Scott: Florida Out Of Economic Development Game
May 10, 2017
Gov. Rick Scott said Tuesday that Florida won’t be in the “game for economic development” after lawmakers rejected his proposals for spending on business incentives and tourism marketing.
But he gave little indication about how he will handle an $82.4 billion state budget approved by the Legislature late Monday.
Scott, speaking after an event to mark GKN Aerospace’s decision to open a facility near the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, said his staff is just starting to review the spending plan for the 2017-18 fiscal year that was “done in secret.”
“We’re learning what is in there,” Scott said. “But here’s what we do know: We do know that they turned their back on economic development. So we’re not going to be in the game for economic development.”
Scott added that the tourism industry, which is tied to one in every six Florida jobs, could also be on shaky ground.
“If you have a job in tourism, your job is at risk,” Scott said.
“You’re going to see job loss,” he added a few moments later.
Scott noted he has the option to veto the entire budget or take out individual budget lines. But both legislative chambers approved the fiscal plan with veto-proof majorities: 98-14 in the House and 34-4 in the Senate.
Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart, told reporters late Monday that there is enough in the budget for Scott to approve the overall package, including numerous educational components that the governor has supported.
“I think it’s our job, over the next couple of weeks, for us to make our case,” Negron said.
Scott dismissed any notion that the Legislature’s rejection of his priorities — the budget also doesn’t include his requests for money to speed repairs to the Herbert Hoover Dike around Lake Okeechobee or to help residents convert from septic systems to sewers — is a personal slight.
“My priorities are simply the priorities of the people,” Scott replied.
The spending plan, if signed by Scott, includes $16 million to maintain general operations at the business-recruitment agency Enterprise Florida, down from $23.5 million in the current year.
The plan, for the second consecutive year, does not include money for business incentives that Scott has relied on to help lure businesses to expand or relocate in Florida.
Scott asked for $250 million a year ago for incentives, and this year his request was for $85 million to fund the Quick Action Closing Fund, which was used potentially for the last time to draw British-based GKN Aerospace to a vacant field north of Panama City.
“I hope everybody remembers that this is the day that for sure we start not being competitive,” Scott said. “It really started last July 1.”
House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land `O Lakes, has repeatedly called business incentives “corporate welfare.”
The state can still offer tax rebates to businesses through programs such as the Qualified Target Industries, which typically requires a local government match.
Meanwhile, the tourism-marketing agency Visit Florida is budgeted to receive $25 million for the fiscal year that starts July 1, far short of Scott’s request for $100 million. Lawmakers also issued a new set of Visit Florida operational guidelines about travel and marketing contracts.
Scott, who initially asked for $76 million for Visit Florida, equates the state’s increased spending on tourism marketing with Florida’s growth in annual tourists.
The state`s tourist numbers have increased from 87.3 million in 2011, when Visit Florida received $35 million from the state, to nearly 113 million last year.
Corcoran contends people are driven to travel more by their personal finances.
The tourism agency received $78 million for the current year, but has been under media and legislative scrutiny over its $11.6 million sponsorship of a cooking show hosted by celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse, a $1 million contract with rapper Pitbull, and ongoing sponsorship deals with London-based Fulham Football Club and an IMSA racing team.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Pictured: Gov. Rick Scott stumped for Enterprise Florida and Visit Florida last week in Escambia County. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Tate Softball Out, Tate Baseball Advances In Regionals
May 10, 2017
SOFTBALL
The Tate Lady Aggies fell to Niceville 4-3 in the 1-7A region semifinals Tuesday night in Niceville.
Hannah Brown took the loss for Tate Aggies. p three runs, five hits, and striking out eight. Hannah Brown took the loss for Tate Aggies Varsity. She pitched six and a third innings, allowing four runs, five hits, and striking out four.
Belle Woldfenden was 2-3 with 3 RBI; Hannah Brown 1-3, R; Hayden Lindsay 1-3, 2R; Shelby McClean 1-3.
