Tips For An Energy Efficient Thanksgiving
November 24, 2016
It’s that time of year. Soon homes will be filled with the smells of oven-roasted turkey, candied yams, mashed potatoes and gravy, and stuffing from that special passed-down family recipe. And who could forget the pies!
Traditionally, Thanksgiving is the start of the holiday cooking season when kitchen appliances receive a lot of extra use when you’re preparing meals to be shared with loved ones and family members.
But no matter how much love and attention go into the special holiday favorites, Thanksgiving and the holidays are also a peak time for gobbling up energy, especially when the oven and kitchen appliances are working non-stop.
“Today’s new kitchen appliances use nearly 50 percent less energy than those from 10 years ago,” said Natalie Smith, Gulf Power spokesperson. “But when the holidays roll around, energy usage can rise when they get an extra workout and it can add up quickly. However, you may not have to use as much energy as you think by following a few simple tips.”
Thankfully, there are plenty of ways to keep holiday energy costs to a minimum. Here are some no-cost ways to save money and energy in the kitchen and be thankful for the savings on your November energy bills:
Cooking
· Oven preheating is usually not required and wastes energy. When preheating is required, avoid preheating longer than necessary. Preheating takes about eight minutes.
· Turn off the oven a few minutes before cooking is finished. Retained heat will complete the job.
· Use the microwave whenever possible, it’s the most efficient way to cook or reheat food.
· Don’t use your range or oven to heat the kitchen. It’s inefficient and can be a safety hazard.
· Choose pots and pans that have wide flat bottoms that just cover the burner. They will absorb all the heat and cook food more evenly. Aluminum pans with flat bottoms, straight sides, and tight fitting lids are best for energy savings.
Dishwasher
* Proper loading is important. Operate only when it is filled to capacity.
* If manufacturer’s instructions permit, open the door of your dishwasher after the last rinse cycle to allow moisture to escape and the dishes to dry as they cool. Some units have a “power-saver switch” that automatically eliminates the drying cycle.
Refrigerator
* Keep the refrigerator between 37º and 40º and the freezer setting at 0º.
* Keep condenser coils clean. Vacuum the coils at least twice a year.
* Make sure the door gasket seals tightly.
* Let hot foods cool before placing them in the refrigerator.
* Position the refrigerator away from heat sources. If the unit has back coils, position it at least 4″ from the wall.
* Avoid keeping the refrigerator door open.
* Think about getting rid of your extra refrigerator or freezer as they generally are inefficient and can cost two to three times more to operate per month.
Thermostat
· If you’re having a large group of people over, make sure to adjust the thermostat before guests arrive.
· If it’s cold outside, lower the thermostat a degree or two. The body heat from guest as well as the heat from all that cooking, will raise your home’s temperature without having to run the furnace.
FWC: Guide To Northwest Florida’s Fall Hunting Seasons
November 24, 2016
The Thanksgiving weekend means hunting in North Escambia. Here’s a loook at fall hunting information from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC):
General Gun Season
The general gun seasons begins Thanksgiving day and last four days (through Sunday). Two weeks later, the gun season reopens December 10 and runs through February 19.
During general gun season, only legal-to-take bucks as they are defined in each deer management unit may be harvested, but don’t forget that you need to purchase the $5 deer permit first. On private land, the daily bag limit on deer is two. Bag limits and other regulations for deer on wildlife management areas can differ, so before you hunt download the specific WMA brochure by going to MyFWC.com/Hunting.
You can hunt wild hogs on private lands year-round with no bag or size limits. Similarly, on most public lands there are no bag or size limits, and hogs are legal to take during most hunting seasons except spring turkey. On a few public hunting areas, specific bag and size limits do apply, so check the WMA brochure to be certain.
Hunters are allowed to take deer and wild hogs over feeding stations on private land, but that’s not the case on WMAs, no matter the season or the game.
It’s illegal to take deer using rimfire cartridges or non-expanding, full-metal case ammunition. Shooting a swimming deer also is against the law.
Private Land Does Days
Within the general gun season are antlerless deer days, better known to us hunters as “doe days.” These dates differ for each of the state’s 12 DMUs. To learn when these antlerless deer opportunities occur in your DMU, please refer to the “2016-2017 Florida Hunting Regulations” handbook, which you can pick up at your tax collector’s office, FWC regional office or by downloading it online at MyFWC.com/Hunting.
