Lawmakers Strike Late Night Deal, Pour $301M Into Last Minute Projects
June 16, 2015
.House and Senate budget negotiators struck a deal on a state spending plan Monday night moments before the stroke of midnight, pouring $301 million into projects at the last minute and closing out one of the more-raucous legislative debates in recent years.
Lawmakers did not exactly know how much the final agreement would add up to, but it is likely to be well more than $76 billion but south of $80 billion. The Legislature is likely to vote on the package Friday, after a mandatory 72-hour “cooling off” period starting when the document is printed. The vote will come 11 days before Florida must have a spending plan in place to avoid a government shutdown.
In a final negotiating session that started about 11:15 p.m. (EDT) Monday, House Appropriations Chairman Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, and Senate Appropriations Chairman Tom Lee, R-Brandon, went through more than 100 pages of offers ranging across the state budget. Included in the documents were the final spending figures for public and higher education, as well as dozens of pages of details that comprise the fine print of the budget.
Also included: $151 million from the House and $150 million from the Senate in “supplemental” or additional funding for initiatives ranging from $6.8 million for school uniforms to $2.4 million for a line item simply entitled “springs” to $5 million for the Florida Association Of Free And Charitable Clinics.
Lawmakers also found time to direct that $1 million already in the budget be used “to conduct programs designed to expand uses of beef and beef products and strengthen the market position of the cattle industry in this state and in the nation.”
Corcoran called the session “one of the best I’ve seen in 30 years around this process” during an exchange with reporters after the meeting. He pointed to debates over health-care issues during the special session, which was called to deal with the budget after lawmakers couldn’t agree to a spending plan during their annual spring meeting.
“This has been one of the most remarkable sessions for open, transparent debate and fervent positions on both sides, respecting each other, respecting their positions and yet having that debate,” Corcoran said. “This is the way government should work.”
Lee also defended the last-minute nature of some of the added projects.
“You’re just now seeing it, but this has been the product of multiple days of discussions, multiple weeks, two sessions, and the fact that you’re just now seeing it doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a real inclusive process that we followed to get to this place,” he said.
But even some lawmakers were left trying to keep up with the flurry of offers as the House and Senate rushed to complete their work. Senate Minority Leader Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, said the process for the final agreement needed to be slowed down.
“Just the mechanics of trying to keep up with what comes in front of you is difficult for people who have some knowledge about the process and, God forbid, people who don’t have any knowledge about it, then they’re lost,” she told reporters.
The special session started June 1 and could run through Saturday if needed. The state’s new fiscal year starts July 1. After lawmakers approve the budget, Gov. Rick Scott can use his line-item veto power to eliminate spending items.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Byrneville Elementary School Presents Year-End Awards
June 16, 2015
Byrneville Elementary School presented the following year-end awards:
Mrs. Linton’s Awards
All A’s All Year:
Kelan Jurey
Jared Riley Long
Even Matlock
Mia Turner-White
A/B’s All Year:
Ayden Atallah
Gavin Beasley
Mrs. Gilmore’s Awards
Reading-Highest Average
Jolee Sloan
Drake Allen Driskell
Emily Levins
Science – Highest Average
Jolee Sloan
Drake Allen Driskell
Emily Levins
Blake Yoder
Math – Highest Average
Emily Levins
Drake Allen Driskell
Jolee Sloan
Social Studies – Highest Average
Drake Allen Driskell
Blake Yoder
Jolee Sloan
A Honor Roll
Emily Levins
Drake Allen Driskell
Bradley Hamilton
Kaden Odom
Blake Yoder
Jolee Sloan
A/B Honor Roll
Tiana White
Hunter Barnes
Briana Dunsford
Leah Anderson
Aloysia Dortch
Kayla Johnson
Abby Weber
Mrs. Thornton’s First Grade Awards
