• Submitted by: manso
• Politics and Government
• 11 / 19 / 2010

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Now that an appellate court has upheld the Florida law that prohibits state universities from spending money on trips to Cuba, Florida International University has a new Cuba travel policy. FIU’s Faculty Senate had challenged the law with no luck.  The new policy almost sounds like it encourages faculty to play around with the books, pointing out that the trips are not prohibited – as long as the funds that pay for them do not pass through any FIU accounts.

Here's the memo from provost Douglas Wartzok.

M E M O R A N D U M
To:       FIU Community
From:   Douglas Wartzok, Provost and Executive Vice President
Date:   17 November 2010
Re:       State of Florida Restrictions On Funding Travel Costs Relating to Countries designated by the U.S. Government as “State Sponsors of Terrorism.”

In 2006, the FIU Faculty Senate and individual faculty members from FIU and other Florida state universities joined the ACLU to challenge the constitutionality of Florida Statutes 1011.90(6) and 112.061(3)(e) prohibiting state universities and agencies from using funds from any source (state, federal, private or other) for travel or travel-related costs to countries designated by the U.S. Department of State as “state sponsors of terrorism.”  

As of November 2010, these are defined as Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria.  While these statutes were ruled unconstitutional in 2008 as to the use and administration of “nonstate” funds by state universities and agencies, a federal appeals court recently overturned the 2008 ruling and state universities and agencies must now comply with these two Florida statutes. Accordingly, we are required to make the following changes as a result of this ruling on these Florida statutes: Continue reading "FIU Cuba Travel Policy"

Source: //miamiherald.typepad.com/cuban_colada/