51 States of America? Officials Pushing for South Florida as State

Officials of South Miami, FL are tired of the lack of action with regards to climate change and as a solution, the city's commission has passed a resolution to secede from Florida to become it's own state.

"We have to be able to deal directly with this environmental concern and we can't really get it done in Tallahassee," said Vice Mayor Walter Harris, according to the Sun-Sentinel. "I don't care what people think -- it's not a matter of electing the right people." 

The creation of an additional state would enable South Florida to plan and take climate change preventive and adaptive measures into its own hands.

"It's very apparent that the attitude of the northern part of the state is that they would just love to saw the state in half and just let us float off into the Caribbean," quoted Sun-Sentinel of South Miami Mayor Philip Stoddard. "They've made that abundantly clear every possible opportunity and I would love to give them the opportunity to do that."

The resolution passed with a 3-2 vote and calls for the legal separation of the state into two parts, making South Florida the Union's 51st state.

Based on the copy of the full resolution, the proposed state would comprise of 24 counties, including Brevard, Orange, Polk, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties. 

Moreover, the new state would comprise 23,000 sq. miles or 39% of Florida's 58,560 sq. mile area. Thus, South Florida would have 67% of the state's existing population amounting to approximately 13,375,000 people.

The resolution emphasizes the urgency of the environmental threat. It notes that North Florida's elevation is estimated to be 120-feet above sea level compared to South Florida's average, which is less than 50 feet. It further cited that by the end of this century, there will be a 3 to 6 foot rise in the sea level, putting the southern state at risk.

"South Florida's situation is very precarious and in need of immediate attention," stated the resolution. "Many of the issues facing South Florida are not political, but are now significant safety issues." 

It further concluded that "the creation of the 51st state, South Florida, is a necessity for the very survival of the entire southern region of the current state of Florida."

Following the approval, the resolution will now be sent to the proposed South Florida counties for consideration and to formally secede, it would require all of Florida's approval along with support from the U.S. Congress.