As Florida continues to stand out as a bastion of conservative governance, the James Madison Institute (JMI), a respected think tank dedicated to free-market principles and limited government, has introduced its forward-looking policy priorities for 2026. Shared with state lawmakers, Florida’s congressional representatives, and Governor Ron DeSantis, this comprehensive agenda outlines transformative reforms across critical sectors such as government, education, business, health care, and technology. With an unwavering commitment to enhancing individual liberty and economic prosperity, JMI seeks to solidify Florida’s reputation as a national leader in innovative and principled policy-making, a vision passionately articulated by Senior Vice President Logan Padgett. This strategic roadmap not only addresses immediate state challenges but also sets a precedent for broader national impact, sparking curiosity about how these ideas could reshape the landscape of freedom and opportunity in the coming year.
Shaping Fiscal Responsibility and Government Efficiency
A cornerstone of JMI’s 2026 agenda lies in reshaping fiscal policy to address pressing economic concerns, particularly through property tax reform. Unlike more sweeping proposals from Governor DeSantis to eliminate property taxes entirely, JMI advocates a measured approach by urging a reduction in local governments’ dependence on ad valorem taxes. This aligns with ongoing efforts through the Florida Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which focuses on eliminating wasteful spending in local budgets to alleviate tax burdens. By striking a balance between fiscal discipline and the need for sustainable revenue streams, JMI aims to improve housing affordability and support homeownership without destabilizing local funding mechanisms. This pragmatic stance reflects a deep understanding of the intricate interplay between taxation and economic vitality, ensuring that reforms are both impactful and feasible within Florida’s diverse communities.
Another pivotal aspect of JMI’s fiscal strategy centers on protecting Florida’s litigation system from exploitative practices. The organization proposes strict limits on third-party litigation financing, where external entities fund legal costs in return for a portion of settlements, often fueling frivolous lawsuits. By advocating for transparency in these arrangements and defending recent tort reforms aimed at stabilizing the property insurance market, JMI seeks to maintain affordable insurance rates and attract new insurers to the state. This focus on curbing a litigious environment underscores a broader mission to foster a business-friendly climate, where legal systems support rather than hinder economic growth. Addressing these systemic issues is seen as vital to sustaining Florida’s appeal as a destination for investment and opportunity, ensuring that the state remains competitive on a national scale.
Tackling Housing Affordability Through Market Solutions
Housing affordability emerges as a critical challenge in JMI’s policy framework, with government-imposed barriers identified as significant obstacles to progress. Restrictive land-use regulations, high impact fees, and cumbersome permitting processes are pinpointed as key factors driving up costs and limiting supply. To combat this, JMI proposes streamlining regulatory frameworks and promoting innovative housing solutions such as accessory dwelling units and updated building codes. These measures aim to unleash market-driven responses to the crisis, allowing developers and homeowners to meet demand without reliance on heavy-handed government intervention. By focusing on reducing bureaucratic hurdles, JMI envisions a future where homeownership becomes more accessible to a broader segment of Floridians, addressing a persistent issue that affects families across the state.
Beyond regulatory reform, JMI emphasizes the importance of empowering local communities to adapt to housing needs through flexible policies. The organization highlights how rigid zoning laws often prevent the development of diverse housing options that could cater to varying income levels. By advocating for a more dynamic approach to land use, including incentives for mixed-use developments, JMI seeks to create environments where housing supply can naturally align with demand. This strategy not only tackles affordability but also fosters vibrant, sustainable communities that can thrive economically. The emphasis on market solutions over subsidies or mandates reflects a consistent theme in JMI’s agenda, prioritizing individual choice and private sector innovation as the most effective tools for solving complex social challenges like housing in Florida.
Advancing Education Freedom for All Levels
In the realm of education, JMI champions the concept of “education freedom” with a multi-tiered approach that addresses local, state, and national dimensions. At the local level, the organization seeks to dismantle zoning and land-use restrictions that hinder the growth of innovative models such as microschools and hybrid programs. A specific proposal involves allowing these alternative education providers to lease unused public school classrooms, thereby expanding access to diverse learning options. This initiative is designed to meet the needs of families seeking tailored educational experiences while making efficient use of existing infrastructure. By breaking down these barriers, JMI aims to create a more responsive education system that prioritizes student and parental choice over traditional, one-size-fits-all models.
At the state and national levels, JMI’s vision for education reform is equally ambitious, focusing on enhancing Florida’s universal school voucher program. The proposal includes allowing students to enroll in individual public school classes on a fee-based, a-la-carte basis, offering greater flexibility in crafting personalized learning paths. Nationally, JMI positions Florida’s voucher system as a potential model for a federal education tax credit scholarship program, aiming to influence broader policy trends. This dual focus on expanding access for students and improving financial outcomes for public schools presents these reforms as a win-win for all stakeholders. By addressing supply issues in school choice—evidenced by thousands of families settling for less desirable options due to limited availability—JMI underscores the urgency of creating a more competitive and inclusive education landscape.