All A Honor Roll for the Year:
Ryder Lee
Elizabeth Coleman
Savannah Hudson
Wade Bailey
A/B Honor Roll for the Year:
Mary-Clayton Dawson
Makenzie Levins
Easten Odom
Andrew Plant
Bree Robertson
Charlee Weaver
Citizenship Awards:
Makenzie Levins
Ryder Lee
Savannah Hudson
Top Reading Awards
Wade Bailey
Ryder Lee
Math Award Highest Average
Elizabeth Coleman
Science Award Highest Average
Savannah Hudson
Social Studies Award Highest Average
Wade Bailey
Technology Award
Charlee Weaver
Nicholas Walston
Mrs. Johnston’s Fifth Grade Awards
Highest reading average: Hunter Borelli
2nd highest reading average: Jace Gifford
Highest math average: Hunter Borelli
2nd highest math average: Kaitlin Gafford
Highest science average: Hunter Borelli/Jace Gifford
2nd highest science average: Kaitlin Gafford/Harley Walker
Highest history average: Hunter Borelli/Kaitlin Gafford/Jace Gifford
2nd highest history average: Harley Walker
3rd highest history average: Taylor Levins
“A” Honor Roll ALL year:
Hunter Borelli
Kaitlin Gafford
Jace Gifford
Shelby Rice
“A/B” Honor Roll ALL year:
Cody Adams
Tanner Boone
Dusty Carnley
Taylor Levins
Torka Mills
Harley Walker
Anthoni Weaver
Second Grade–Weaver
A Honor Roll
Logan Bevins
Maddie Mae Driskell
Madison Levins
Jayden White
Brian Yoder
A/B Honor Roll
Madeleine Atallah
Luke Diamond
Kerissa Dortch
Tyler Gilmore
Braden Glick
Mia Kornegay
Blake Shaw
Highest Language Average
Brian Yoder
Second Highest: Madison Levins
Third Highest: Maddie Mae Driskell
Highest Math Average
Brian Yoder and Madeleine Atallah
Second Highest: Madison Addisen
Third Highest: Braden Glick
Highest Science Average
Brian
Second Highest: Madison Levins
Highest Social Studies:
Madison Levins and Brian Yoder
Third Grade: Mrs. Dunsford
All A’s
Sarah Bailey
Riley Dawson
Madalyn Grimes
Meredith Johnston
Tyler Riggs
A/B
Alexa Castro
Kayla Glick
Kaylee Hamilton
Tyson McBride
Aydan Smith
Highest Reading Average: Sarah Bailey, Tyler Riggs
Highest Social Studies Average: Sarah Bailey
Highest Science Social Studies: Sarah Bailey and Tyler Riggs
Highest Math Average: Riley Dawson, Tyler Riggs
Escambia County Seeks Members For Affordable Housing Advisory Committee
June 16, 2015
The Escambia County Commission is soliciting applications for representatives to join the Escambia-Pensacola Affordable Housing Advisory Committee (AHAC), which was established per Florida Statute (F.S.) for the purpose of reviewing affordable housing incentives available within the County and to make recommendations concerning those incentives to the Board and City Council.
The committee will help with the development of the Local Housing Assistance Plan for the State Housing Initiatives Partnership program. The Board is seeking to fill the following 10 slots, as outlined per F.S. 420.9076:
- One citizen who is actively engaged in the residential home building industry in connection with affordable housing;
- One citizen who is actively engaged in the banking or mortgage banking industry in connection with affordable housing;
- One citizen who is a representative of those areas of labor actively engaged in home building in connection with affordable housing;
- One citizen who is actively engaged as an advocate for low-income persons in connection with affordable housing;
- One citizen who is actively engaged as a for-profit provider of affordable housing;
- One citizen who is actively engaged as a real estate professional in connection with affordable housing;
- One citizen who is actively engaged as a not-for-profit builder of affordable housing;
- One citizen who resides within the jurisdiction of the local governing body making the appointments;
- One citizen who represents employers within the jurisdiction;
- One citizen who represents essential services personnel, as defined in the local housing assistance plan
Members of the committee will meet quarterly and serve three-year terms. Positions will be recommended to the Board for approval in July and approved through resolutions in September 2015.
Citizens interested in serving should complete an application (enclosed below) or request a form via email at NED@myescambia.com. Completed applications should be forwarded to Neighborhood Enterprise Division/AHAC, 221 Palafox Place, Suite 200, Pensacola, FL 32502. All applications must be received no later than June 19 for consideration.
