New signs welcoming people from other parts of the country to Florida are designed to let them know they are entering a “free state.”
On Tuesday, the Florida Department of Transportation revealed the new signs that greet drivers as they cross into the Sunshine State and encourage them to ‘Hurry Back’ as they go. The updated look will dot all major roadways in and out of Florida, it added.
“No better way to celebrate Independence Day Weekend than new state line signs welcoming Floridians and visitors to the Free State of Florida!” FDOT Secretary Jared Perdue wrote on social media.
Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez also posted a picture of herself Monday posing next to one of the signs.
In its statement, FDOT explained the versions that northbound and westbound drivers will see are callbacks to the middle of the 20th century when the state’s Welcome Centers had huge letters atop them with the same ‘Hurry Back’ language.
The agency noted the message showcases Florida as one of the nation’s top tourist destinations.
The two-paragraph announcement from FDOT, which prominently highlighted the change to Free State of Florida did not give any more information about the decision to add the additional descriptor.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, his family, and administration have used the phrase in official uses as well as on social media. In his 2022 State of the State address, he described Florida as a free state, saying its residents reject “biomedical security state” and restrictive mandates.
The following year, the term ‘Free State of Florida’ was fully assembled and capitalized in a statement announcing his Framework for Freedom budget, in which his office wrote, “(t)he Free State of Florida serves as a framework for states across the nation to follow.”
WPEC-Ch. 12 is a news partner of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
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