Blame it on the after-effects of Thanksgiving turkey, Black Friday or Cyber Monday, but lawmakers and state officials largely took a pass this week as the capital city was quiet in preparation for a busy preholiday committee week that starts early Monday.
But a recent tragedy captured the city's attention, and that spilled over into the Capitol. Florida A&M University officials spent the week in full damage-control mode following the possible hazing death of a drum major who died aboard a band bus last month in Orlando, a tragedy some say they saw coming, which has brought unwanted international attention to the famous -- now infamous -- Marching 100.
The death of Robert Champion, a 26-year-old band leader who died after what police say appears to have been a hazing following the annual Florida Classic football clash between FAMU and Bethune Cookman, has brought the media spotlight again to the historically black college that has over the years been forced to confront similar reports of initiation rites gone wrong.
Meanwhile, with lawmakers back in their districts, Republican-led efforts to redraw the state's political boundaries moved forward as the chambers continued efforts to comply with the once-a-decade responsibility made more interesting this time around by a pair of constitutional requirements put in place by voters in November to take some of the politics out of an inherently political process.
REDISTRICTING PLANS EMERGE:
Lawmakers, members of Congress and political junkies spent much of the slow week trying to read between the lines of redistricting proposals released Monday by the Senate Reapportionment Committee. The rough draft of the new political boundaries, crafted by the committee's staff, represented the first official proposals in the once-a-decade redistricting process.
"Months ahead of past redistricting schedules and after the most open, transparent and interactive process in Florida history, the Senate committee has produced a product which is fair, sensible and faithful to the law," Reapportionment Chairman Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, said in a news release accompanying the maps.
Democrats were not as welcoming of the state Senate and congressional plans, the first drawn under the anti-gerrymandering Fair Districts amendments approved by voters last year.
"Today, Florida Republicans have taken a state -- which experts have long considered one of the most malapportioned states in the country -- and worsened it," said Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod Smith. "In doing so, they have chosen to thwart the will of 63 percent of Florida voters by proposing maps that are aimed at incumbent protection and partisan advantage -- the very things which Florida's Constitution now prohibits."
The story might be a bit more complicated than that, according to the numbers. There are few major partisan swings in the congressional districts, according to an analysis of the numbers by the News Service of Florida. And all in all, the map would still have 15 congressional districts that were carried by Republican presidential candidate John McCain in 2008, despite the addition of two seats; Obama would have carried 12 of the districts as they're proposed now, instead of the 10 he carried under the current map.
For the state Senate, the analysis showed the proposals aren't likely to significantly affect the electoral fortunes of any Senate incumbents. While 14 members would see the advantage their party holds in their districts decline slightly, all of those lawmakers would still have a seat where their party won the last gubernatorial and presidential election, and virtually all would still have advantages approaching or topping double digits.
The Senate did not release a proposal for redistricting the state House, an approach the House Redistricting Committee will mirror when it releases a congressional and House map but not a Senate plan, according to a letter released Friday by House Redistricting Chairman Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel.
HAZING AGAIN BRINGS UNWANTED LOOK AT FAMU, MARCHING BAND:
A decade after it settled a case brought by another marching band player over injuries sustained at the hands of fellow members, FAMU again found itself under scrutiny following Champion's Nov. 19 death.
Four FAMU students were expelled in connection with the incident, now being investigated by at least two law enforcement agencies and the Board of Governors.
"This is not a time for silence; if there are cases of misconduct, then we encourage people to report these to the proper authorities," James Ammons, Florida A&M president, wrote in a letter to trustees outlining a series of efforts being taken by the university in the wake of the tragedy.
The Orange County medical examiner's office said a cause of death won't be known for about 10 weeks. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has joined the Orange County sheriff's office investigation.
There had been other incidents in the past. A band member won a $1.8 million verdict in a civil battery suit against five other band members for a 2001 hazing incident in which he was beaten so badly his kidneys shut down. The student also settled out of court with Florida A&M for an undisclosed additional sum.
Ammons has suspended the band's activities and fired director Julian White, who has led the band since 1998. White wants his job back and has released a series of emails his attorney says proves that he had long been concerned about hazing practices within the band and made FAMU officials aware.
GAMBLING ESTIMATES:
With destination gambling on the tips of Capitol tongues, state economists on Friday took a shot at estimating the anticipated revenue of such gaming ventures in Florida. A panel of economists from the Legislature and the governor's office met Friday to take a look at a proposal to allow up to three resort casinos in South Florida.
The economic impact of such megacasino resorts remains a moving target and changes dramatically depending on who's talking. One player, Genting Group, has said the state could reap $400 million to $600 million in revenue to the state each year if three resorts are allowed to build in South Florida.
Meeting Friday, state economists said destination resorts could have an impact of up to $155 million in the 2012-13 fiscal year and by 2015-16 an impact of between $24.3 million and $118.9 million. This is a slightly higher estimate than a previous figure released last month. Economists noted the estimates do not include local property tax revenue derived from the developments.
STORY OF THE WEEK: Following months of public testimony, hundreds of drafts and more than a little partisan bickering, Senate Republicans this week unveiled their first attempt to redraw political boundaries for U.S. Congress, and the state Senate.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "We cannot have another child, another student, die this way. No one anticipates sending their child off to school and having any pressure like this." -- Gov. Rick Scott, when asked about the state's investigation into the FAMU hazing incident.
