Tampa Rep. Kathy Castor announced Thursday she signed up as a co-sponsor for a bill that would lift the travel ban against Cuba.

The Democrat said in a press release that she is sponsoring the bill to “step up pressure on the Obama Administration to approve charter airline flights from Tampa International Airport.”

Tampa has applied for a license to host charter flights to Cuba. Currently, there are only Cuba flights from Miami, New York and Los Angeles.

“There is great potential for new jobs and economic growth throughout the Tampa Bay area if travel and trade opportunities are expanded over the coming years,” Castor said. 

It is rare sitting Congresspeople from Florida sponsor substantial embargo-easing legislation; Castor is the only member of the Florida delegation in Congress to take the risk. Conventional political wisdom in the state that is home to nearly 1 million Cuban immigrants holds that elected officials will unfailingly be punished if they vote against the embargo. However, recent surveys show that 60-plus percent of Cuban Americans favor free travel for all.

Kathy Castor

 

H.R. 4645 is pending in the House of Representatives, after it passed the House Agriculture Committee earlier this month. According to Sarah Stephens, an anti-embargo activist with the Washington-based Center for Democracy in the Americas, there is a “very good chance” the foreign affairs committee will vote on the bill “very soon.” From there, it could go to a House floor vote.

Spokespeople for the Foreign Affairs Committee did not return phone calls. The committee is led by Rep. Howard Berman (D-Cal.).

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