TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Governor Ron DeSantis has made the name change official. He signed two bills renaming the “Gulf of Mexico” to the “Gulf of America.”
HB 575 and HB 549 were signed by the governor on Monday.
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HB 575 would require all references to the “Gulf of Mexico” in Florida to be changed to “Gulf of America.”
HB 549 would require state agencies to update geographic materials to reflect new federal designation of “Gulf of Mexico” as “Gulf of America.” It would also require instructional materials & library media center collections adopted or acquired by certain entities on or after specified date to reflect new federal designation of “Gulf of Mexico” as “Gulf of America”.
In February, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said it will implement a “Gulf of America” name change to all of its Commission materials.
In a media release, FWC said it will support President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14172, which calls for the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. All commission materials, documents, maps, forms, and resources will reflect the change.
The FWC said the changes would apply to offices and programs that directly involve the Gulf of America, including the Division of Marine Fisheries Management, the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, Division of Law Enforcement and the Boating and Waterways Section within the Division of Law Enforcement across the state of Florida.
Google Maps also replaced the Gulf of Mexico with the Gulf of America in February.
The effective date for the bills would be July 1, 2025.