Delray Beach is known as a liberal, inclusive city, so some are outraged that the city considered not moving forward with an LGBTQUIA+ Pride Festival being funded with taxpayer dollars. Others say, “Hold on, put on your big boy pants, and stop throwing our money around for something that could easily be privately funded and cost ‘we the people’ zero dollars. It’s a matter of fiscal responsibility.
A Pride Festival in Delray Beach funded by taxpayers is one of many examples of what happens when local government has too much of our money to spend on whatever cause du jour comes along. The commission made a split decision with mixed reactions about spending taxpayer dollars on a Pride Festival in Delray Beach. After much debate, with varying view points, the Delray Beach commission decided to move forward with the festival, scheduled for June 14, as planned but moving forward, will be conducting an economic impact analysis of all city-sponsored events, a decision the commission arrived at when the commission couldn’t agree on what the right thing was to do.
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With Governor DeSantis’s DOGE-ing of Florida and Floridians screaming for tax relief, local government spending is being scrutinized. This scrutiny has caused some to scratch their heads when looking at certain taxpayer-funded events and ask, Why are we allowing local government to throw our money at certain events when they can be funded with private donations? During the city commission meeting, there was discussion about a similar event held in Lake Worth Beach that’s funded through private donations and sponsorships.
At the April 8, 2025, Delray Beach city commission meeting, a heated debate erupted over whether to strip $15,000 in taxpayer funding from the upcoming Delray Beach Pride Festival & Concert, scheduled for June 14. Commissioners Rob Long and Angela Burns feel that Delray Beach needs to continue funding this event, so as not to put out a discriminatory or exclusionary message. In contrast, others, such as Commissioner Juli Casale, fear retaliation from the Governor in today’s political climate. She’s concerned that state funding will be taken away if the Governor gets wind of local spending for events such as this one. Commissioner Tom Markert felt more information was needed from the city lobbyist to make an informed decision. Mayor Tom Carney feels that Delray should evaluate all special programming.
Some community reaction is that this move targets the LGBTQIA+ community and risks Delray Beach’s reputation as an inclusive city. The idea of the Governor being punitive because of this type of event isn’t what’s happening here. What’s going on is that local government has way too much money to throw around, willy-nilly, at anything they feel like. They have the luxury of having so much of our money; they’re unsure what to do with it. Private donors should fund the Pride Festival. This has nothing to do with discrimination; it has to do with a government spending problem that everyone has become aware of throughout the country. Florida is leading the way in controlling spending with county and local government spending audits. This festival is an example of senseless expenditures, and an evaluation of all events is the responsible thing to do. Remember, residents, this is your money. Don’t let anyone gaslight you into thinking that you’re a bigot because you’re questioning how your money gets spent.
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