During these doe days, the daily bag limit is one legal antlered deer and one antlerless deer, or two legal antlered deer. You may not take two antlerless deer in one day as is allowed during the archery season, unless you have antlerless deer tags issued for the private land you hunt. Also, regardless of the season, deer gender or the number of permits, hunters are never allowed to harvest more than two deer per day under any circumstances. And except for a few WMAs, most do not have antlerless deer days.
Deer Dogs
Folks hunting deer with dogs on private or public lands, where it is allowed, must have their names and addresses displayed on their dogs’ collars. Hunters must confine their dogs to the tract of land on which they have permission to hunt and not allow them to wander off that land.
Hunters using dogs to take deer on private property must register the tract of land they will be hunting. The statewide deer-dog registration program doesn’t apply for training or hunting with deer dogs on WMAs.
The registration number may be issued to hunting clubs, landowners or anyone having permission to hunt deer with dogs on a particular tract of land upon filling out the required application. Application forms are available from all regional FWC offices and at MyFWC.com/Deer.
Once you’ve registered the property, you’ll be issued a number that must be attached to the collars of all dogs used to run deer on that property, when taking deer with dogs is permitted. All individuals must have a copy of the registration with them while they’re engaged in training or hunting with deer dogs.
Fall Turkey And Quail
Fall turkey season starts December 10, the same day as general gun season, and ends January 15.
Hunters may take only bearded turkeys and gobblers, and they must have a turkey permit ($10 for residents, $125 for nonresidents) to hunt them.
You may harvest up to two turkeys per day, if you’d like, but that would tag you out for the entire fall season – because you’re only allowed to harvest a total of two turkeys during the archery, crossbow, muzzleloading gun and fall turkey seasons combined. In Holmes County, the harvest of fall turkeys is not allowed at all. And there’s not a fall turkey season on WMAs, however, on a half-dozen areas, you are allowed to take turkeys during general gun season.
You’re not permitted to hunt turkeys with dogs or with recorded turkey calls, and you’re not permitted to shoot them while they’re on the roost or when you’re within 100 yards of a game-feeding station when feed is present.
The excitement the uproar a covey of bobwhite quail cause when suddenly taking to the air in front of a pointing bird dog is enough to thrill even the most seasoned veteran hunter. Quail season this year runs Nov. 12 – March 5, and the daily bag limit is 12. Bobwhites prefer a patchwork of brushy fence rows, weedy fields and open upland forests that are frequently burned. A good bird dog is essential in quail hunting and, for many hunters, watching the dog work and seeing its enjoyment is the most rewarding part.
Other Regulations
Shooting hours for deer, turkeys and quail are a half-hour before sunrise to a half-hour after sunset. All legal rifles, shotguns, muzzleloaders, bows, crossbows and handguns may be used to take each of these resident game animals during the general gun, fall turkey and quail seasons.
llegal firearms and ammunition are defined as centerfire, semiautomatic rifles having magazine capacities of more than five rounds, and fully automatic firearms. Other prohibited methods for taking game include shooting from a moving vehicle and herding or driving game with a vehicle.
Snipe and Dove
lorida ranks second in the nation in the number of snipe harvested each year, and the season always runs Nov. 1 – Feb. 15. Snipe hunting can offer unparalleled excitement as snipe fly with a fast, erratic flight pattern, presenting a challenge for hunters. The skill it requires to shoot a moving snipe is probably the main reason many hunters trounce through mud and muck to locate and flush snipe. The common snipe is a migratory game bird that is found in Florida only during the winter months, mostly in shallow wetlands, low pastures and open shorelines of lakes, ponds and streams. Hunting strategy is simple – find their habitat and walk until you flush one. And a close-working bird dog or retriever can be helpful in finding, flushing and retrieving snipe.
The second phase of the mourning and white-winged dove season this year runs Nov. 12 – Dec. 5. Shooting hours for both dove and snipe is a half-hour before sunrise to sunset.
There’s an eight-bird daily bag limit on snipe and a 15-bird bag limit on dove, and you must have the no-cost migratory bird permit if you want to hunt either of these migratory game birds.
The only firearm you’re allowed to hunt snipe and doves with is a shotgun, although you can’t use one larger than a 10-gauge. Shotguns also must be plugged to a three-shell capacity (magazine and chamber combined).
You may hunt either of these birds over an agricultural field, as long as the crop has been planted and manipulated by normal agricultural methods. However, you’re not allowed to scatter agricultural products over an area for the purpose of baiting.
