It's Time for Commissioner Nikki Fried to Follow the Law

Right now, harmful algal blooms on Lake Okeechobee are testing over 100 times more toxic than the EPA considers safe for human contact.

The Clean Waterways Act, which went into effect last July, requires Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services' Commissioner Nikki Fried to provide data her office collects on pollution sources feeding these algal blooms to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). This data could provide critical insight to scientists in Florida in order to take steps to improve our state's water quality.

But, in violation of the law, Commissioner Nikki Fried has failed to provide any of this critical data collected by her office to the scientists at FDEP!

That is why I am fighting to get Commissioner Fried to stop using her taxpayer-funded office to shield polluters from scrutiny and immediately send all records gathered in compliance with the Clean Waterways Act to the FDEP.

The law is clear, so even if cleaning up Florida's waterways is not a top priority for Commissioner Fried, the law says she must release this data ASAP. I will not stop fighting until this critical data is released!

You can read the letter here: