Meeting in one of Florida's most Republican counties, Senate President Mike Haridopolos and three other state lawmakers were encouraged to supercharge their cost-cutting agenda.
"We applauded when Sen. Haridopolos recently said, 'If your piece of legislation raises a tax, makes it easier to file a lawsuit against a fellow Floridian or increases red tape, then I dont like your chances,'" Indian River County Commissioner Bob Solari told the legislative delegation in Vero Beach on Friday.
"I ask you today to go further," said Solari, a Republican, who called on lawmakers to repeal what he called "coercive" laws and ordinances that add cost and bureaucracy at the local level. Among the prime repeal candidates, Solari listed:
HB 697 -- The statewide measure calls for the assignment of "energy conservation areas," yet Solari said staff analyses show that such areas "serve no valid purpose and raise concerns regarding future implementation."
Irrigation ordinances -- Solari called on legislators to remove the power of regional water districts to require local jurisdictions to pass irrigation ordinances to qualify for grants. "The job of (water districts) should be to set conservation goals. It should be left to the local governments to decide how best to meet the goals."
Fertilizer ordinances -- Solari urged lawmakers: "Pass no fertilizer ordinances and give no regulatory body the power to pass or require local governments to pass fertilizer ordinances, which restrict the homeowner." Saying counties understand the need to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus in water bodies, the commissioner said, "coercive ordinances" are not necessary.
Septic tank ordinances -- Thanking lawmakers for delaying the implementation of the septic tank ordinance, the commissioner declared: "Now, please, do the right thing and repeal it."
Haridopolos and fellow state lawmakers -- Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart; Rep. Tom Goodson, R-Titusville; and Rep. Debbie Mayfield, R-Vero Beach -- were receptive to Solari's recommendations but did not take any immediate position on his call for repeal.
Solari said it is crucial that the state "stop the onslaught of regulation."
"The combined impact of years of accumulated and unnecessary regulation is a huge burden on our citizens. Taxes are increased to staff the bureaucracy," said the two-term commissioner.
"If the costs could adequately be computed, complying with regulation would be greater than the cost of feeding and clothing a large family," Solari said.
Similar grass-roots angst helped to propel Gov.-elect Rick Scott's campaign to victory, as the business executive pledged to streamline state government and reduce its impact on taxpayers.
With Haridopolos and House Speaker Dean Cannon, R-Winter Park, already staking out a tough stand against further regulatory initiatives, Solari suggested that lawmakers in Tallahassee will have "more free time" to slash existing red tape.
"Granted, some regulation is necessary, but much is simply the result of special-interest groups or because it is the easier, not the better, way of achieving some policy goal.
"The lifting of the regulatory burdens from the shoulders of our residents will improve the lives of our citizens, increase the resources available for new jobs and business expansion, and increase the liberty of all," he said.
--
Reach Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 801-5341.