For more information, contact Meredith Reeves Nunnari, Neighborhood Enterprise Division, at (850) 595-0022, ext.3, or by email at mrnunnari@myescambia.com.
Tropical Storm Bill Makes Landfall
June 16, 2015
Tropical Storm Bill made landfall at 11:45 Tuesday morning on Matagorda Island, TX., with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph. The storm will have no direct impact on our local weather.
Molino Fire Dept. To Hold Open House This Saturday
June 16, 2015
The Molino Volunteer Fire Department will host their second annual open house from 4-8 p.m. Saturday.
The event will feature free food, drinks and festivities, special guest appearances, vendors, fire station tours and more. There will be a demonstration event at 6 p.m. Admission is free, but donations will be accepted for food plates.
For vendor information, call (850) 587-2661 or click here for the department’s Facebook page.
The Molino Hotshots will hold a car wash at the fire station Saturday morning.
The Molino Volunteer Fire Department is actively seeking volunteers for emergency and non-emergency operations. Applications are accepted from persons age 16 and older. The Molino Fire Station is part of Escambia Fire Rescue and provides emergency services to the Molino community.
Positions needed include clerical assistance, medical first responders, apparatus operators and firefighters. Free training is provided and includes junior firefighters 16 to 18 who can earn valuable credit for Bright Futures Scholarships through volunteer service and training.
Pictured: A live burn demonstration during last year’s open house at the Molino Volunteer Fire Department. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Jeb Bush Bursts Onto Campaign Stage
June 16, 2015
Hoping to expand the White House dynasty established by his father and brother, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush formally launched his presidential bid on Monday with a fiery pledge to “run with heart” and a pumped-up promise of “keeping my word, facing the issues without flinching, and staying true to what I believe.”
Bush — flanked by his three children; wife, Columba; and mother, Barbara — made the announcement to hundreds of supporters, including members of the Florida Cabinet, crowded into the Miami-Dade College campus in Bush’s one-time hometown of Kendall.
Monday’s much-ballyhooed event ended months of speculation about Bush’s entrance into what is expected to be a crowded Republican primary field, something he noted in his half-hour remarks interrupted frequently by applause and cheers of “We love Jeb!”
“…Not a one of us deserves the job by right of resume, party, seniority, family, or family narrative. It’s nobody’s turn. It’s everybody’s test, and it’s wide open — exactly as a contest for president should be,” Bush said.
Bush, who just returned from a week-long trip to Europe where he met with high-level officials, laid out some of his campaign themes, touching on foreign affairs, economic growth and education, while touting his eight-year record as Florida governor ending in 2007.
“We will take Washington — the static capital of this dynamic country — out of the business of causing problems,” Bush promised. “We will get back on the side of free enterprise and free people. I know we can fix this. Because I’ve done it.”
Bush pledged to increase the country’s economic growth rate to 4 percent and to make the nation “energy secure” within five years.
The trimmed-down Bush — he told reporters this year that he was on the low-carbohydrate “paleo” diet — also jabbed his Republican primary opponents, including a veiled reference to U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, a Bush protégé who has emerged as one of the top GOP contenders in the 2016 presidential race.
Calling himself a “reforming governor,” Bush noted that, as the state’s chief executive, “there’s no passing off responsibility … no blending into the legislative crowd or filing an amendment and calling that success.”
Bush — who revived his iconic “Jeb!” logo for his 2016 campaign — said there’s no substitute for experience,
“We are not going to clean up the mess in Washington by electing the people who either helped create it or have proven incapable of fixing it,” he said.
Hours before Bush delivered his remarks, Rubio welcomed Bush to the race with two posts on Twitter and a statement posted on Rubio’s campaign website.
“In politics, people throw around the word ‘friend’ so much it often has little real meaning. When I call @JebBush my friend, I mean it,” Rubio tweeted Monday morning. “My friend @JebBush is a passionate advocate for what he believes, and I welcome him to the race.”
Bush has assembled a campaign machine headed by long-time adviser, Sally Bradshaw. Mike Murphy will direct the Bush-backing “Right to Rise” political committee. The former governor and the committee reportedly amassed tens of millions of dollars in what will be an expensive battle.
