By Abel Harding (@abelharding, abel.harding@jacksonville.com)
FLORIDA ONE OF THE LOWEST-PAYING STATES FOR PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS - "A National Education Association December 2010 report (.pdf) shows that teachers’ salaries in Florida ranked 34th in 2008-2009 ($46,921). In 2009-2010, that salary ranked 47th (estimated), dropping to $46,708. The U.S. average public school teacher salary for that same year was $55,202. The report also indicates that: Over the decade from 1999–2000 to 2009–10, in constant dollars, U.S average salaries for public school teachers increased 3.5 percent. That average for Florida public school teachers during that same period was -0.3 percent." Florida Independent: http://bit.ly/eWs2M8
--More highlights from the State of the State of Florida from the Florida Center for Fiscal And Economic Policy:
----Poverty: Floridians below poverty level: 2.7 million people, including 850,000 children. The number of Floridians living in poverty increased 550,000 in two years.
----Residents without health insurance: 4th-worst in the nation in the percentage of uninsured.
----Unemployment: 3rd-highest in the nation, 11.5%.
----Per capita income growth: 46th in the nation, 2.2% growth between 2009 and 2010.
----State tax revenue: 43rd among the states in state tax revenue per capita.
----Education expenditures: 50th in per capita state government expenditures for all education.
----Higher education expenditures: 46th-worst in the change in higher education appropriations per full-time equivalent student, 2005-2010.
LEGISLATURE FOR SALE - "There is no state, no nation, no planet, and no universe where it should be legal to pay off a Legislature directly," writes Howard Troxler in today's St. Petersburg Times. "There is no government in which a sworn lawmaker should be able to take unlimited payoffs from those seeking favorable treatment. And yet this is now precisely the law of Florida. In Sunday's column I called the Florida Legislature 'the ***** of Babylon' for passing a law last week that legalizes its own bribery. But the topic cries out not to be forgotten. This is a turning point in Florida's history. It is now legal in Florida for the leaders of our House and Senate, of both the Republican and Democratic parties, to operate what are laughably called 'leadership funds.' If you are an interest group in Florida, a corporation, a lobbyist seeking favor, you go to these 'leadership' funds run by lawmakers … And you pay them. They will launder the money into local elections around the state, to keep electing more obedient followers. This is so astonishing a corruption that it defies belief." http://bit.ly/ib1lki
RUBIO SITS DOWN FOR FIRST NATIONAL TELEVISION INTERVIEW - "In a wide-ranging interview -- his first national interview since being elected -- [U.S. Sen. Marco] Rubio discussed the military campaign in Libya, President Obama's leadership, the so-called birther movement and his political plans for 2012 and beyond. ABC News spent several days with Rubio in Washington and Florida, getting exclusive, behind-the-scenes access to a 39-year-old Republican whom many conservatives would like to see run for president. After persistent questioning, Rubio ruled ruled out a run for president; at least in 2012. 'I am not running for president in 2012,' Rubio told [ABC's Jon Karl]." The freshman Senator was not as decisive when discussing the possibility of a vice presidential run. Partial interview: http://abcn.ws/fSs5pX Story: http://abcn.ws/dHz4DZ
GOVERNOR, STATE AGENCIES SUED - "Gov. Rick Scott and two state agencies have been hit with a class-action lawsuit alleging Florida has failed to provide needed services to 19,000 disabled people who are stuck on a waiting list. An advocacy group and five named plaintiffs --- who have developmental disabilities such as mental retardation and cerebral palsy --- filed the lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court in Tallahassee. The lawsuit centers on a waiting list for what are known as home- and community-based services, which help disabled people live outside of institutions. The lawsuit contends that the state is violating federal law and that some people have been on the waiting list for more than five years. The suit names as defendants Scott, Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Elizabeth Dudek and interim Agency for Persons with Disabilities director Brian Vaughan." http://bit.ly/eXvCTr
Good Tuesday morning and welcome to Florida Morning, your daily digest of political news from around the Sunshine State. Gov. Rick Scott and two state agencies are hit with a lawsuit over the state's slowness in responding to needs for those with disabilities, PSC Commission Chair Art Graham is criticized during a Senate hearing and a surprise proposal could outsource all prisons in South Florida. Also, Public Policy Polling, a traditionally Democratic polling firm, will release poll results on Gov. Rick Scott (h/t: Morning Score) today. According to a tweet previewing the results, they are unlikely to be flattering. "Scott's disapproval with 18-29 age group is 71%!" http://bit.ly/i9Xx1i