If you’re up for the challenge, you may even use a bow or crossbow. Birds of prey also can be used to take snipe and doves by properly permitted individuals practicing falconry.
Some things you can’t do while hunting snipe and doves include using rifles or pistols, shooting from a moving vehicle, and herding or driving birds with a vehicle.
The FWC provides an online update that gives the latest information on Florida’s public dove fields. The address is MyFWC.com/Dove, and it’s updated throughout dove season. Information includes dove densities, previous week’s harvests and field conditions.
License And Permit Requirements
Florida ranks second in the nation in the number of snipe harvested each year, and the season always runs Nov. 1 – Feb. 15. Snipe hunting can offer unparalleled excitement as snipe fly with a fast, erratic flight pattern, presenting a challenge for hunters. The skill it requires to shoot a moving snipe is probably the main reason many hunters trounce through mud and muck to locate and flush snipe. The common snipe is a migratory game bird that is found in Florida only during the winter months, mostly in shallow wetlands, low pastures and open shorelines of lakes, ponds and streams. Hunting strategy is simple – find their habitat and walk until you flush one. And a close-working bird dog or retriever can be helpful in finding, flushing and retrieving snipe.
The second phase of the mourning and white-winged dove season this year runs Nov. 12 – Dec. 5. Shooting hours for both dove and snipe is a half-hour before sunrise to sunset.
There’s an eight-bird daily bag limit on snipe and a 15-bird bag limit on dove, and you must have the no-cost migratory bird permit if you want to hunt either of these migratory game birds.
The only firearm you’re allowed to hunt snipe and doves with is a shotgun, although you can’t use one larger than a 10-gauge. Shotguns also must be plugged to a three-shell capacity (magazine and chamber combined).
You may hunt either of these birds over an agricultural field, as long as the crop has been planted and manipulated by normal agricultural methods. However, you’re not allowed to scatter agricultural products over an area for the purpose of baiting.
If you’re up for the challenge, you may even use a bow or crossbow. Birds of prey also can be used to take snipe and doves by properly permitted individuals practicing falconry.
Some things you can’t do while hunting snipe and doves include using rifles or pistols, shooting from a moving vehicle, and herding or driving birds with a vehicle.
The FWC provides an online update that gives the latest information on Florida’s public dove fields. The address is MyFWC.com/Dove, and it’s updated throughout dove season. Information includes dove densities, previous week’s harvests and field conditions.
Fire Destroys Travel Trailer Near McDavid
November 24, 2016
Fire destroyed a travel trailer at a home outside McDavid Wednesday night.
The occupant of the travel trailer in the 2000 block of Cox Road was not at home at the time of the blaze, and there were no injuries reported. The trailer was fully involved when the first firefighters arrived on scene and was a total loss.
There was no immediate work on the cause of the blaze.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Fire Destroys Abandoned Home Near Berrydale
November 24, 2016
Fire destroyed an abandoned home off Greenwood Road in Berrydale in northern Santa Rosa County Tuesday night. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office. There were no injuries reported. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Fries With That? Molino Man Passes Out With Bag Of Meth At Fast Food Place
November 23, 2016
A Molino man was arrested on multiple drug charges after he was found passed out behind the wheel of car with a bag of meth in his lap, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies responded to the Whataburger in the 200 block of Nine Mile Road where Escambia County EMS was checking the status of the driver, later identified as 31-year old Shawn Douglas Anderson of Fairground Road.
The bag of methamphetamine was retrieved from Anderson’s lap along with a bag of marijuana from the center console and multiple small pieces of met from his lap and floorboard, an arrest report states. A pill bottle with an unknown liquid was also retrieved from the vehicle for testing.
Anderson was charged with possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. He remained jailed with bond set at $27,000.
Farm-City Thanksgiving Meals Distributed To Hundreds Of Families
November 23, 2016
As part of Farm-City week, 800 families in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties received full Thanksgiving meals Tuesday — much of it locally grown — thanks to the efforts of local farms, food banks and hundreds of FFA and 4-H students. Students from Tate High School’s FFA chapter and local 4-H clubs helped with the Escambia County distribution for 400 families at the Waterfront Rescue Mission.
The pre-qualified families received turkey, greens, cabbage, sweet potatoes, cornmeal, peanut butter and more. The sweet potatoes were donated by local farmers and sorted by FFA students from a half dozen schools, and students also picked the collards from field Monday at the University of Florida Institute of Food & Agricultural Sciences West Florida Research and Education Center.
