This year's Catholic Days outreach to lawmakers centered on four distinct issues that are being considered during the legislative session, including opposition to assisted suicide and death penalty expansion, as well as support for improving prison infrastructure and a bill provision requiring instruction in human embryology.

The bishops honored four awardees at the breakfast on Wednesday. Paul Renner received the Defensor Dignitatis Award. Drs. Steven Christie, M.D. and Grazie Christie, M.D., were honored with the Distinguished Catholic Leader Award. John Sowinski was presented with the Distinguished Catholic Leader Award.

During the 2025 Legislative Session, the FCCB's public policy priorities will guide the Conference's engagement. FCCB staff will continue to share the priorities with new and existing legislators and their aides.

Edward James is scheduled to be executed on March 20 for the 1993 murders of Betty Dick and her eight-year-old granddaughter, Toni Neuner. The FCCB recognizes the terrible pain and loss imposed by the actions of Mr. James. "We mourn the tragic deaths of Mrs. Dick and Toni and the suffering of their family members, and we pray for their comfort," wrote Michael Sheedy, FCCB executive director, in a letter to Governor Ron DeSantis.

For the 50th consecutive year, the Catholic bishops of Florida will celebrate the Red Mass of the Holy Spirit during the Florida legislative session. The Mass continues the long-standing tradition of calling on the Holy Spirit to provide divine inspiration and guidance for those serving in government and members of the legal profession. Mass participants are Catholic and non-Catholic and include members of Florida’s executive branch, legislators, judges, attorneys, state agency officials and community members.

Pope Francis has urged Catholic faithful to recognize the “infinite and transcendent dignity of every human person” in a letter to the Bishops of the United States of America published on February 11 amidst national controversy regarding the ongoing migration crisis and the onset of mass deportations. “I exhort all the faithful of the Catholic Church, and all men and women of good will, not to give in to narratives that discriminate against and cause unnecessary suffering to our migrant and refugee brothers and sisters,” wrote Pope Francis.

The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops (FCCB) has implored Gov. Ron DeSantis to stay the execution of James Ford and commute his death sentence. Ford is scheduled to be executed on February 13 for the 1997 murders of Gregory Malnory and his wife, Kimberly Malnory, in Charlotte County.

For decades, Florida’s bishops, along with their brother bishops across the US, have been consistent in their calls for Congress to pass multifaceted reform of the nation’s immigration system. Church teaching recognizes a country’s right and responsibility to promote public order, safety, and security through well-regulated borders and just limits on immigration. The remedy for our inadequate immigration system should take place at the federal level, not through piecemeal policies at the state level.

Florida legislators gathered in Tallahassee on Monday, January 27, 2025, to convene for a special session called by Governor DeSantis to address a range of topics, including immigration. After a short period of announcements, the House and Senate adjourned, only to re-adjourn in a separate special session called by legislative leaders to take up and pass their own immigration legislation instead of the governor's broader plan.

The 60-day regular Florida legislative session is set to begin on March 4 and run through May 2, 2025. Each year, the FCCB releases its policy priorities prior to the start of the annual legislative session. Key issues for 2025 have been identified and are listed under the advocacy areas of Life & Dignity, Health Care, Family & Social Concerns, and Education on our website.

In the United States, January 22 is designated as a Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. The day is to be observed in prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life and of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion.

Florida's Bishops invite you to join them in Tallahassee to advocate for the protection of human life and dignity as lawmakers continue the important work of shaping Florida's laws and future for the common good. Each year during the legislative session, Catholics from across the state gather in Florida's capital city to put their faith and civic responsibility into action.

Recently, Catholic advocates like you urged President Biden to commute the death sentences of the 40 people who were on federal death row. Thanks in large part to those efforts, President Biden commuted 37 of those death sentences on December 23.

Joseph P. Harmon, PhD, joined the Conference in January. Joe works under the direction of the executive director and is a member of the policy team. He is responsible for assisting with review of bills filed in each legislative session, research and position development.

We are profoundly relieved at the defeat of Florida’s pro-abortion Amendment 4. This is a positive outcome for Florida and all efforts to promote the flourishing of our state. Though Amendment 4 failed to reach the 60% threshold required to pass, a majority of Floridians voting in the general election supported it. While significant gains to protect women and preborn children in recent years will remain in place, abortion in Florida will continue at a very high rate under our current laws.