Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is hoping for a repeat visit to the U.S. Supreme Court when the justices hear oral arguments in the decades-old legal fight between Florida and Georgia over water flow into the Apalachicola River.
“I'm pleased about it,” Bondi said about the court's decision earlier this month to hear the case.
The latest chapter in the drawn-out legal battle began after Florida filed a lawsuit in 2013, alleging Georgia diverts too much water from the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river system and that the diversions have damaged Apalachicola Bay and the Sunshine State's seafood industry.
The oral arguments will give Bondi's lawyers another chance to raise objections to a special master's report issued earlier this year that recommended that Florida be denied any relief in its ongoing fight with Georgia over water flow through the river system.
The date for the court arguments hasn't been set yet, but Bondi believes the case is likely to be heard early next year.
“It's a very, very important issue for our state,” Bondi said. “We've got to protect the water coming into our state. That water was meant for three states (Florida, Georgia and Alabama) to be shared.”
Bondi said she would attend the oral arguments “if my schedule permits.”
If it happens, it will be Bondi's second time at the U.S. Supreme Court as Florida's top legal officer. She represented the state in March 2012, arguing for the repeal of the federal Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.
Ruling against Bondi and more than two dozen other states that joined Florida's suit, the court in 2015 upheld a key portion of the health care act, leaving the law virtually intact.
LESS TALK, MORE ACTION
In a video released Monday, House Speaker Richard Corcoran declared that the start of the 2018 session in January will be “one of the busiest first weeks ever.”
The Land O' Lakes Republican, a potential 2018 gubernatorial candidate, also pledged that the “principled-conservatives” running the House will be “less talk, more action.”
Corcoran pointed to the work of the past week --- the first committee week in advance of the regular session --- to support his assertion that the House will be voting on bills soon after the 60-day session begins on January 9.
Among the accomplishments Corcoran highlighted were measures going straight to the House floor after a single committee appearance.
The fast-tracked proposals include a bill (HB 13) that would ban professional sports franchises from building or renovating stadiums located on publicly owned lands and prohibit state or local governments from leasing existing facilities to sports franchises below fair market value.
Another measure (HB 6001) would repeal the state's red-light camera law.
And a third would remove regulations for hair braiders, hair wrappers, body wrappers, nail polishers, makeup applicators, boxing announcers and boxing timekeepers, and do away with a requirement for a certificate of authorization for architects, interior designers, landscape architects and asbestos abatement contractors.
Based upon Corcoran's comments, also expect quick action on a proposal rolled out last week via a press conference --- without a bill being filed and with few details surrounding key issues --- to allow students who are bullied or suffer violence to transfer to other public schools or to receive money to attend private schools.
“We're not just talking bullying, we're talking about sexual assault, fighting, intimidation, harassment, real problems,” Corcoran said. “And what we know is when they're subject to that kind of abuse, that kind of violence, they're not going to learn. And so what we did is we created what we call Hope Scholarships to give those children a hope.”
The first of the five items Corcoran ticked off may not involve legislation, but involve a deep dive into past spending by Visit Florida.
The House Public Integrity & Ethics Committee on ThursdayÂvoted to subpoena Tallahassee-based MAT Media and its owner, Pat Roberts, as it seeks details on how $10 million to $18 million was spent to produce fishing and cooking shows for Visit Florida.
The scrutiny focuses on a cooking show involving celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse as well as the Bass 2 Billfish with Peter Miller fishing and travel show.
“If he misspent one single penny of taxpayer money we're going to hold him accountable,” Corcoran vowed.
AIR GUV
Gov. Rick Scott still has more than a year remaining as governor, but a question of travel for his successor arose Tuesday.
Scott deftly sidestepped the query, which came in the post-Cabinet media gaggle.
Scott was asked how will Florida's next governor will travel around the 65,755-square-mile state that has two time zones, few main arteries for cars and limited passenger train service but is home to plenty of international and general aviation airports.
Shortly after taking office in 2011, Scott fulfilled a campaign promise when he accepted bids totaling almost $3.8 million to sell the state's two airplanes. While the sales prices were both below the purchase price for each aircraft, Scott praised the deal as a $2.4 million a year savings on operating and leasing costs.
Asked Tuesday if he would approve a budget next year that includes the millions of dollars needed to buy a state airplane, Scott replied, “My goal is, the next governor is going to focus on how they can get more jobs in the state.”
Pressed, he responded in part with a standard line from his office when the House and Senate send a bill his way during the regular session.
“I`m going to propose a budget,” Scott said. “The Legislature will come back to me with a budget and I'll review it at that time.”
The former health care executive, paying out of his own pocket, has made extensive use of his private jet to travel Florida, often making multiple stops in a single day for campaign-style events where he tout such topics as business expansions.
Other state officials are expected to rely on commercial flights or car travel.
TWEET OF THE WEEK: “BREAKING: Hurricane Ricardo expected to hit Gainsville this Thursday.” --- White nationalist Richard Spencer (@RichardBSpencer), responding to an executive order issued by Gov. Rick Scott Monday declaring a state of emergency in Alachua County in advance of Spencer's appearance at the University of Florida Thursday.