GOVERNOR, STATE AGENCIES SUED - "Gov. Rick Scott and two state agencies have been hit with a class-action lawsuit alleging Florida has failed to provide needed services to 19,000 disabled people who are stuck on a waiting list. An advocacy group and five named plaintiffs --- who have developmental disabilities such as mental retardation and cerebral palsy --- filed the lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court in Tallahassee. The lawsuit centers on a waiting list for what are known as home- and community-based services, which help disabled people live outside of institutions. The lawsuit contends that the state is violating federal law and that some people have been on the waiting list for more than five years. The suit names as defendants Scott, Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Elizabeth Dudek and interim Agency for Persons with Disabilities director Brian Vaughan." http://bit.ly/eXvCTr
AGENCY HEADS MAKING MORE THAN PREDECESSORS - "State employees haven't received a raise in more than four years, but most agency heads that Gov. Rick Scott has appointed are making $20,000 a year more than their predecessors," writes Bruce Ritchie for the Florida Tribune. "Scott has named 10 new department heads with salaries of $140,000 compared to $120,000 or less for their predecessors, according to a web site database launched by the governor. Scott this past week named three agency secretaries, with both Ken Lawson at the Department of Business and Professional Regulation and Dr. Frank Farmer, secretary of the Department of Health, earning will $140,000 compared to $120,000 for their predecessors. Liz Dudek was elevated to secretary of the Agency for Health Care Administration at $140,000 a year compared to $164,380 for her predecessor, Tom Arnold." http://bit.ly/igfjBB
--Senate budget would further cut pay for state employees: "The head of the Senate committee in charge of pension reform said the Senate budget released late Monday includes a cut of more than $1 billion to public employee benefits, including a 3 percent across the board salary cut with the money moved into employees' retirement accounts. By contrast, the House budget released on Friday includes a $700 million cut to employee pay and benefits. Employees could no longer earn cost of living adjustments after this year, under the proposed Senate budget, and the DROP retirement program would end beginning July 1, said Sen. Jeremy Ring, D-Margate. Details of the plan are still being worked out, he said, and senators and staff worked over the weekend to come up with alternatives to reducing the impact of the cuts on the lowest income workers." http://bit.ly/eGM9W0
BUDGET BATTLE - "The Senate unveiled its state budget proposal late Monday, spending $3.3 billion more than the House, while cutting far fewer state worker jobs and taking less out of Florida’s classrooms. The Senate blueprint: $69.8 billion – just a shade under the state’s current-year $70 billion spending plan. But this year’s proposal has been fattened by $2.5 billion in federal stimulus cash since been shut-off by Congress. The House proposal is a starker, $66.5 billion proposal that reduces the state’s workforce by 5,245 jobs – compared with a more modest, 1,578-position cut outlined by the Senate." Post On Politics: http://bit.ly/dI9TbC
LAWMAKERS NOW TARGET TENURE OF COLLEGE PROFESSORS - "With the ink barely dry on the new teacher merit pay law that eliminates multi-year contracts for public school teachers, Florida lawmakers have surprised many stakeholders by swiftly moving toward a similar reform of community colleges," writes Lilly Rockwell for the News Service of Florida. "A bill crafted by a House of Representatives education subcommittee (KCOS 11-03) would eliminate the use of multi-year contracts for all of Florida’s community or state college employees, except the school president. It also would require the boards of trustees of each college to adopt a performance evaluation system and fire the lowest-performing employees when making reductions, rather than basing those decisions on seniority. The proposal took some in the 28-member Florida College System by surprise. It was released by the House K-20 Competitiveness Subcommittee on Friday and receives its first hearing on Tuesday. No similar proposal has emerged in the Senate. Miami Dade College lobbyist Victoria Hernandez said she had just seen the bill on Monday. The head of the Florida Association of Community Colleges also did not know about the proposal until contacted. 'All I can say is tenure is a long and historical issue that contributes to academic freedom,' said Michael Brawer, the head of the Florida Association of Community Colleges. Brawer said tenure protections are put into place to allow instructors the freedom of lecturing on academic topics that may be controversial without fear of reprisal. He said the bill also imposes too much state influence on the boards of each college. 'This is a local issue and should be left up to the board of trustees,' Brawer said.
