By Skip Foster, Red Tape Florida
Most days, Red Tape Florida writes about government at its most frustrating.
We write about permits that take too long, regulations that don’t make sense, public officials who lose sight of the people they serve and bureaucracies that forget they exist to solve problems—not create them.
Some readers have asked whether that means we’re anti-government.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
We’re pro-accountability.
We’re pro-transparency.
Most of all, we’re pro-citizen.
That’s why Red Tape Florida is proud to support Sign ON 250.
As our divided nation struggles to understand the stark partisan differences between the Freedom 250 and America 250 brands that divide rather unite, Sign ON 250 seeks to unite us all around those founding principles of Freedom, Independence, Equality, and “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.”
Launched this week by the National League of Cities, and the brainchild of Tallahassee PR legend Ron Sachs, Sign ON 250 is a year-long initiative inviting Americans to symbolically add their names to the Declaration of Independence as the nation approaches its 250th birthday. The effort encourages citizens to publicly reaffirm the timeless principles that united the original signers in Philadelphia and continue to unite Americans today.
What makes this initiative particularly compelling is the coalition behind it.
Alongside the National League of Cities and America’s Newspapers are the Bob Graham Center for Public Service at the University of Florida, The James Madison Institute, the Pennsylvania Municipal League and other civic-minded organizations that don’t always approach public policy from the same direction but agree on one fundamental idea: citizenship requires participation.
Former Florida Governor and U.S. Senator Bob Graham often reminded us that “democracy is not a spectator sport.”
James Madison spent his life arguing that self-government only works when citizens remain informed and engaged.
America’s newspapers have spent more than two centuries informing their communities.
The National League of Cities exists to strengthen local government.
All of these are different organizations with different missions.
But one common belief.
America works best when citizens show up.
That philosophy has always been at the heart of Red Tape Florida.
Every public records request we file. Every city commission meeting we attend. Every permitting story we investigate. Every local government decision we question.
Those aren’t acts of cynicism.
They’re acts of citizenship.
The Founders didn’t risk everything so future generations could simply complain about government from the sidelines. They created a system that depends on informed citizens paying attention, asking questions, participating in their communities and expecting public officials to be accountable.
That’s why Sign ON 250 resonates so strongly with our mission.
The Declaration of Independence wasn’t merely a historical document. It was a declaration of values — freedom, equality, representative government and the belief that power ultimately belongs to the people.
Those ideals remain just as relevant today.
Whether you’re a builder frustrated by unnecessary red tape, a homeowner trying to navigate local government, an elected official striving to serve your community or simply someone who believes America is worth preserving, this initiative offers an opportunity to make a simple but meaningful statement.
Not about politics. About citizenship.
Not about left versus right. About the enduring principles that have carried this nation for nearly 250 years.
America wasn’t signed just once.
It has been signed by every generation that chose to preserve what the Founders created.
Now it’s our turn.
I hope you’ll join the movement by visiting SignON250.org and adding your name to the Declaration of Independence.
Because government works best when citizens show up — and America’s next 250 years deserve nothing less.
And when the fireworks are over and the path cleared from the first days of America’s 250th year, Sign ON 250 will continue to unite AMERICANS THROUGH JULY 4, 2027.