Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
News about coronavirus in Florida and around the world is constantly emerging. It's hard to stay on top of it all but Health News Florida can help. Our responsibility is to keep you informed, and to help discern what’s important for your family as you make what could be life-saving decisions.

Leaders Tell DeSantis: $1.9M Collected In Coronavirus Fines

woman wearing mask
npr
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

Only a handful of local governments in Florida have issued fines to people or businesses related to their coronavirus orders, according to reports requested by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Not all cities and counties responded, but out of the ones that did and issued fines, just two account for the vast majority of the $1.9 million in penalties: Miami-Dade County and Naples.

Miami-Dade County and Naples account for more than 85 percent of the fines, due to a variety of reasons, including disobeying mask ordinances, staying out past curfew and parking by the beaches when they were closed.

Miami-Dade County issued 1,882 citations totaling $760,600 and another 215 citations totaling $109,650 were issued by the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department, comprising 45 percent of the $1,940,162 in fines tallied by DeSantis' office.

Read more from WLRN news partner The South Florida Sun Sentinel.