January 6, 2003
The Florida House of Representatives

During the first meeting of the House Policy Committee held today, Speaker Johnnie Byrd directed House leadership to follow First Principles as a guide for the next two years. Speaker Byrd’s First Principles initiative includes:

· Less taxation

· Less government

· More personal freedom

· More individual responsibility

· Empowering Florida ’s families

“First Principles mean we let people keep more of what they earn. It means that we expand people’s freedom to do extraordinary things and be wildly successful in whatever they decide to do in life. We encourage people to become truly free through self reliance and we trust families to make the right decisions for themselves and their loved ones,” explained Byrd.

“Our country was founded on the belief that the role of government was to promote freedom, opportunities and the prosperity of private citizens,” said Byrd. “Our Founding Fathers anticipated a citizenry that would be self-reliant and the scope of government was to be limited enough so as to not interfere with the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

Encouraging all House members to remain committed to First Principles, Byrd added, “We should start looking to make Florida ’s government more efficient, modern and responsive. That will help us grow Florida ’s economy, not her budget.”