SCOTT TARGETS PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE - William March: "Saying he wants to "change the direction of what's happening in drug policy" in Florida, Gov. Rick Scott today announced a new statewide strike force to combat abuse of prescription drugs, mainly oxycontin. Scott said $800,000 in unused federal law enforcement grant money will pay for overtime for local law officers. In addition, said Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Gerald Bailey, "scores, I would say 100" state workers will be assigned to work full-time on the effort. Scott announced the initiative at a news conference Monday, joined by Bailey, Attorney General Pam Bondi and more than a dozen police chiefs, sheriffs and prosecutors, including two representatives of the Tampa Police Department, Pasco County's sheriff and Brooksville's police chief. Scott said he favors proposals to forbid doctors who prescribe the drugs from dispensing them, or operating pharmacies, with "appropriate exceptions." He also reiterated his opposition to plans to begin a database to track oxycontin prescriptions. While Scott cites privacy concerns, other state officials and many law officers favor it, including Bondi. 'We will get beyond the issues we disagree on,' she said during the news conference. Afterward, she said, 'I'm fully in favor of it. It's an essential tool we must have. If you'll ask, you'll find that all these law officers behind us agree.' Amy Mercer, executive director of the Florida Police Chief's Association, said the group favors the database." Tampa Tribune: http://bit.ly/gTiRvE
PSC COMMISSIONERS MOVE FORWARD IN SENATE - "A Florida Senate committee has approved the state's four public service commissioners who are up for reappointment, including former Jacksonville city councilman Art Graham, the commission’s chairman. Eduardo Balbis, Ronald Brise and Julie Imanuel Brown were unanimously recommended after a Monday confirmation hearing to keep their seats on Florida's Public Service Commission. Graham was approved with Sen. Mike Fasano casting the only "no" vote. A Senate ethics subcommittee next will consider the nominees before the full Senate can vote to confirm." Times-Union: http://bit.ly/eCrPmS
--Graham criticized: "PSC Commission Chairman Art Graham came under fire by a Senate committee Monday for having drinks in a hotel lobby for an hour with the executive and lawyer from Aqua Utilities after the water company had filed a rate case before the PSC. 'One thing I have not done is speak to this utility about anything that's pending before me,' Graham told the Senate Communications, Energy and Utilities Committee which was reviewing whether to confirm him as commissioner. He dismissed the conversation at a Washington, D.C. hotel lobby in February and said: 'I'm never going to do anything that is going to put this commission in a bad light.' Graham blamed former PSC commissioner Nathan Skop for 'throwing rocks' against him by dregging up the incident and told the committee to take newspaper reports about it 'with a grain of salt. A lot of times it's skewed to make things worse than they are.'" http://bit.ly/grefDx
SOUTH FLORIDA PRISONS COULD ALL BE OUTSOURCED - "In what could signal a massive private takeover of public prisons, the Florida Senate quietly slipped language into its newly proposed budget Monday that seeks to give corporations the chance to run correctional facilities and probation services in 18 counties The move — which could shift nearly $600 million to private firms — surprised prison guards, their unions and even the head of the Senate’s Criminal Justice Appropriations Committee, Mike Fasano, who said his committee was opposed to the idea of privatizing prisons when it was proposed by Gov. Rick Scott’s aides. 'We made it clear that we weren’t interested. We moved on without doing it,' said Fasano, R-New Port Richey. 'And now it appears in the budget. I’m not pleased. It is a huge, substantive issue. It’s a major policy change and it should have at least been discussed publicly.' The plan’s architect, Senate budget chief J.D. Alexander, said the proposal was all about doing more with less and reducing the size of government. 'We looked at the work of the subcommittee and realized we needed more savings,' Alexander, R-Lake Wales, said. He estimated the privatization initiatives yielded a 7 percent savings. The budget language doesn’t appear to favor any one vendor although a leading contender is GEO Group, whose healthcare arm, GEO Care, has contributed at least $126,000 to state parties and candidates since 2009. The House’s proposed budget, released Friday, takes a far more measured approach to privatizing probation and prisons. It calls for a private operator to run the facilities and services in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. Those two counties are included in the Senate’s plan, which seeks to privatize services all the way north to Manatee County." Miami Herald: http://bit.ly/fjczxG