As evidenced by the presence of the three Republican Florida Cabinet members — Attorney General Pam Bondi, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater — as well as three former Republican Party of Florida chairmen at Monday’s event, Bush has been viewed by some as the “establishment” candidate. That label may be a burden in an era when tea party Republicans, including Florida’s Gov. Rick Scott, have emerged victorious in contentious primary elections.
“His biggest challenge is he represents more of the same in a GOP that over the past few years has been looking for less of the same,” said Democratic consultant Steve Schale, who led President Barack Obama’s Florida campaign in 2008.
And, while some have branded Bush as too moderate to appeal to a divided Republican party, he, along with his supporters, point to his record in Florida as proof of his conservative bent.
After taking office in 1999, Bush did away with minority preferences in government hiring and university admissions, shrank the number of state workers and — heading the state during an economic boom — repeatedly cut taxes. He also pushed an education voucher system that allowed children in failing schools to use public dollars to pay for private schools. The Florida Supreme Court later ruled that the program was unconstitutional.
Bush’s other high-profile voucher program — one that gives tax credits to businesses that subsidize private school educations for low-income children — is the subject of another lawsuit.
Bush also alienated Democrats during his Tallahassee tenure with his stands on social issues. Bush backed restrictions on abortions and signed the nation’s first “stand your ground” law. And he was embroiled in controversy over his attempt to keep Terri Schiavo, who was in a vegetative state and fed through a tube, alive.
Bush’s legacy in Florida, however, remains the education reforms that have of late developed into a flashpoint for conservative critics. Bush pioneered a school accountability system that included more testing of students and imposed a grading system on schools based on student performance.
Bush, who after leaving office created an educational foundation, at one point supported the nationwide “Common Core” education standards but has since insisted that the states should be responsible for setting the measures.
“When a school is just another dead end, every parent should have the right to send their child to a better school — public, private or charter,” he said Monday. “Every school should have high standards, and the federal government should have nothing to do with setting them. Nationwide, if I am president, we will take the power of choice away from the unions and the bureaucrats and give it back to parents.”
The bilingual Bush, who met his wife in Mexico, departed briefly from his prepared remarks on Monday after being heckled by a group of people whose lime-green shirts spelled out “Legal status is not enough.”
“Just so my friends know, the next president will pass meaningful immigration reform so that that will be solved, not by executive order,” he ad libbed, referring to an Obama executive order aimed at preventing about 5 million undocumented immigrants from being deported.
Those who know the wonkish Bush well say that his greatest strengths could also be his greatest liabilities, and they aren’t referring to his last name.
Bush is the kind of leader who “knocked the water out of the bathtub” and is unrelenting, said GOP strategist J.M. “Mac” Stipanovich, who first met Bush 30 years ago and has been a close adviser for two decades.
Bush’s three “most salient characteristics are his name, his intelligence and his genuine love for policy,” Stipanovich said.
“And if he’s not going to be elected president it will be because he didn’t say and do the things that he needed to do to win the primary. He’s going to increase his risk in the primary to lower risk in the general election. And the reason he’s going to do that is because that’s who he is,” he said.
But others painted Bush’s steadfastness in a less amiable tone.
“… What makes the specter of a Jeb Bush presidency even more unpalatable is his belief in his own superiority and infallibility — in my 22 years in elected office I have never worked with someone who is as inflexible, uncompromising, and willing to do whatever it takes to get their way as Jeb Bush,” U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee who served in the Florida Legislature during Bush’s tenure as governor, said in a statement. “These are not the qualities Americans need in their president if we are going to work together to get things done.”
Bush earned a reputation among reporters for being thin-skinned and having a temper that flares quickly. And, unlike many other politicians, Bush rarely if ever stuck to talking points when speaking publicly.
“He isn’t afraid to mix it up, isn’t afraid to be bold,” Schale said. “His frankness at times can get him in trouble.”
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Pensacola Blue Wahoos Beat The Montgomery Biscuits
June 16, 2015
Right-handed pitcher Daniel Wright allowed two runs in the seventh inning to lead the Pensacola Blue Wahoos to victory over the Montgomery Biscuits at Riverwalk Stadium.
