BUDGET TOPS $70 B
Bottom line on the 2010 budget that hit lawmakers desks Tuesday just before 3 p.m.? $70.4 billion. The House earlier proposed a $67.2 billion spending plan. And the Senate approved a $69.4 billion version. But weeks of negotiations that followed seemed only to fatten the spending plan, a swelling that occurs almost every year once anticipated federal dollars, trust funds and agency "reversions" of money are calculated. A vote on the measure Friday will be one of the last acts of the spring session.
EARLIEST SINE DIE: POSSIBLE IS 2:59 PM FRIDAY
The printed House budget arrived on desks in the chamber and of other officials at 2:59 p.m. on Tuesday, starting a 72-hour clock before a final vote can occur. The Senate handed out the budget a bit earlier, at 2:34 p.m. The earliest a final vote on the budget could occur is thus 2:59 p.m. on Friday.
ARNOLD MAY KEEP JOB
On a day when two of Gov. Charlie Crists Public Service Commission appointments were rejected by the state Senate, it appeared likely Tuesday that another agency pick will continue in his job. Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Tom Arnold has been on thin ice since a Senate committee refused to confirm him on a 4-3 vote earlier this month. If Arnolds appointment was brought to the Senate floor, it might result in another setback for Crist. But Senate budget chairman J.D. Alexander, R-Lake Wales, said Tuesday there was no plan to push for a vote on Arnold. Instead, Arnold can be reappointed by Crist following the session. But Alexander predicted Arnold will not remain in the job past Crist's term as governor. Arnold, who heads the states Medicaid program, has been under fire from Senate Health Regulation Committee Chairman Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, for failing to crack down on fraud and waste. Mr. Arnolds a good man, a reasonable person, but Ive been very disappointed in his handling of a number of issues, Alexander said. But Alexander suggested that Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, may have blocked any attempt to bring Arnold to a floor vote. "I dont think the president was trying to fail anyone, Alexander said.
SPONSOR: INSURANCE ISSUE FADING
final attempt to revamp the property insurance laws this session was likely going down in flames as the measure faces continued scrutiny and is running out of time, the lead House sponsor said Tuesday. The House took up SB 2044 on Tuesday, with its sponsor facing lengthy questioning. Following the floor session, House sponsor Rep. Will Proctor, R-St. Augustine, said he plans to file three last-minute amendments to deal with contents coverage and other issues, but the changes may not be enough to placate the Senate or withstand a veto by the governor, who has made it clear that hes not willing to provide too much help to the insurance industry. I fear that this measure may be going to down in flames, Proctor said. A veto threat has already scuttled another industry backed measure that would have allowed insurance companies to increase individual premiums by up to 20 percent without the need for state approval.
SENATE SET TO VOTE ON LYING LOBBYIST BILL
The Senate gave preliminary approval Tuesday to a measure that would make it a crime for lobbyists to lie to the Legislature. The bill (SB 2252) wouldn't apply to opinions offered to legislative committees, or mistakes, only willful misreprentation of material facts, said the bill's sponsor, Sen. Alex Villalobos, R-Miami. The measure could come up for a final vote on Wednesday.
SIPLIN RE-ELECTED AS BLACK CAUCUS CHAIRMAN
Sen. Gary Siplin was re-elected this week as chairman of the Florida Legislative Black Caucus, despite being at odds with much of the caucus over a redistricting issue. Siplin, D-Orlando, was elected to the Senate in 2002 after two years in the House. Senate officials said Tuesday that Siplin was elected to lead the 26-member Black Caucus in a vote on Monday. Siplin is a supporter of a legislatively-drafted proposed constitutional amendment on redistricting that most of his caucus opposes. The backers of the proposal say it is needed to clarify that minority interests will be protected in the redistricting proposals, regardless of what two other amendments meant to remove political favor from the redistricting process. Opponents of the Legislature's proposed amendment - which is yet to pass this session - say it would gut the other two amendments, which were placed on the ballot through the signature process.
LONG FILES COMPLAINT AGAINST BOGDANOFF
Rep. Janet Long, D-Tampa, has filed a complaint against Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff alleging the Fort Lauderdale Republican in a dispute over a bill threatened to hurt Long's political career, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Tuesday. Bogdanoff, who is running for a state Senate seat, denied the accusation in a comment to the newspaper. Long's formal complaint to House Speaker Larry Cretul goes to House Rules Chairman Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton. Long alleged that Bogdanoff threatened to hurt her career after Long enlisted Sen. Dennis Jones to help her get a bill dealing with a Tampa-area water board heard in the House that Bogdanoff had bottled up. Jones, R-Seminole, then threatened to klll a Bogdanoff bill dealing with a new ethics watchdog in Broward County, the Sun-Sentinel reported. Bogdanoff told the paper she made no inappropriate remarks. Theres no question I was hot, but thats not my language, she told the Sun-Sentinel. I dont tell people Im going to hurt them.
CIVIL RIGHTS HALL OF FAME HEADED TO GOV
Legislation that would create a Civil Rights Hall of Fame exhibit in the Capitol headed to Gov. Charlie Crist's desk Tuesday after passage in the Senate. The measure (HB 523), sponsored by Sen. Tony Hill, D-Jacksonville, calls for the members of the Hall of Fame to be nominated by the Florida Commission on Human Relations and selected by the governor. My hope is that the creation of the Hall of Fame within the Capitol will help showcase the unsung heroes and the forgotten places that played pivotal roles in the civil rights movement, Hill said. The public will now see a fuller view of the rich history that shaped our people and our state. The legislation was sponsored in the House by Rep. Alan Williams,. D-Tallahassee.
ALSO
MCCOLLUM: RIGS TOO CLOSE IN CURRENT BILL
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum said Tuesday he wouldn't sign oil drilling legislation in the form it is currently in if he were governor. A bill that was before the Legislature this year, but has been pulled from consideration until at least later this year, or more likely next year, would allow drilling too close to Florida shores, McCollum told the Orlando Sentinel. If Im governor, hell face a veto on my desk if he brings it up the way it is now, McCollum said, referring to the House sponsor of the legislation, Rep. Dean Cannon, who is in line to be speaker of the House next year. McCollum said he could support drilling farther away from shore than the most recent legislation would have allowed. Its not going to be worth it to risk our beaches, to what makes Florida Florida, McCollum said, according to the Sentinel. I know its a revenue producer but thats not a good enough reason....If somebody demonstrates to me that we have something safe that we can really do to draw that oil out farther away, fine. Im all for drilling farther out. But not that close to shore. Thats too close.
TROUTMAN: SANSOM VICTIM OF WITCH HUNT
The prosecution of former Rep. Ray Sansom that resulted in his resignation is a needless Salem witch hunt, Rep. Baxter Troutman said during a farewell speech to the House on Tuesday. Troutman, R-Winter Haven, gave a long speech in which he recognized several members of the House. Sansom, R-Destin, resigned amid an investigation of his actions as budget chairman including the alleged secretive funding of buildings at a Panhandle college. It cost Sansom his speakership and his seat.
ANOTHER CHARGED IN ROTHSTEIN CASE
The former chief operating officer of the Rothstein law firm in South Florida was charged tuesday with taking part in a money laundering conspiracy, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said Tuesday. Federal Prosecutors and FBI and IRS officials filed a criminal information charging Debra Villegas, 42, of Weston with participating in the alleged Ponzi scheme that led to charges against Rothstein, a prominent political fundraiser and lobbyist. She's scheduled to make her first appearance in federal court in Fort Lauderdale Wednesday morning. Villegas was COO of Rothstein, Rosenfeldt, & Adler.
