know that AI is currently reshaping the workforce as it exists today, and therefore, we need to make sure that we get some people in there to help us do the study, Representative. Make sure we do it right,” Spencer replied.