Pensacola snapped a four-game losing streak thanks to six scoreless innings by Wright, as the Blue Wahoos won, 4-2, over the Biscuits.
Wright, who improved to 3-4 on the year with a 5.46 ERA, bounced back from giving up four earned runs in 5.2 innings in his last start against the Jacksonville Suns. Against Montgomery on Monday, Wright allowed just four hits, walked none and struck out four.
Wright was backed up by the Pensacola lineup that scored four runs on 11 hits. The Blue Wahoos scored three in the second inning when catcher Cam Maron hit his first home run for Pensacola to right field that also scored DH Sean Buckley for a 2-0 lead. Left fielder Jesse Winker then hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score second baseman Ryan Wright from third and put Pensacola ahead, 3-0.
It added another run in the eighth inning, when Buckley crossed the plate on a ground out by shortstop Zach Vincej.
Montgomery got its two runs when catcher Justin O’Conner, the Tampa Bay Rays No. 1 prospect according to MLB, doubled in left fielder Joey Rickard to cut the lead to 3-1. O’Conner then scored on a sacrifice fly by right fielder Johnny Field to pull the Biscuits within, 3-2.
Maron extended his hitting streak to five games and raised his average to .224 with his dinger. He went 5-12 or .416 in the series against the Biscuits with one homer and four RBIs.
Pensacola improved to 24-39 in the Southern League South Division and has the day off tomorrow before opening a five-game homestand against the Mobile BayBears. Meanwhile, Montgomery dropped to 33-31 in the North Division.
Pensacola first baseman Ray Chang went 2-5 and is hitting .375 in June. Meanwhile, Marquez Smith is even hitting hotter in the month with a .405 average, including two homeruns and six RBIs. His average is now .277 on the season.
The Blue Wahoos return home to play the Mobile BayBears June 17-21.
Mary Godwin Joy
June 16, 2015
Mary Godwin Joy, 53 of Atmore, passed way Monday, June 15, 2015, at her residence. She was a homemaker, born in Atmore, on September 19, 1961, to the late James Robert and Kathleen Daw Godwin.
She is preceded in death by a brother, Eddie Godwin.
Survivors include her husband, Brian Joy of Atmore; two daughters, Rebecca (Jeremy)McKinley of Albany, GA and Stefanie Dean of Fayetteville, NC; grandchildren, David, Parker, Madelyn, and Ally.
Services will be held Wednesday, June 17, 2015, at 10 a.m. from the Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Arnold Hendrix officiating.
Interment will follow in Sardis Baptist Church Cemetery.
Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home is in charge of all arrangements.
Inmate Charged With Stabbing Guard At Atmore’s Fountain Prison
June 15, 2015
An inmate at the Fountain Correctional Facility in Atmore has been charged with stabbing a male correctional officer over the weekend. The officer was stabbed during a routine check of a housing unit inside the facility at approximately 8:50 a.m. on Saturday.
The officer was transported to an offsite medical facility where he was treated and released the same day.
Larry Jones, 44, was charged with the stabbing. Jones is serving a 100-year sentence on a 1991 conviction in Montgomery County for first degree robbery, kidnapping, rape and sodomy.
The stabbing occurred after the correctional officer had confiscated a contraband cell phone from another inmate earlier in the morning. It is believed that Jones assaulted the officer in retaliation by stabbing him multiple times with a makeshift knife.
Jones was removed from general population and detained in the facility’s segregation unit without further incident.
ADOC’s Investigations and Intelligence Division is investigating the assault.
Mosquito Spraying Tonight In Hwy 29, Kingsfield, Chemstrand, Nine Mile Area
June 15, 2015
Escambia County Mosquito Control plans a “fogging mission” tonight in parts of District 5, including:
- Kingsfield Rd south to Nine Mile Rd, Highway 29 east to Chemstrand Rd [Map]
- Ten Mile Rd and UWF south to Nine Mile Rd, Chemstrand Road west past UWF [Map]
- Muscogee Rd south to Kingsfield Rd, Highway 29 west to Chemstrand Rd [Map]
Methods used to determine necessary fogging mission activity include dry ice-baited light traps, landing rate counts and receiving focally located service requests from the public. For more information, call (850) 937-2188.