Miami.- The Florida Senate approved on Thursday the bills HB 575 and HB 549, which establish the change of name of the “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America” in all the official documents and school materials of the State, as of July 1, 2025.
The measure, promoted by Republican senators Nick Diceglie and Joe Gruters, responds to an executive order of President Donald J. Trump issued on January 20, 2025 from Washington, DC, with the aim of “restoring names that honor US greatness”.
New name
The change of denomination is part of the executive order 14172 signed by President Trump on his first day back to the White House. Under the title “Restoring names that honor American greatness”, the order instructs the Secretary of the Interior to replace the “Gulf of Mexico” denomination with “Gulf of America”, as a way of highlighting the strategic, historical and economic importance of that region for the US.
Since then, Republican legislators in Florida promoted the state initiative to align educational laws and policies with the new name. “American Exceptionalism is not an abstract idea, it is a fact that we must recognize and celebrate,” said Senator Nick Diceglie during the legislative session in Tallahassee. His colleague Joe Gruters added: “It is our responsibility to ensure that our children understand the greatness of the United States.”
The Republican State Congressman for District 119, Juan Carlos Porras, sponsors the project in the House of Representatives.
Implication
The legislation contemplates that all official references in maps, documents and educational material must reflect the new name from July 1, 2025.
The bill does not explain the cost that the aforementioned gulf implies renamed in all the state’s documents and materials.
Other Trump changes
The Gulf of America was not the only change of denomination ordered by the current president. Denali, the indigenous name of the famous Alaska peak, will be renamed Monte McKinley, referring to the president killed in the late nineteenth century. This is the same mountain as in 2015, then President Barack Obama, Denali renamed as the Alaska inhabitants asked.
Also, Fort Bragg – which originally paid tribute to a confederate general and was renamed the Army as Fort Liberty – will recover his previous name. However, this time he will be attributed to an American soldier much less controversial who fought in World War II.
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