The Lady Aggies finished the season at 20-8.
BASEBALL
Tate 5, Niceville 3
The Tate High School Aggies beat Niceville 5-3 in the 1-7A region quarterfinals Tuesday night.
Castro pitched a complete game for the Aggies, allowing seven hits and three runs while striking out five.
For Tate — Land 2-3, 2B, 3B, 2R; NeSmith 1-3, 2 RBI; Helton 1-1, 2 RBI.
The Aggies (23-4) will be at Milton on Tuesday in the regional semifinals. Milton (15-12) is coming off a 8-1 win Monday over Pine Forest.
Barons Even Series With Win Over Blue Wahoos
May 10, 2017
The night after the Pensacola Blue Wahoos lineup broke out of its season-long hitting woes with six runs and 11 hits, they faced Birmingham Barons ace Michael Kopech.
Pensacola managed two hits off Kopech in six innings Tuesday and lost, 4-1, in front of 3,302 at Blue Wahoos Stadium. The five-game series is now tied, 1-1.
Blue Wahoos reliever Domingo Tapia made his first start Tapia since 2014 with the St. Lucie Mets. He was being groomed as a starter but then had Tommy John surgery in 2015.
He kept pace with Barons’ right-hander Kopech, considered the No. 32-ranked prospect in all of minor league baseball. Tapia allowed just one run through the first four innings, giving up a solo blast to Birmingham center fielder Hunter Jones in the third inning.
Tapia was relieved in the fifth inning after giving up a lead-off solo shot to Birmingham third baseman Trey Michalczewski, his second homer of the season, and then walking Barons left fielder Courtney Hawkins.
“I thought he looked good,” Kelly said. “We tried to stretch him one more inning. He’s shown he’s capable of doing it. That’s what he did before hurting his arm, so he probably likes it.”
Tapia, who signed with Cincinnati Reds as a minor league free agent in November, ended up working four innings, allowing three hits, giving up three runs, walking one and striking out five. He is now 1-2 on the season with a 3.79 ERA.
Pensacola reliever Alex Powers came in for Tapia and gave up a double to Barons shortstop Eddy Alvarez that scored Hawkins. Jones then crossed the plate on second baseman Jake Peter’s high-arcing sacrifice fly to center field to put the Barons ahead, 4-0.
Kopech pitched masterfully for the Barons. The former first rounder had a one-hitter through five innings, retiring 14 of the first 16 batters he faced. Pensacola right fielder Gabriel Guerrero broke up the no-hitter in the fourth inning with a line drive single to center field.
Pensacola catcher Adrian Nieto launched a deep homer to right field to lead off the sixth inning against Kopech and put the Blue Wahoos on the board, 4-1.
But the 21-year-old Kopech, ranked the fifth top prospect in the Chicago White Sox organization, then walked Pensacola center fielder Brian O’Grady. But he got Blue Wahoos left fielder Tyler Goeddel to ground into a double play, and then retired Pensacola shortstop Blake Trahan on a swinging bunt fielded by the catcher.
Nieto’s first homer of the season was preceded Monday by catcher Joe Hudson leading the Blue Wahoos at the plate with two clutch two-out singles that drove in three runs.
“They had a tough stretch with(Devin) Mesoraco here,” said Kelly about the Cincinnati Reds catcher who spent the first 20 games in Pensacola doing his rehab for hip and shoulder injuries. “They were not getting a lot of playing time. Now, they are starting to swing their bats.”
Kelly said Kopech kept the Blue Wahoos lineup off balance with his two-seam fastball.
“That’s a power arm,” Kelly said. “He threw a two-seam fastball with some movement that we hadn’t seen in the past. It was very effective. We just ran into a good pitcher.”