Enhancing Health Care Access Through Competition
Turning to health care, JMI advocates for policies that prioritize choice and competition as mechanisms to reduce costs and improve access. A key recommendation is to expand the scope of practice for dental therapists and certain psychiatric nurses, enabling them to deliver more services independently. This reform seeks to dismantle regulatory barriers that often limit the availability of care, particularly in underserved areas. By empowering health care professionals to operate with greater autonomy, JMI envisions a system where market dynamics drive down expenses while enhancing patient outcomes. This approach aligns with the organization’s overarching commitment to free-market solutions, steering clear of expansive government programs in favor of targeted, efficiency-focused changes.
Additionally, JMI’s health care priorities emphasize the need to foster an environment where innovation can thrive within the industry. By reducing unnecessary constraints on practitioners, the organization believes that providers can better respond to the unique needs of their communities, whether through expanded service offerings or more accessible care models. This focus on competition extends beyond individual professionals to encourage broader systemic improvements, such as streamlined licensing processes that attract talent to Florida. The ultimate goal is to create a health care landscape that balances affordability with quality, ensuring that Floridians have access to the services they need without the burden of excessive costs or bureaucratic delays. JMI’s strategy here reflects a consistent thread of empowering individuals over institutional overreach.
Pioneering Technology and Digital Freedom
In the expansive domain of technology and innovation, JMI outlines a robust set of priorities aimed at positioning Florida as a leader in emerging fields like artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity. A significant focus is on crafting innovation-friendly regulations that attract investment in AI while ensuring responsible development. This includes implementing AI literacy standards in education to equip students with the skills to use such technologies ethically and effectively. By balancing opportunity with oversight, JMI aims to harness the transformative potential of AI while mitigating risks, establishing Florida as a hub for technological advancement. This forward-thinking approach seeks to prepare the state for a future where digital tools play an increasingly central role in economic and social progress.
Equally critical is JMI’s stance on digital freedom, particularly in rejecting legislation that mandates government ID verification for accessing certain online platforms. Instead, alternative age verification methods are supported to protect children while preserving user privacy. Additional priorities include making permanent a ban on municipal Communications Services Taxes (CST) to reduce consumer burdens and eliminating regulatory barriers to broadband investment in rural areas. Through public-private partnerships for cybersecurity workforce development and legal protections for compliant entities, JMI addresses modern challenges with practical solutions. This comprehensive tech agenda underscores a commitment to maintaining Florida’s light-touch regulatory environment, contrasting with more restrictive policies in other states, and aims to cement the state’s status as a national tech capital.
Ensuring Regulatory Accountability and Oversight
Beyond sector-specific reforms, JMI calls for enhanced legislative oversight of regulatory agencies to ensure they operate with efficiency and restraint. Targeted reviews are proposed to prevent bureaucratic overreach, maintaining a focus on fiscal responsibility across state operations. This initiative reflects a broader dedication to limited government, ensuring that agencies remain accountable to taxpayers and aligned with the principles of streamlined governance. By curbing unnecessary expansion of regulatory powers, JMI seeks to protect economic freedom and prevent the kind of overregulation seen in other regions, reinforcing Florida’s reputation for pragmatic and principled policy-making.
This push for accountability also serves as a safeguard against mission creep within state institutions, prioritizing clarity in agency roles and responsibilities. JMI’s emphasis on regular evaluation mechanisms aims to identify and eliminate redundancies that burden businesses and individuals alike. Such oversight is seen as essential to sustaining a government that supports rather than stifles innovation and growth. By embedding these checks and balances into the legislative process, the organization envisions a state apparatus that remains responsive to the needs of its citizens, ensuring that public resources are used effectively to advance the common good without infringing on personal liberties.
Crafting a Future of Liberty and Prosperity
Reflecting on the breadth of JMI’s 2026 policy priorities, a unified vision emerges of Florida as a stronghold of economic freedom and conservative values. Spanning government efficiency, housing solutions, education choice, health care access, and technological innovation, each reform is meticulously designed to minimize government interference while empowering individuals and businesses. This pragmatic yet visionary approach tackles complex challenges like housing affordability and insurance costs head-on, while positioning Florida as a pacesetter in national policy trends. The organization’s critique of excessive regulation elsewhere contrasts sharply with praise for Florida’s balanced governance model, which has already shown promising results.
Looking ahead, JMI’s agenda lays a clear path for actionable progress, urging lawmakers and stakeholders to prioritize market-driven solutions in the coming years. The focus on reducing barriers and fostering competition offers a blueprint for addressing systemic issues with sustainable impact. As Florida navigates future economic and social landscapes, embracing public-private partnerships for technology and ensuring regulatory accountability stand out as vital next steps. These strategies promise to build on past successes, ensuring that the state remains a leader in freedom and opportunity for generations to come.