[Click here for photos and a story from Monday's harvest.]
Farm to City Week is a national effort with the goal to bring about a better understanding between rural and urban people by increasing their knowledge and appreciation for agriculture.
The locally grown produce was harvested at the University of Florida, West Florida Research and Education Center by participating Ag students from Northview High School, Tate High School, Jay High School and other groups.
Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia Commissioners Take Oath Of Office, Board Reorganizes
November 23, 2016
At their Tuesday board installation and reorganization meeting, threee newly-elected or re-elected Escambia County commissioners were sworn into office and the new chairman and vice chairman assumed their roles.
At the meeting, District 1 Commissioner Jeff Bergosh, District 3 Commissioner Lumon May and District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry took the oath of office. The board also reorganized, with District 2 Commissioner Doug Underhill serving as chairman and Bergosh serving as vice chairman for the coming year.
In addition, the following newly sworn-in commissioners’ committee appointments were approved by the board:
District 1 Commissioner Bergosh appointed Michael A. Smith to the Escambia County Disability Awareness Committee, Mark E. Robinson Jr. to the Board of Adjustment, Jay Ingwell to the Planning Board and Bridgette Brooks to the Santa Rosa Island Authority. He reappointed Arnold Rosenbleeth and Megan Watson to the Escambia County Mass Transit Advisory Committee, and Captain Mark Moore and Mary Watson to the Escambia Marine Advisory Committee.
District 3 Commissioner May reappointed Carla McKinney Thompson to the Escambia County Disability Awareness Committee, Frederick Gant to the Board of Adjustment, Alvin Wingate to the Planning Board, Jerome Watson to the Santa Rosa Island Authority, Sabrina Wallace-Jordan and Bonita Player to the Escambia County Mass Transit Advisory Committee, and Eilene Beard and Lynn Laird to the Escambia Marine Advisory Committee.
District 5 Commissioner Barry reappointed R. Melvin Gaylard to the Escambia County Disability Awareness Committee, Jennifer Rigby to the Board of Adjustment, Wayne Briske to the Planning Board, Janice Perkins-Gilley to the Santa Rosa Island Authority, Nicole A. Wilson to the Escambia County Mass Transit Advisory Committee, and M. Gabe Jackson, III and Hudson Woodfin, Jr. to the Escambia Marine Advisory Committee.
Pictured top: Newly elected Commissioner Jeff Bergosh takes his oath of office Tuesday. Pictured inset: The chair gavel passes to Commissioner Doug Underhill. Pictured below: The oath of office for District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry. Pictured bottom: Commissioner Lumon May takes is sworn into office. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Turkey Time Cooking Tips
November 23, 2016
It’s Thanksgiving, time for family and friends to gather and give thanks. And time for cooks to ponder the correct way to prepare their turkey.
Today, we are taking a look at the proper way to cook your turkey with tips from Dorothy Lee, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent for the Escambia County Extension Office.
Clean
Begin every meal preparation with clean hands, and wash hands frequently to prevent any cross contamination. As a rule, hands that have come in contact with raw meat or poultry should be washed for twenty seconds in hot, soapy water.
Separate
Raw meat and poultry products may contain harmful bacteria, so make certain that the juices from those products do not come in contact with food that will be eaten without cooking, like the salad. Also, never place cooked food on an unwashed plate that previously held raw meat or poultry.
Cook
Use of food thermometer should be a standard operating procedure in your kitchen and, when used correctly, will ensure that your turkey is cooked to perfection. To be safe, the temperature of a whole turkey should reach 180°F between the breast and the innermost part of the thigh.
If you stuff your turkey, the center of the stuffing must reach 165°F. If the stuffing has not reached 165°F, then continue cooking the turkey until it does. Let the turkey stand twenty minutes after removal from the oven before carving.
Chill
This is another important step because food-borne bacteria can grow while food sits unrefrigerated. Refrigerate or freeze perishable leftovers within two hours of cooking. To prepare your leftovers, remove any remaining stuffing from the cavity and cut turkey into small pieces. Slice the breast meat. Wings and legs may be left whole. Refrigerate stuffing and turkey separately in shallow containers.
Use or freeze leftover turkey and stuffing within three to four days, gravy within one to two days. Reheat thoroughly to a temperature of 165°F, or until hot and steaming.
For more information, call the Escambia County Extension office, (850) 475-5230.
