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Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Let’s Get Ready To Rumble

At another time, it might not be unusual for the governor to accuse the House speaker of being more concerned about politics than jobs. It would be notable, though not altogether shocking, for the speaker to respond like Clint Eastwood to talk of the Senate suing the House.

But the 2017 legislative session hasn’t even started, and temperatures are already running hot at the Capitol. Gov. Rick Scott and House Speaker Richard Corcoran are locked in an MMA-style brawl over business incentives. The Senate appeared to be backing away from the brink of suing the other chamber over budget rules — but the House might not want a detente.

All that was before a Friday curveball: state Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater said he would step aside after the session.

And the days until the March 7 start of the 60-day session continue to tick down. Another month of bad blood could make the two months that follow even harder to bring to a successful and peaceful end.

PERSONAL BUSINESS

Scott and Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, have been sniping about economic incentives for months, if not longer. Scott believes that the added enticements help bring business and jobs to the Sunshine State. Corcoran thinks they infringe on the free market and amount to little more than corporate welfare.

The clash had been mostly civil if a bit heated. But on Tuesday, Scott decided to let loose.

“We’re seeing people that just want to run for higher office,” Scott said. “They’re not concerned about what happens to other people. They just think it’s a nice soundbite.”

Asked directly if he was accusing Corcoran, who may run for governor in 2018, of trying to advance his political career, Scott said: “It’s pretty clear if you don’t care about people’s jobs, you must be caring about something else. … The only thing this could be is politics.”

In response, Corcoran called Scott “a good man and a friend,” then proceeded to take a few shots at that good man and friend.

“However, we were elected to do what is right and clean up government, put an end to the waste of taxpayer money and end the culture of corruption,” Corcoran said in a statement.

He also pointed out, a bit cheekily, that the House has never questioned Scott’s motives on issues like Enterprise Florida or Visit Florida — the main incentive programs at the heart of the battle — or the governor’s temporary and half-hearted support of “Obamacare expansion.” Scott in 2013 supported Medicaid expansion under the federal Affordable Care Act. The House staunchly opposed an expansion, which was never approved.

If Scott was trying to get the House to immediately back down in the incentives fight, it didn’t work. The next day, the Careers & Competition Subcommittee voted 10-5 to support a 172-page proposal (PCB CCS 17-01) that would eliminate the public-private Enterprise Florida and tourism marketer Visit Florida, along with a lengthy list of tax-credit and grant programs designed to attract companies to relocate and build in the state.

The likelihood of the entire proposal getting into law is not high. Even supporters said they expect the bill to undergo changes if the agencies are able to quickly show they can be more transparent and focus more on small counties and small businesses.

“I do think that some of the things are going to be zeroed out, but I think at the end of the day not everything gets zeroed out,” subcommittee Chairman Halsey Beshears, R-Monticello, said after voting for the proposal. “The bigger guys are going to take care of themselves. That doesn’t mean throw them under the bus. It just means we need to focus those dollars where we can get the best bang for our buck.”

But Scott was not backing down, and either the governor or someone on his behalf took to live-tweeting the subcommittee meeting. After the vote, Scott tweeted, “Politicians in @MyFLHouse turned their back on jobs today by supporting job killing legislation.”

That followed a pre-meeting tweet: “A job creates hope, a job creates opportunity for your family. LETS FIGHT FOR JOBS TODAY.” The capital letters were by the governor.

The Senate still seems to have the governor’s back. But the Senate had its own problems with the House.

ATWATER GOES TO FAU AFTER ALL

Three years ago, state Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater tried unsuccessfully to win the presidency at Florida Atlantic University. The defeat was something of a surprise; state officials had almost come to regard university positions as akin to a birthright, and boards of trustees were often quick to oblige.

But Atwater will head to FAU anyway after the upcoming legislative session — as a vice president at the Boca Raton school instead of the head man.

“While I would have preferred to embrace this opportunity at a later date, the timing of crucial university initiatives warranted an accelerated transition,” the North Palm Beach Republican said in a statement.

That opens up a position on the state Cabinet that will have to be filled by Scott until voters choose a CFO in 2018.

In a statement praising Atwater, the governor said he would begin the process of making an appointment.

“I got to know CFO Jeff Atwater well in 2010 on the campaign trail, and like me, he has been laser-focused on keeping the cost of living low for all Floridians,” Scott said in his statement. “I am proud that the state has paid down over $7.6 billion in debt since 2011 and CFO Atwater has aggressively helped us achieve that goal. He has fought to reduce burdensome regulations that hinder job growth, protect families from financial fraud and has traveled the state to return more than $1 billion in unclaimed property to its rightful owners.”

While moving from managing the finances of the state to managing the finances of FAU might not seem like a promotion, Atwater could be in line for a sizable raise. His statewide post pays $128,972 a year. At FAU, he will replace Dorothy Russell, who retired in January after a decade at the university and who was paid nearly $250,000 last year.

Adding intrigue to the selection: Scott’s decision about an appointment could play a critical role in the 2018 contest for the Cabinet seat, giving the new incumbent an advantage, and could help the governor burnish his credentials with either a voting bloc or contributors ahead of his own expected U.S. Senate campaign in 2018.

Among the names being ground up by the Tallahassee rumor mill: Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera, former state Rep. Tom Grady and state Sens. Jeff Brandes of St. Petersburg, Tom Lee of Thonotosassa, Lizbeth Benacquisto of Fort Myers and Jack Latvala of Clearwater.

RULES OF THE ROAD

If Corcoran intended to shake up the legislative session with a House rule requiring that any new local project included in the budget must first be submitted to the House as an individual bill — mission accomplished.

Lobbyists and those who receive state money have been worried about the implications of the policy. And members of the Senate have bristled as the House insists it won’t yield on the rule even during negotiations with the Senate over the spending plan for the year beginning July 1.

This week, the Senate tried a new tack: a proposed joint rule that would limit budget negotiators to including only projects that had been approved by at least one of the two chambers, or requiring specific information and public testimony before adding new goodies shortly before a final vote on the budget.

Senate leaders appeared to already be envisioning a round of “Kumbaya” with the House after their newest idea was unveiled in the Senate Rules Committee.

“I don’t think we’d be going through this exercise if we weren’t optimistic that between the chambers we could identify the snares, bevel some edges and get it done,” said Sen. Bill Galvano, a Bradenton Republican who is set to become president of the Senate after the 2018 elections.

But Corcoran wasn’t exactly tuning up for a song and sounded more like he was channeling Eastwood’s legendary “Make my day” challenge. In a statement issued by his office, Corcoran said the prospect of Senate legal action had come up. He also suggested the House wasn’t intimidated.

“They threatened to sue us if we put that language in our House rules,” Corcoran said. “We’re still waiting. If they want to sue the House for fighting on behalf of the people for unprecedented levels of transparency, accountability, and public scrutiny of pork barrel spending, I’ll pay their filing fee.”

STORY OF THE WEEK: Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater announced Friday that he will leave his job at the end of the legislative session to take an executive position at Florida Atlantic University.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “There’s a plan afoot to impose new fees on paddle boards, kayaks and canoes. Really?! What’s next? A tube tax on Ichetucknee? A surfboard tax in Cocoa? This has gone too far.”—Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, in a blast email following consideration of fees on certain types of vessels by an advisory committee for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Boating Advisory Council. FWC officials have distanced themselves from the idea.

by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida