In a crowded chamber with standing room only, the Escambia County Commission voted 3 to 2 Thursday evening to replace references to the Gulf of Mexico with Gulf of America in all future county ordinances.
Support Local Stories. Support Public Media.
The vote followed a lengthy and emotional public hearing, where dozens of residents, activists, and local leaders filled the room to speak. According to the county’s published agenda, the hearing was held “to consider adopting an ordinance to change references in the Escambia County Code of Ordinances from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.”
Commissioners Ashlee Hofberger, Steve Stroberger, and Chairman Mike Kohler voted in favor. Commissioners Lumon May and Steven Barry opposed the measure.
The change complies with Senate Bill 608, which took effect July 1 and requires state agencies to adopt “Gulf of America” in official documents. County officials said the local ordinance brings Escambia into alignment with both state and federal directives.
Still, the vote came after a wave of passionate testimony from residents who opposed the change, arguing it was unnecessary, politically motivated, and potentially costly.
“I’ve lived here since I was two years old,” said Kristy Rosen, a resident who addressed the commission. “It’s the Gulf. That’s what I call it. That’s what most of us call it. This ordinance to replace the Gulf of Mexico with Gulf America doesn’t solve a single problem that we face here. What it does is create unnecessary work for multiple county agencies.”
RELATED: Pensacola Beach sign updated to “Gulf of America” as part of Florida rebranding
“I know that y’all already fixed your paperwork; it’s attached. I’ve seen it,” she continued. “So you’ve already made these changes. All you have to do is sign it. But you’re creating work for other agencies, legal agencies, emergency management, environmental, tourism, public works, all of which now will have to come through ordinances, websites, printed materials, maps, signage, and permits just to update a name that no one asked to change.”
Rosen also said the law includes no mandated timeline for implementation, meaning the county could have waited.
“There is no time strain on this,” she said. “We have real issues here that matter to our citizens. Every dollar spent on this branding stunt is a dollar not going to things residents actually care about. Escambia County doesn’t need a culture war headline. We need competent, focused leadership.”
Derrick Scott, chair of the Escambia County Democratic Party, echoed those concerns.
“The name Gulf of Mexico is not a political statement,” he said. “It is a globally recognized geographic term, just like the Atlantic Ocean or the Mississippi River. Changing it does not make us more American. It just makes us look out of touch and fiscally irresponsible.”
Scott said the change could affect local maps, signs, educational materials, and branding, all at taxpayer expense. “This kind of performative politics is not where our taxpayer dollars should go,” he concluded.
Environmental concerns were also raised. Christian Wagley, a local advocate with Healthy Gulf, warned that symbolic name changes do not address the real environmental threats facing the region.
“Changing the name doesn’t fix the problems facing the Gulf,” he said. “Right now, there’s a dead zone forming the size of New Jersey off the coast of Louisiana and Texas, and that’s from fertilizer runoff… to feed animals and to make ethanol, which doesn’t make any financial or environmental sense at all.”
He noted growing pressure on local science institutions, including the EPA lab in Gulf Breeze, and warned that offshore drilling remains an immediate concern.
“This renaming doesn’t fix that,” he said.
RELATED: Wildlife agency shifts to ‘Gulf of America’
Despite those arguments, the commission’s majority cited legal obligation and symbolic meaning in their decision.
“Renaming it to the Gulf of America makes sense to me. It’s a simple acknowledgment… of who protects it. It’s us. It’s our Gulf," said Commissioner Stroberger.
Chairman Kohler defended the vote as a matter of law and respect for executive authority.
“I believe in the rule (of) law,” he said. “You may not like an executive order, but this is an executive order that doesn’t hurt anyone. If we don’t follow executive orders by the governor, no matter if it’s DeSantis or a Democrat, we will not have a governing society that can be normal.”
Kohler added, “I have no problem with the word America. I love America. This place I defended. And if it’s Gulf of Mexico for you, it’s Gulf of Mexico for you, and I respect that. But I’m gonna vote for Gulf of America.”
Commissioner Lumon May opposed the measure, arguing that even a small administrative change carries a cost.
“To say that it doesn’t have a physical impact, it’s just certainly not true,” May said. “Whether we’re spending… however we spend dollars for advertising, TDC dollars for our tourism, I mean, there is an impact.”
The ordinance applies only to new and future documents. Earlier this spring, Escambia County quietly updated a welcome sign on Pensacola Beach to read “Gulf of America,” spending roughly $2,600 on the change.