TAMPA SURPASSES MIAMI IN VOTERS - To uncover where the votes lie in Florida, Democratic strategist Steve Schale broke the state down by media markets. "While Tampa for some time has been the largest block of votes in the state, making up roughly 25% of all likely voters, Miami has held down the #1 spot, at least in terms of the census population, as the largest media market in the state. Not anymore," writes Schale. "Even though the market’s share of the state was unchanged from 2000 to 2010, the Tampa media market, with 23.3% of the state’s residents now reigns supreme, as the Miami market shrunk from 24.8% of the state to 23.0%." Schale says 32 of the states counties are now "Safe GOP" and six are "Safe Democratic." Morever, white non-Hispanic voters will likely be a minority in the state by 2020. More on his personal blog: http://bit.ly/g8dsfS
--Obama strategy: Schale's thoughts are interesting, particularly because of his role in President Barack Obama's successful Florida campaign in 2008. This Washington Post article might share additional insight into Obama's 2012 strategy. Tampa and Miami television stations have already scored exclusive interviews with the Commander in Chief. Following the media market size model, Orlando and Jacksonville should be next. http://wapo.st/ihyyqN
On this day in 1863, federal naval and army forces evacuated Jacksonville, setting fire to much of the town as they left. And in 1927, H.O. Seagrave became the first person to drive a car faster than 200 miles-per-hour at Daytona Beach.
Your criticism, praise and allegations of bias are always welcome. E-mail Florida Morning at abel.harding@jacksonville.com or find me on the Twitters, @abelharding. New followers include @kimquilts2 and @FFRWnet.
GROWTH MANAGEMENT TO BE GUTTED? - "Florida's growth management protections, enshrined in a ground-breaking 1985 law, are being swept away by lawmakers who see them as roadblocks to economic development. Bills moving rapidly in the state House and Senate would virtually gut the 1985 Growth Management Act, eliminating state planners' review and approval authority over local government land-use decisions. The House bill would also make it harder for regular citizens to challenge the legality of developments, a provision absent so far in the Senate version. 'The result of those two bills will be that growth management as we've known it in Florida since 1985 will go away,' said Charles Lee, a lobbyist for Audubon of Florida." Tampa Tribune: http://bit.ly/gWjJGQ
WASSERMAN-SCHULTZ PICS UP OPPONENT - "After months of speculation about her future political aspirations, Karen Harrington is in. Harrington’s campaign announced her candidacy for Congress in Congressional District 20 via a video announcement and accompanying press release on her newly revamped website. Harrington, a resident of Davie, will likely again challenge incumbent Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-FL) for her seat." The Shark Tank: http://bit.ly/eWJhuQ
COORDINATING A 'BOO' - "Baseball and political protest, and on April 1st, Rays fans will get a bit of both. Governor Rick Scott is scheduled to throw the opening pitch, and the last time he did that, he got a less-than-favorable reception. The boos outweighed the cheers as Scott threw out the first pitch at a Yankees spring training game in Tampa. He is planning to return to the mound, this time at the "Trop" when the Rays host the Baltimore Orioles on opening day. One St. Petersburg man isn't just hoping the governor gets booed when he throws out that ceremonial first pitch -- he's trying to guarantee it. Peter Schorsch runs a political blog in St. Pete and is now behind a campaign on Facebook called 'Boo Rick Scott on Opening Day.' 'It's not so much because of the policies that Rick Scott has put forth,' said Schorsch. 'It's the way he's conducted himself in office. It's been petulant, it's been petty, it's been small minded, he's brushed off the media.' Schorsch thinks this is the best way to get the governor's attention." http://bit.ly/gHiZmM
QUOTE OF THE DAY - "My committee members and I are not potted plants." - Sen. Mike Fasano after learning of a surprise proposal to privatize all Department of Correction operations in South Florida. The department said it did not request the proposal. http://bit.ly/g6g4Nv
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