FL-04: Aaron Bean (R)

REPLACING:

John Rutherford (R)[i]

WORK HISTORY:

Florida State Senate (State Senator, District 4); Florida State Senate (President Pro Tempore); Florida House of Representatives (State Representative, District 12); Fernandina Beach City Commission (Commissioner); Fernandina Beach City Commission (Mayor-Commissioner); UF Health Jacksonville (Relationship Development Officer); Compass Bank (City President / Loan Officer); High Energy Auction Company (Owner); Shands HealthCare (Relationship Development Officer); Prudential Island Realty (Owner / Broker); The Joel Embry Company (Sales)[ii] [iii]

EDUCATION:

Diploma, Fernandina Beach High School; BS, Jacksonville University; Attended, Florida School of Banking; Attended, Florida Auctioneer Academy[iv] [v] [vi] [vii]

CAMPAIGNED ON:

Economic Growth; Family Values; Inflation; Immigration; Federal Overreach[viii]

ON THE ISSUES

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS:

Bean is pro-life and applauded the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.[ix] He supported a recent bill signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis that would ban abortion after 15 weeks with exception for life and health of the mother.[x] Bean has also voted for a number of anti-abortion bills, including ones that would require parental consent for minors and a 24-hour waiting period prior to receiving an abortion.[xi] In Congress, he would vote for a national abortion ban.[xii]

ECONOMY, JOBS & TAXES:

Bean believes Congress should be doing everything it can to “allow the free market to thrive and decrease the burdens of government regulation.”[xiii] He has pledged to “stop reckless spending” and “end runaway inflation,” which he has named his number one priority.[xiv] [xv] He will also work to address what he calls “over-taxation by the federal government” and supply chain issues.[xvi] He supported Governor DeSantis’ tax relief proposal that would provide $1.1 billion in tax relief for Florida families through multiple tax holidays and said he would take this “tax-cutting spirit” to Washington.[xvii]

HEALTHCARE & SOCIAL SAFETY NET:

Bean has said he would not try to end Social Security for anyone currently in the system now but has suggested “other options” for younger people “who could choose something different.”[xviii] While serving in the Florida State Senate, Bean proposed legislation that would reject Medicaid expansion under the ACA.[xix] He also filed a bill that would permanently eliminate the state’s Medicaid and Medicare “retroactive eligibility” rules that allow poor and elderly Floridians to be reimbursed for unplanned medical costs.[xx] He previously called for repealing the ACA and replacing it with a “sustainable” solution that would guarantee access to quality healthcare.[xxi]

IMMIGRATION & BORDER SECURITY:

Bean believes the economy and the integrity of the healthcare and education system in the US are in jeopardy if Congress continues to allow illegal immigration.[xxii] He has said there can be “no compromise” with those who want to “keep the border open,” but hopes to lead a group to “finally secure our border” in Congress.[xxiii] [xxiv] He opposed a 2014 Florida measure that would approve in-state tuition for undocumented students.[xxv] Bean also previously supported passing an “Arizona-style immigration law” in Florida, prohibiting state sanctuary city laws, requiring local governments to assist with immigration enforcement, stopping undocumented immigrants from using taxpayer-funded services, and implementing an E-Verify system.[xxvi] [xxvii] Notably, Bean introduced a bill in March 2022 that would withhold state contracts and economic incentives to companies that provided transportation services under the Biden administration’s border-crossing resettlement program, including air and bus charters.[xxviii] [xxix]

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY:

Bean has said he is “proud to back the blue” and has pledged to support law enforcement in Congress.[xxx] In 2015, he sponsored legislation that would exempt certain defendants from Florida’s mandatory minimum sentencing laws if they proved the use of force was justifiable in a gun incident, including homicide.[xxxi] He also supported Florida’s controversial “Stand Your Ground” law, arguing it protected homeowners who were protecting themselves.[xxxii]

GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS & ELECTION SECURITY:

Bean has called Florida a “model for the nation in voting systems and election integrity.”[xxxiii] While he has confidence Florida’s 2020 election was “fairly and competently administered,” Bean has said he “cannot speak” to the legitimacy of the election in other states.[xxxiv] He opposes ballot harvesting.[xxxv]

EDUCATION:

Bean supports giving parents more choice in their children’s education.[xxxvi] In 2021, Bean voted for a controversial Florida measure that would impose certain limits on the amount of aid from the Bright Futures Scholarship Program qualifying students could receive based on their major.[xxxvii] [xxxviii] He also supported bills that would authorize residents to challenge school textbooks, prohibit discrimination against religious expression in schools, and protect teachers and students from retaliation for discussing scientific evidence for and against the theory of evolution.[xxxix] [xl] In March 2022, he voted for a bill that would limit discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in Florida classrooms.

CLIMATE CHANGE, ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT:

Bean advocates for energy independence by prohibiting oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to go to any country besides the US, as well as expanding drilling leases and opening more pipelines.[xli] In Florida, he voted for bills that would establish new regulations for renewable energy net metering programs and prohibit municipal governments from banning plastic straws.[xlii]

BIG TECH & DATA PRIVACY:

In April 2021, Bean voted for a Florida bill that would prohibit social media companies from “deplatforming” political candidates.[xliii]

GUN SAFETY:

Bean is a strong proponent of Second Amendment rights and believes “good guys with guns can protect against bad guys with guns.”[xliv] He agrees with the gun lobby’s position of enforcing “existing gun laws aimed at criminals who use guns to commit their crimes in order to reduce gun violence in our country.”[xlv] In March 2018, he voted for the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, which would implement a number of gun safety provisions, including prohibiting bump stocks, raising the minimum age to purchase a firearm to 21, requiring a three-day waiting period for most gun purchases, and allowing some teachers to be armed in schools.[xlvi] [xlvii] He has also voted for bills that would authorize firearms to be carried on school campuses, authorize concealed carry during emergency evacuations, and authorize firearms in vehicles.[xlviii] Notably, Bean has not been endorsed by the NRA, which gave him a “B” rating this cycle.[xlix]