Vicky Arias, FISM News
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In search of freedom, a record number of New Yorkers are fleeing the state, with many of them heading to the sunshine, beaches, and Republican-led government of Florida.
The New York Post reports that in just the past year, over 40,000 New York residents handed in their New York driver’s licenses for Florida ones. In August alone, 5,838 New Yorkers, the highest number in a single month in history, registered for Florida driver’s licenses.
The driver’s license switch signifies that those New Yorkers’ who are headed south are commited to stay in Florida for the long haul. Radical school curriculums, high tax burdens, stringent COVID-19 restrictions, and rising incidents of violent crime likely contributed to the staggering migration.
Crime rates have surged in the Big Apple. Hate crimes against Jews have remained the highest of any minority group, according to data collected from July and August 2022 by the New York City Police Department. According to the NYPD, “overall index crime in New York City increased in August 2022 by 26% compared with August 2021.” Additionally, violence on NYC subways has seen an increase of more than 50%, with “a multitude of examples of random violence [being] reported across the NYC subway system,” according to FOX5 News.
Calls to defund the police and a soft-on-crime approach that lets violent criminals back onto the street without bail have opened NYC up to violence, leaving many residents feeling unsafe. Many young parents with children saw the unfortunate reality of rampant crime and realized that the city was no longer a sensible place to raise their children.
Keechant L. Sewell, New York police commissioner, said that “further refinements [are needed] to the state’s well-meaning criminal justice reforms that too many recidivists and violent criminals exploit.”
Florida, with its pro-business, low-tax attitude continues to attract New Yorkers, weary of government overreach. While New York is the state with the highest tax burden in the country, there is no personal state income tax in Florida.
Additionally, Florida’s school system recently adopted common-sense legislation to prevent the sexualization of children, effectively restricting “classroom instruction [of] sexual orientation or gender identity … in kindergarten through grade 3 … in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.” This is certainly another Florida draw for parents raising young children.
Many ex-New Yorkers are pleased with their migration to Florida and find the more reasoned Florida government a refreshing change of pace.
As reported by WPTV in West Palm Beach, Florida, John Ries, former New Yorker turned Floridian, said that he has “one regret … that [he] didn’t [move] 20 years earlier.”