The Ocala City Council will issue a final vote this week on an ordinance that would remove language from city code that calls for the addition of fluoride to the water supply.
The ordinance will come before the council for the final decision during its regular meeting on Tuesday, June 17. The ordinance, which was introduced earlier this year, comes in response to a new “Florida Farm Bill” from the state.
That bill includes provisions banning medical additives to public water systems, defining “water quality additive” as any chemical, additive, or substance that is used in a public water system for the purpose of meeting or surpassing primary or secondary drinking water standards, preventing/reducing/removing contaminants, or improving water quality.
During the last meeting of the Ocala City Council, the president of the American Fluoridation Society asked the city to reconsider its position, promising that the additive would likely return in the future.
The city is likely to repeal the measure to comply with the new law, which goes into effect on July 1, 2025. The city’s code of ordinances has had a requirement that fluoride be added to its municipal drinking water since 1961.
The last time the requirement was amended was during a city council meeting in June 2019.
What are your thoughts about fluoride in Ocala’s water supply? Share them in a comment below or, if you have more to say, write a letter to the editor.
The Ocala City Council next meets on Tuesday, June 17, at 4 p.m. at Ocala City Hall (110 SE Watula Avenue).
Original article online at: https://www.ocala-news.com/2025/06/16/ocala-issuing-final-vote-on-removal-of-fluoride-from-citys-water-supply/