Rick Scott

Reintroduced the Protect Our Seniors Act in January 2025 to preserve Social Security and Medicare solvency. Introduced the Senior Citizens' Freedom to Work Act of 2026 in March 2026 to allow seniors to continue working without losing benefits. Chairs the Senate Special Committee on Aging. Voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill which included a $6,000 senior deduction reducing federal tax burden for retirees. However the Protect Our Seniors Act and Senior Citizens Freedom to Work Act remain in committee and have not passed.

Voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill signed July 4, 2025, which made the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent and extended tax cuts for working and middle-class families. Also voted to extend tax relief for seniors through a $6,000 senior deduction. As Florida Governor from 2011-2019, cut taxes every year for eight years, eliminated the business rent tax, and oversaw the creation of 1.7 million private-sector jobs, establishing the economic record he continued to champion in the Senate.

Was primary sponsor of the END FENTANYL Act (S.206), which aimed to strengthen enforcement against fentanyl trafficking; the bill's status as enacted standalone law should be verified, as provisions may have been incorporated into broader legislation. Voted for the HALT Fentanyl Act (S.331), which passed the Senate 84-16 in March 2025 and was signed into law as Public Law 119-26, permanently classifying fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I drugs and imposing mandatory minimum sentences for trafficking. Also supported efforts to hold China accountable for supplying fentanyl precursor chemicals.

Voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill (signed July 4, 2025), which included major border security funding, immigration enforcement provisions, and billions for border wall construction. Consistently supported the Trump administration's border enforcement agenda in the Senate, including deportation operations and increased ICE funding. As Florida Governor, allocated state resources to address immigration-related challenges. However, 'securing the border' and 'stopping illegal immigration' remain ongoing challenges, and while crossings have declined under Trump-era enforcement, the border is not fully secured.

Serves as Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower. Secured major provisions in the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act for Florida's 20+ military installations and three combatant commands. Introduced legislation in March 2026 to improve VA referral and appointment timing standards for veterans' healthcare and to expand flexibility in Post-9/11 GI Bill transferability. Led a Senate resolution commending U.S. military action in Venezuela. Florida's military community generates billions in economic activity and Scott has been its consistent advocate on the Armed Services Committee.

Co-led the American Shores Protection Act with Sen. Moody to codify the ban on offshore oil drilling off Florida's Gulf and Atlantic coasts through 2032. Co-led the entire Florida congressional delegation letter to President Trump in December 2025 urging him to reject Interior Department plans to open the eastern Gulf to new drilling. The bill has been introduced but has not yet passed as of April 2026.

Senator Scott championed legislation targeting both Cuba and Venezuela's authoritarian regimes. He introduced the DEMOCRACIA Act imposing severe sanctions on Cuba's communist regime, the BOLIVAR Act prohibiting federal agencies from doing business with anyone supporting Venezuela's Maduro regime, and the VALOR Act to guide U.S. policy supporting Venezuelan democracy. He led a bipartisan resolution with Sen. Moody commending Cuba's freedom movement and met with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, issuing a statement of U.S. support. Scott also introduced the STOP MADURO Act in 2025 to raise the maximum reward for Maduro's arrest to $100 million. On January 3, 2026, Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores were captured by U.S. military and law enforcement forces in Caracas, Venezuela and transported to federal custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, where they await trial on narco-terrorism and drug trafficking charges. Scott's sustained legislative pressure on both regimes contributed to the policy environment that enabled this operation. Status: Kept — the core promise of holding both regimes accountable has been fulfilled through legislation and the capture of Maduro.

Introduced the CCP Influence Act with Senator Blackburn requiring officials from China, Cuba, Venezuela, Iran, Russia, and North Korea to notify the State Department 96 hours before any government meetings in the U.S. The bill has been introduced but has not yet been enacted. Secured a provision in the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act prohibiting the Department of Defense from purchasing Chinese computers and printers that could allow backdoor access to secure networks. Has been a consistent and leading voice on China threats in the Senate Armed Services Committee as Chairman of the Seapower Subcommittee. However, the broader goal of stopping Chinese infiltration across government, universities, and businesses remains only partially addressed.

Scott pushed for deeper spending cuts during the One Big Beautiful Bill debate in 2025, warning that the package as written would raise the federal deficit from $37 trillion to close to $60 trillion over 10 years. Despite his objections he ultimately voted for the bill. The Penn Wharton Budget Model estimated the bill adds over $3 trillion to the deficit. The national debt has grown by over $2 trillion since Trump took office January 2025. Scott has not secured any meaningful deficit reduction legislation in his Senate tenure.

In February 2022 Scott released his 11-Point Rescue America plan which called for all federal legislation to sunset every 5 years — which would have included Social Security and Medicare. After criticism from both parties including Senate Minority Leader McConnell — who said sunsetting them "would not be part of our agenda" — Scott revised the plan in February 2023 to explicitly exclude both programs. In January 2025 he reintroduced the Protect Our Seniors Act to preserve Social Security and Medicare solvency. He voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill in July 2025 which included a $6,000 senior deduction but did not fully eliminate Social Security taxation as promised.