This season, the 21-year-old righty has held opponents to a .155 batting average and held Pensacola to 2-18 or .111. Kopech’s only flaw has been his control. He allowed only two Tuesday, but has the second most walks in the Southern League with 18 total. Kopech improved to 2-2 with a 2.70 ERA this season.
Pensacola dropped to 16-16 and fell out of first place in the South Division for the first time this season. The Mississippi Braves won and now lead the division with a 17-15 record.
Century To Consider Reserve Funds To Repair Failing Water, Wastewater Systems
May 9, 2017
The Town of Century needs at least $430,000 to fix “critical” problems with their water and wastewater facilities, according to numbers presented to the town council by Alicia Jernigan, Century’s certified wastewater operator.
She is asking to town to free funds from financial reserves to address critical issues.
Many of the problems involved equipment that was put into place with the wastewater plant in 1991 that is failing due to age. While the system continues to operate within the parameters of its state permit, major components such as a clarifier needs a $35,000 fix, a $10,000 pump that has failed, there is a $10,000 electrical problem with an effluent station pump, a $10,000 side stream lift pump has failed and there is an obsolete gas chemical feed system that puts the town “at risk for the release of hazardous chemicals into the environment”. Personal protection equipment for operators has not been tested in years, and air masks are dry rotted. The equipment is required “at all times to avoid injury or death in the event of a chemical leak”, according to Jernigan’s report.
Those critical wastewater plant fixes are $80,000, while the wastewater collection system needs $150,000 in critical repairs and wells need another $200,000 in critical repairs.
The Century Town Council has scheduled a special meeting for 6 p.m. Wednesday to discuss the transfer of an undetermined amount of funds from the water reserve account to begin making needed repairs. The meeting is open to the public.
Earlier this month, the Century Council approved a water and wastewater rate increase that will cost the average family just over $200 per year. The rate increase is aimed at stopping ordinary financial losses by the system.
Pictured: The Century wastewater treatment plant. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
All 41K Escambia School District Students To Get Public Library Cards
May 9, 2017
West Florida Public Libraries and the Escambia County School District are teaming up to ensure every student in Escambia County will receive a special edition library card this week.
The cards, which will be issued to all K-12 Escambia County School District students and homeschooled children registered with the district, have a limit of three books or audiobooks at a time with unlimited access to online resources like e-books and research databases.
The 41,623 student cards will not have late fees for overdue items and can be used at any West Florida Public Libraries location.
“We look forward to working with the schools more in the future to support student learning year-round,” Library Director Todd Humble said. “Every Escambia County student now has a fresh start with this new account, regardless of past mistakes. As the future leaders of Escambia County, we want you to make us proud by reading for enjoyment to explore new worlds and learn about the things you love.”
The cards will be handed out to students by their homeroom teachers.
“We greatly appreciate community support for our students such as the library card program, the summer reading contests, and ECAT’s free summer passes that make it even easier for students to get to the libraries,” Escambia County School District Superintendent Malcolm Thomas said. “One of the best ways for students to stay up to date over the summer is to read. So, we are excited to partner with our local public libraries to make it even easier for our students to develop their love for reading and to explore their world through the books and resources available to them this summer in our libraries.”
The initiative is part of the Urban Library Leaders Challenge, which was accepted by the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners, the Escambia County School District and West Florida Public Libraries.
To date, only 60 communities in the U.S. have accepted the challenge. Escambia County will follow Orange and Duval counties as the third Florida county to accept.
Escambia Man Gets 25 Years For 2016 Shooting
May 9, 2017
An Escambia County man has been sentenced for a 2016 shooting.
Nicholas O’Quinn was sentenced by Circuit Judge Joel Boles to 25 years in state prison. On March 22, 2017, O’Quinn was convicted by an Escambia County jury of manslaughter with a weapon for the death of Antonio Butler.
The conviction stemmed from a shooting that occurred on September 19, 2016 at 104 Aquamarine Avenue. Witnesses testified that there was an argument between O’Quinn and Butler prior the shooting. Butler suffered a single gunshot wound to the chest.
Five Escambia County Students To Receive Prestigious American FFA Degree
May 9, 2017
Florida FFA announced Monday that five students have submitted an application to receive the coveted American FFA Degree.
They are: Kaitlyn Kleinatland, Bethany Reynolds, Haylee Weaver and Courtney Weekley, Northview High School graduates; and Miranda Vidak, West Florida High graduate.
The American FFA Degree is the highest honor bestowed upon any regular member of the National FFA Organization. The degree is presented after the FFA member graduates from high school.
These applicants will be forwarded on to the National FFA Organization for consideration as candidates for the American FFA Degree. Each applicant will be recognized and given an opportunity to introduce themselves on the main stage during the 8th General Session of the 89th Florida FFA Convention on Friday, June 16.
The American FFA degrees will be presented in October at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, IN.
Pictured above: American FFA Degree recipients Haylee Weaver, Courtney Weekley, Bethany Reynolds and Kaitlyn Kleinatland, Northview High School graduates; Miranda Vidak, West Florida High School graduate. NorthEscambia.com and courtesy photos, click to enlarge.
ECUA Takes Over Collections At Recycling Drop-Off Centers
May 9, 2017
Emerald Coast Utilities Authority has assumed collection of recyclables at all county drop-off centers.
ECUA has replaced the roll off-style containers with front end loading models. Site storage capacity will remain the same, and the frequency of collection will be adjusted, if needed. The different style containers will increase efficiency by allowing collection vehicles, powered by compressed natural gas, to transport more material with fewer trips.
Citizens are still able to access the containers as usual to drop off recyclables. In addition, the list of materials accepted at the drop-off centers has expanded from fiber only to include the following:
- Glass (any color)
- Newspaper & inserts
- Cardboard
- Magazines & catalogs
- Junk mail & envelopes
- Paper bags & phone books
- Colored papers
- Plastic milk jugs
- Aluminum cans & lids
- Cereal boxes
- Pizza boxes
- Tin/steel cans & lids
- Foil baking pans
- Tin foil
- Metal pots, pans
- Cardboard egg cartons
- Plastic bottles
- Pet food cans
- Dry pet food bags
- Plastics no. 1-7
- Plastic produce clamshells
County drop-off centers are located:
- Baars Softball Field: 12950 Gulf Beach Highway, Pensacola
- ECUA Ellyson Campus (between the old airplane hangar and the ECUA Water Quality Laboratory): 9255 Sturdevant Street, Pensacola
- Escambia High School: 1310 N. 65th Avenue, Pensacola
- Ever’Man Natural Foods Cooperative Grocery (rear parking lot): 315 W. Garden Street, Pensacola
- Ferry Pass Fire Station: 2331 E. Johnson Avenue, Pensacola
- John R. Jones Athletic Park: 555 E. Nine Mile Road, Pensacola
- Molino Fire Station: 1459 Molino Rd, Molino
- Ninth Avenue Fire Station: 6550 N. 9th Avenue, Pensacola
- Oak Grove Convenience Center: 745 County Road 99, McDavid
- Perdido Landfill: 13009 Beulah Road, Cantonment
- Summit Boulevard Fire Station: 2750 Summit Boulevard, Pensacola
- UF/IFAS Extension Office: 3740 Stefani Road, Cantonment
Lawmakers Approve Tax Cuts As Session Closes
May 9, 2017
Floridians are in line for a pair of three-day sales tax “holidays” — for the hurricane season and for back-to-school shopping — and will no longer pay the “tampon tax,” under a measure approved by lawmakers Monday night.
But the slimmed-down tax cut package (HB 7109), which still requires Gov. Rick Scott’s signature, went through a series of late changes amid continued volleying between the House and Senate as the 2017 legislative session came to a close, three days behind schedule.
The tax package — which falls far short of Scott’s request for $618.4 million in cuts — also offers a modest reduction to a 6 percent tax on commercial rents.
The final creation of the package offered a glimpse of the fight between the House and the Senate as lawmakers had to extend the 60-day annual session — scheduled to end last Friday — to complete a budget.
The Senate, which last week trimmed the House’s $300 million tax-cut proposal to just over $90 million next year, voted 34-4 on Monday to approve what Senate Finance and Tax Chairwoman Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, called a “reasonable tax package.”
A short-time later — as the Senate announced it had passed “broad-based tax relief” — the House voted 105-3 to send the measure back to the Senate, after tacking on a pair of amendments tied to county tax-collector offices. One of the amendments was part of an effort to allow counties to outsource license-tag services to private contractors.
The Senate responded by refusing to accept the changes. Stargel, who worked with the House on the package, said the problem was in how the eleventh-hour changes were proposed.
“It’s about at the last minute, at the last hour, of the last day, of what has been a very difficult session, that we do an amendment that we were not prepared to do,” Stargel said.
With little comment, a short time later House withdrew its changes before voting 108-3 to approve the tax-cut package and send it to Scott.
A key feature of the package is a sales-tax holiday Aug. 4 to Aug. 6, timed with the start of the school year. During the period, shoppers will not have to pay sales taxes on clothes, backpacks and footwear under $60, school supplies that cost $15 or less, and personal computers and accessories valued under $750.
The tax break is expected to account for $34.8 million of the package.
A hurricane-season tax holiday, set for June 2 to June 4, would give shoppers a break on items such as self-powered radios, tarpaulins, first-aid kits, battery packs, and portable generators that sell for less than $750.
One of the highest-profile parts of the package focused on eliminating sales taxes on feminine-hygiene products — an issue known as the “tampon tax.”
“I have gotten more positive email on that than I have on any other bill I’ve sponsored in this Legislature,” said Sen. Kathleen Passidomo, a Naples Republican who sponsored legislation eliminate the tax.
The House had initially rolled out a nearly $300 million tax-cut package that also would have eliminated taxes on diapers and given a sales-tax holiday on Veterans Day for honorably discharged U.S. military veterans.
Also, the House proposal would have temporarily cut the commercial rent tax by 1.5 percentage points, a move projected to save businesses $190.7 million next fiscal year. Business groups have long lobbied for reducing or eliminating the tax.
But the final package did not include the veterans’ tax holiday or diaper discount and reduced the commercial rent tax to 5.8 percent.
Republicans, nevertheless, touted the package.
“The money belongs to the people, not the government,” said Sen. Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island. ”When we go from one fiscal year to the next and our revenues increase — if we believe in that principle — then part of that increase goes back to the pockets of people who earned that money.”
But Sen. Gary Farmer of Fort Lauderdale, one of four Senate Democrats to vote against the bill, argued that sales taxes are needed to provide basic services, from roads and parks to “public and charter” schools.
“We choose to live in a civilized society,” Farmer said. “We live in a collective society, the greater good for all of us, so we all have to chip in.”
Republicans also are touting another decision during the session that could provide tax savings in the future to homeowners.
The Legislature approved a proposed constitutional amendment for the 2018 ballot that would expand the homestead exemption by $25,000.
Budget, School Changes Pass As Florida Lawmakers Head Home
May 9, 2017
The Florida Legislature overwhelmingly approved a state budget and ended the annual session Monday, after narrowly avoiding a meltdown over a controversial measure that makes sweeping changes to the state’s education system.
The $82.4 billion budget for the year that begins July 1 passed the House on a 98-14 vote, and the Senate on a 34-4 vote. All told, when combined with other legislation approved Monday, the House and Senate approved about $83.1 billion in spending.
The budget package includes a modest increase in per-student spending through the state’s main education formula, $521 million in Medicaid cuts for hospitals and far-reaching changes to education across the board.
There was little drama over the budget vote in either chamber. In both cases, lawmakers gave the bills more than enough support to overcome the possibility of a veto by Gov. Rick Scott.
Republican lawmakers tried after the session to downplay any talk of Scott taking that step, which would be extraordinarily rare.
“I think there’s a lot in the budget that the governor’s going to like,” said Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart.
Instead, the biggest challenge lawmakers faced was getting approval for a delicate, tit-for-tat agreement on budget-related bills that moved through the House and Senate in quick succession Monday night: a House education bill for a Senate higher education bill, a package on economic-development funding for a bill on state employees’ pay and benefits.
The closest showdown came on a 278-page education bill, favored by the House, that emerged from budget negotiations Friday evening. That measure covered everything from charter schools and teacher bonuses to school uniforms and designating September as “American Founders’ Month.”
The most notable parts of the legislation (HB 7069) were a proposal known as “schools of hope,” which would encourage charter schools to locate near academically struggling public schools, and an expansion of the “Best and Brightest” teacher bonus program.
House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, continued Monday night to call the legislation “the greatest educational K-12 policy that we’ve passed in the history of the state.”
But several senators rebelled against the sprawling bill and the process that produced it. Sen. Bill Montford, a Tallahassee Democrat who also serves as head of the Florida Association of District School Superintendents, slammed the bill as an attempt to push otherwise unpopular education proposals through the Senate.
“Most of these issues have been around for years,” Montford, a former Leon County schools superintendent, said. “Some of them have been before this body. They’ve just never been accepted. And the reason they weren’t accepted was because this body came to the conclusion that it was not good for students.”
Senate Minority Leader Oscar Braynon, D-Miami Gardens, said the bill would undermine the Senate’s reputation for independence and bipartisan collegiality.
“I love this Senate too much for me to support this bill or the concept of bills that do this,” he said.
Even Senate leaders seemed wary of the legislation. Sen. David Simmons, who chairs the chamber’s education budget subcommittee, voted against the bill after presenting it to the Senate.
In an unusual opening to the day’s session, Senate Appropriations Chairman Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, essentially apologized for the bill.
“If there’s fault to be had for one of these bills that has gotten a little bit out of control, just understand that we won’t do this again under my watch on this committee,” Latvala said. “I promise you.”
But senators who reluctantly backed the bill also made no secret of the stakes: If it were rejected by the Senate, the House would essentially shut down the budget votes Monday and force the Legislature into a special session.
“This is really more than a vote on this bill,” said Sen. Doug Broxson, R-Gulf Breeze. “It’s a vote to come back here in special session. If we vote this down, we will be back here in a few weeks. There’s no question about it.”
In the end, the legislation passed the Senate, 20-18. A tie on the legislation would have killed it.
That the budget and related bills did not pass until Monday was already a sign that, in some ways, the budget process had broken down. Lawmakers were scheduled to end the session last week, but failed to approve a compromise on the budget in time to allow for a constitutionally required 72-hour “cooling off” period before Friday night.
There were other measures tied up in the budget process that also attracted controversy — including a bill (SB 7022) that gives pay raises to state workers but also includes changes to retirement and health-care benefits that some Democrats found hard to stomach.
“On the cover it says pay increases,” said Rep. Ramon Alexander, D-Tallahassee. “But inside the book it says something else.”
Attention quickly shifted Monday night to Scott, who has openly mused about the possibility of vetoing the entire spending package, after lawmakers ignored his push for economic-development incentives, increased funding for tourism marketing and improvements to the Herbert Hoover Dike around Lake Okeechobee.
House Minority Leader Janet Cruz, D-Tampa, said she planned to spend the entire summer “at least a couple-hour plane ride away,” in case she needed to return to Tallahassee following a veto.
But even she conceded that with the lopsided margins for the budget in both chambers, a veto by Scott would be unlikely to have much of an effect.
“I don’t think that it would change the outcome,” she said. “It would just send a message.”
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida