TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida's governor thinks the state's share of President Joe Biden's infrastructure plan is unfair.
Tuesday morning, the Republican doubled down on his criticism of therecently passed$1.2 trillion policy -- which is set to provide the state with billions in aid.
After calling the federal legislation "pork-barrel spending" on Monday, DeSantis questioned whether Florida's $19.1 billion was fair compared to other states like New York ($26.9 billion) and New Jersey ($13.5 billion).
![Gov. Ron DeSantis, news conference Nov. 9, 2021](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/dbd08c8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1280x720+0+0/resize/1280x720!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F90%2F93%2F09e060bd4618a6dcf5b98e4c5baf%2Fgov.-Ron-DeSantis-Nov.-9%2C-2021.jpg)
He had made similar attacks on COVID-19 relief dollars, saying the state was "punished" for having lower jobless numbers. That's despite federal funds helping bolster Florida's current budget with an extra $10 billion.
"Is Florida being treated well in this?" DeSantis said while speaking at a news conference in Spring Hill. "Or, are they basically funneling money to a bunch of very, very high tax and dysfunctional states?"
The White House has pushed back on DeSantis' comments. Officials said, like COVID-19, infrastructure funds are divided based on need.
![Gina McCarthy, White House National Climate Adviser, Nov. 9, 2021](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1660a0c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1280x720+0+0/resize/1280x720!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F7c%2Fb5%2Fe17f1caa4b25811032d4855e68a4%2Fgina-mccarthy.jpg)
"We promised to do a bipartisan infrastructure bill, and we got it done," said Gina McCarthy, White House National Climate Adviser. "This is a significant amount of money. You might want to barter or argue about how it's allocated, but it's going to make a huge difference in every state and every community."
Florida's biggest allotments:
- $1.2 billion for airports
- $1.6 billion on clean water
- $2.6 billion for public transportation
- $13.1 billion for roads
Biden has yet to sign the policy. White House officials said earlier this week it would likely happen when Congress returns next week.