Jim Mooney Florida House District 120

10/13/2026

10/08/2026

Yesterday, I delivered my legislative update to the esteemed members of the Ocean Reef Club Chamber at their monthly luncheon. Grateful for everyone's presence.

09/24/2026

September 24th 2026, Elsa Rodriguez, District Aide, (Homestead) for State Representative Jim Mooney. She had the opportunity to participate and represent in the First Responders Breakfast of South Dade. She said it was an honor to be present for this event honoring our First Responders!

09/22/2026

Today is Tuesday, Sept. 22, the 265th day of 2026. There are 100 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Sept. 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all enslaved people in Confederate states should be freed as of Jan. 1, 1863, if the states did not end the fighting and rejoin the Union.

Also on this date:

In 1776, during the Revolutionary War, Capt. Nathan Hale, 21, was hanged as a spy by the British in New York.

In 1957, Haitian women were allowed to vote for the first time, 153 years after Haiti became an independent country; François Duvalier was elected president.

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed congressional legislation making the Peace Corps a permanent federal agency within the State Department; it became an independent agency in 1981.

In 1975, Sara Jane Moore fired two shots in an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate President Gerald R. Ford outside a San Francisco hotel, missing Ford by inches.

In 1980, the Persian Gulf conflict between Iran and Iraq erupted into a full-scale war that would continue for nearly eight years.

In 1985, rock and country music artists participated in Farm Aid, a concert staged in Champaign, Illinois, to help the nation’s farmers.

09/02/2026

Japan surrenders, bringing an end to WWII on this day in 1945

Aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, Japan formally surrenders to the Allies, bringing an end to World War II.
President Truman appointed MacArthur to head the Allied occupation of Japan as Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers. For the site of Japan’s formal surrender, Truman chose the USS Missouri, a battleship that had seen considerable action in the Pacific and was named after Truman’s native state. MacArthur, instructed to preside over the surrender, held off the ceremony until September 2 in order to allow time for representatives of all the major Allied powers to arrive.

On Sunday, September 2, more than 250 Allied warships lay at anchor in Tokyo Bay. The flags of the United States, Britain, the Soviet Union, and China fluttered above the deck of the Missouri. Just after 9 a.m. Tokyo time, Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signed on behalf of the Japanese government. General Yoshijiro Umezu then signed for the Japanese armed forces, and his aides wept as he made his signature.
Supreme Commander MacArthur next signed, declaring, “It is my earnest hope and indeed the hope of all mankind that from this solemn occasion a better world shall emerge out of the blood and carnage of the past.” Nine more signatures were made, by the United States, China, Britain, the USSR, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands and New Zealand, respectively. Admiral Chester W. Nimitz signed for the United States. As the 20-minute ceremony ended, the sun burst through low-hanging clouds. The most devastating war in human history was over.

09/01/2026

in 1952, Life magazine published Ernest Hemingway's “The Old Man and the Sea,” his last major work of fiction; it was also released as a book, and in 1953 it won a Pulitzer Prize.

08/25/2026

On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Organic Act into law. This crucial decision marked the creation of the National Park Service (NPS) and a new era of dedicated management and protection for our national parks. The Organic Act’s core mission for the NPS was to “conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.” This directive, often cited as the foundation of American conservation efforts, established clear criteria for designating national parks. These parks needed to offer something special, be it breathtaking natural sights or unique ecosystems.

Before the Organic Act, agencies such as the Army and the Department of the Interior managed our parks. The act centralized this management, placing all parks under the dedicated care of the National Park Service.

Beyond simply establishing the NPS and designating park criteria, the Organic Act set the stage for our parks to be places of unity, learning, and exploration. These national treasures, rich in history and beauty, became more than just destinations—they’re outdoor classrooms that foster curiosity and national pride. The approach inspired countries like Canada and Australia in forming their own national park systems.

The journey hasn’t been without its challenges. The Organic Act has been reinterpreted over time, leading to evolving park management strategies. The balance between preserving natural resources and catering to recreational needs is a continuous challenge. Moreover, the act birthed historic preservation initiatives within the NPS, like the National Register of Historic Places and the National Historic Landmark Program, highlighting its far-reaching impact in conserving both natural and historic sites across the country.

08/16/2026

http://www.keysnews.com/tncms/asset/editorial/e14725e9-ac62-40f4-a952-a79e9e9a4963

Marathon Turtle Hospital General Manager Bette Zirkelbach, right, introduces Florida State Rep. Jim Mooney to the crowd gathered Friday for the turtle release. Mooney arranged through the state for entry

07/24/2026

On this day in 1969, Apollo 11 safely returned to Earth, bringing to a close the mission that fulfilled one of humanity's greatest ambitions. After eight extraordinary days in space, astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, completing the first successful journey to land humans on the Moon and return them safely home.
The mission launched on July 16 and entered history on July 20 when the lunar module Eagle landed in the Sea of Tranquility.
Hours later, Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon, followed by Aldrin, while Collins remained in lunar orbit aboard the command module Columbia. During their time on the lunar surface, Armstrong and Aldrin collected lunar samples, conducted scientific experiments, planted the American flag, and left behind a plaque that read, "We came in peace for all mankind."
After reuniting with Collins in lunar orbit, the crew began the long journey back to Earth. On July 24, their command module safely splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, where they were recovered by the aircraft carrier USS Hornet. As a precaution against possible unknown lunar microbes, the astronauts were placed in quarantine for 21 days before being welcomed home as international heroes.
Apollo 11 demonstrated that human beings could travel to another world and return safely, inspiring generations of scientists, engineers, and explorers. More than half a century later, it remains one of the defining achievements in the history of space exploration.

07/07/2026

On July 7, 1930, building begins on the future site of the Hoover Dam. Over the next five years, a total of 21,000 men would work ceaselessly to produce what would be the largest dam of its time, as well as one of the largest manmade structures in the world.
Although the dam would take only five years to build, its construction was nearly 30 years in the making. Arthur Powell Davis, an engineer from the Bureau of Reclamation, originally had his vision for the Hoover Dam back in 1902, and his engineering report on the topic became the guiding document when plans were finally made to begin the dam in 1922.
July 1930 marked the first phase of construction, on the railroad and construction roads, as well as a town to house all the workers for the project. Construction on the dam itself began the following spring.
Herbert Hoover, the 31st president of the United States and a committed conservationist, played a crucial role in making Davis’ vision a reality. As secretary of commerce in 1921, Hoover devoted himself to the er****on of a high dam in Boulder Canyon.
Even with Hoover’s exuberant backing and a regional consensus around the need to build the dam, Congressional approval and individual state cooperation were slow in coming. For many years, water rights had been a source of contention among the western states that had claims on the Colorado River. To address this issue, Hoover negotiated the Colorado River Compact, which broke the river basin into two regions with the water divided between them. Hoover then had to introduce and re-introduce the bill to build the dam several times over the next few years before the House and Senate finally approved the bill in 1928.

In 1929, Hoover, now president, signed the Colorado River Compact into law, claiming it was “the most extensive action ever taken by a group of states under the provisions of the Constitution permitting compacts between states.”