“Florida Legislature Halfway Home” This is Something to Think About 02.17.26

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“Florida Legislature Halfway Home”

Bill Bunkley’s “This Is Something to Think About”

Air Date Tuesday, February 17, 2026

We are halfway through the legislative session. The Budget Battle begins as the Florida House & Senate are earmarking their individual budget priorities, with the House releasing its initial budget last week and the Senate expected to release its budget this week.

The House proposed a $113.6 billion budget, $1 billion less than the current budget and far less than the Governor’s “Floridians First” budget of $117.4 billion.

The feud between Governor DeSantis and House Speaker Daniel Perez is affecting the entire legislative process.

No bills have gone to the Governor. Each chamber has not taken up any of the other chambers' bills.  24 bills have passed the House, 25 in the Senate. The current state of affairs is not the normal legislative process.

Bill Bunkley is a 20-year veteran Salem Media talk show host based in Tampa. The Bill Bunkley Show airs on weekdays from 3 to 5 pm across central Florida. Bill is also President of the Florida Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission and the legislative consultant to the Florida Baptist State Convention (Southern Baptist Convention Churches), among other churches and entities. He has served as the legislative consultant to the Florida Baptist State Convention for the last 30 years at the state capitol in Tallahassee. By the Grace of his Lord Jesus, he is a cancer survivor diagnosed in 2018 with AML Leukemia, having successfully undergone a bone marrow transplant that same year. In 2025, he underwent successful open-heart surgery to repair a heart valve. His wife is Toni, his son is Zac, and he attends Idlewild Baptist Church.

Copyright © William H. (Bill) Bunkley 2026 All Rights Reserved