Corcoran Opens Fire As Becomes Florida House Speaker
November 23, 2016
New House Speaker Richard Corcoran began his two years as the leader of the chamber Tuesday with a round of rhetorical bombardments, lacerating Florida’s main teachers union for an “evil” lawsuit while laying down an unyielding stance on budget negotiations.
In a speech during the House’s organization session and remarks later to reporters, Corcoran displayed the pugnacious manner and determination that have become his hallmarks and are already raising the odds of a noisy and potentially chaotic legislative session next year.
He attacked the teachers union, the Florida Education Association, for legally challenging a voucher-like program that offers tax credits to businesses that pay for children to attend private schools. He also ruled out considering small-bore budget projects, which often play a key role in easing compromises on other legislative issues, unless the proposals are filed by the first day of the spring session. And he threatened to call out local governments that spend heavily on lobbyists in Tallahassee.
The remarks added a charge to the usually placid organization session, marked by the pageantry of new lawmakers being sworn in and new leaders taking their positions.
Perhaps the most unexpected move by Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, was to call on the Florida Education Association to drop its suit against the voucher-like program. The lawsuit argues that the program drains money that otherwise would go to public schools and is unconstitutional for the same reasons that the Florida Supreme Court struck down a previous voucher scheme.
Corcoran asked Democrats to join Republicans in condemning the legal challenge and asking the FEA, a staunch ally of the Democratic Party, to stop the case.
“The teachers union is fixated on halting innovation and competition in education,” Corcoran said. “They are literally trying to destroy the lives of 100,000 children. Most of them are minorities, and all of them are poor. … It is downright evil.”
Later, speaking to reporters, Corcoran said the FEA’s idea of what constituted fair treatment of educational options is “some subjective, crazy-ass notion that they have that is completely false.”
The challenge to buck the FEA surprised some House Democrats, including Minority Leader Janet Cruz of Tampa.
“It was aggressive,” Cruz said. “I didn’t expect to hear any of that today, and I didn’t expect for teachers to be villainized. … I certainly don’t think that teachers are evil. I think that teachers are amazing, and I was disappointed to hear that.”
Democratic leaders issued a statement Tuesday afternoon reiterating their support for the lawsuit.
In a post on Facebook, FEA President Joanne McCall asked supporters to call Corcoran’s office and ask the speaker to meet McCall. She said the teachers union was “going high as he goes low.”
“The Florida Education Association firmly believes that people of opposing views should always engage in civil debate on issues,” McCall said in a statement issued by the union. “We would welcome the opportunity to discuss with Speaker Corcoran the reasons FEA has engaged the court in the voucher program. We are here when and if the speaker would like to hear from us.”
Corcoran also repeated his pledge not to accept any spending projects that are not filed as House bills by the first day of session. He said the rule, also adopted Tuesday by the House, would help combat an “epidemic level” of budget earmarks.
“No longer will we have to tolerate last-minute appropriations being stuck into our budget with little or no public scrutiny, in the waning hours of session, literally written on the back of a napkin that they got from the bar the night before,” Corcoran told the House.
Those earmarks, though, can make it easier for lawmakers to close up work on the annual spending plan and resolve controversies that are often tied to it in the final days of the session. Corcoran suggested to reporters that he was willing to compromise, but only to a point.
“Gridlock in essence doesn’t help anybody,” he said. “Unless it’s gridlock over something that is a diametrical opposition to the principles that you know would make society, Floridians or the nation great. That’s not gridlock, that’s statesmanship.”
Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart, said Tuesday that he would advise senators to find House members to support their projects. But Negron said that was customary even before Corcoran’s latest proposals.
And while Negron said he didn’t think the difference would be insurmountable, he made it clear the Senate would not necessarily strictly follow the House’s lead.
“On the Senate side, we’re not going to shut down the appropriations process on the (first) day of session,” he said. “We have tens of thousands of our constituents who come to Tallahassee during session to bring us all kinds of ideas, some which relate to the budget. And I think it’s perfectly appropriate for the Senate during the legislative session to make decisions on items that will be included in the budget and, by the way, things that will be stricken from the budget.”
Corcoran also suggested to reporters that he has sweeping plans for a new requirement that lobbyists turn over to the House any contracts related to their work for local governments. Corcoran, whose brother is a lobbyist, has taken a hard line on restricting contact and interactions between House members and the lobbying corps.
“Now we’ll have all these contracts of all these governmental entities and hopefully coming soon is the top 10 list of everything you could imagine: top 10 biggest spenders, top 10 lobbyists who get taxpayer money, top 10 county commissioners who let lobbyists do their job because they stink — all of that’s coming soon,” he said.
The legislative session begins March 7.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Negron Pitches Juvenile Justice, University Changes
November 23, 2016
Senate President Joe Negron, a Stuart Republican unanimously elected to lead the Senate on Tuesday, regaled colleagues with an account of putting Ronald Reagan stickers outside a home owned by the Bush family on Jupiter Island.
The story from the 1980 presidential campaign served as an anecdote of youthful “mischief,” as Negron reiterated his desire to eliminate punitive juvenile-justice laws.
Changes in the juvenile-justice system were one of the priorities Negron outlined Tuesday as he formally moved into one of the most-powerful jobs in the state for the next two years. Other priorities include stopping pollutant-filled discharges from Lake Okeechobee and improving the national reputation of the state’s universities.
But Negron also warned university presidents, who he wants to have a free hand in hiring “the best faculty,” not to give in to a growing campus trend of providing students with safe spaces, free of unpleasant or conflicting ideas or comments.
“Dating back all the way to antiquity, institutions of higher education have always served as forums for free speech and the open idea of expression,” Negron said. “I hope our universities will continue to reject the culture of coddling that has consumed some campuses around our country the last few weeks and months.”
“No one has a right to shut down speech simply because it makes someone feel uncomfortable,” Negron added. “We should train students to articulate and defend their ideas in an open, responsible way that prepares them for the real world.”
Negron’s comments came as the Senate held a one-day organization session, following the Nov. 8 general election and in advance of the 2017 regular session. The Senate includes 20 new members in the Republican-dominated, 40-member body.
Sen. Travis Hutson, an Elkton Republican who had been the only new member of the Senate during the past two sessions, joked that he looked forward to the new members.
“After being hazed for two years, no one is more excited about seeing fresh new faces than me,” Hutson said.
At the start of the organization session, former Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, asked for a moment of silence for the 49 victims of the summer’s mass shooting the Pulse nightclub in Orlando.
“For those of us who were there shortly after, it has made a huge impact on our future,” Gardiner said.
The Senate also approved rules for conducting business that are less sweeping than House changes. The House, for example, will bar lobbyists from texting lawmakers during committee meetings and require members to file separate bills for proposed spending projects.
As is common for largely ceremonial sessions, the Senate on Tuesday drew a crowd of state leaders and former lawmakers. They included Gov. Rick Scott, state Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and newly elected Congressman Al Lawson, a former state senator from Tallahassee.
In a speech that was heavy on policy, Negron recounted that during the 1980 election he was caught with a friend putting campaign stickers and signs for Reagan outside the Jupiter Island home of Dorothy Bush, the mother of President George H.W. Bush and grandmother of President George W. Bush and Gov. Jeb Bush. George H.W. Bush ran for president in 1980 and later became Reagan’s vice president.
Negron, a corporate attorney, grew up in Hobe Sound, a quiet community west of the Intracoastal Waterway from the wealthy Jupiter Island where the Bushes had a home.
Jupiter Island police allowed him to remove the signs and stickers rather than face possible charges that Negron said could have included criminal mischief, defacing property, trespassing, fleeing and attempting to elude and conspiracy.
“We cannot and should not tolerate serious wrongdoing by young people,” Negron said Tuesday. “But at the same time, let’s not criminalize adolescence.”
Negron also reiterated his desire to reduce the flow of polluted water out of Lake Okeechobee into nearby waterways. He supports a potential $2.4 billion state and federal project to buy sugar land for water storage south of the lake.
The proposed land purchase is expected to face opposition from lawmakers with concerns about water improvement projects throughout the state.
“We’ve been talking about a southern reservoir for 20 years,” Negron said. “The time for talk is over, it’s time to act.”
Negron in recent months also has focused heavily on changes in the university system, including make sure that campuses are financially accessible for students.
“We have students that are working 40 and 50 hours a week and trying to go to school full-time, which doesn’t work,” Negron said. “One of my goals is to increase our four-year graduation rate, and I think we would be able to do that if we put students in a situation where they work part-time.”
He acknowledged that his vision won’t be competed in the two years he will oversee the Senate, “but we can make a very good start.”
The vision is to put Florida’s universities on par with schools such as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of Virginia and the University of Michigan, Negron said.
“Universities to which Floridians will apply and frequently pay out-of-state tuition if they can get accepted,” Negron said.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida