Peter Schorsch
Sixty Days — A prime-time read of what’s going down for Florida’s 2018 Legislative Session.
The Last 24
Former lawmaker and current candidate David Rivera showed up at Bill Galvano’s designation ceremony—despite being sought by U.S. marshals so they can serve him with a Federal Election Commission lawsuit tied to a campaign finance conspiracy.
Texting while driving could become a primary offense under a bill that cleared the Senate Committee on Communications, Education, and Public Utilities.
Florida lawmakers may finally approve legislation to provide concierge medicine to the masses this year as a bill cleared a Senate committee unanimously.
A Senate proposal has been filed to allow shoppers to buy disaster-preparedness supplies in early June without paying sales taxes.
Incoming Senate President Bill Galvano on Tuesday questioned whether Gov. Rick Scott overstepped his constitutional bounds in opening “disaster relief centers” for Puerto Rican residents displaced by Hurricane Maria.
Alternative dispute resolution could be a solution to the political dispute over assignment of benefits, or AOB.
Former Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink endorsed former Sen. Jeremy Ring in his quest to take the CFO seat in the 2018 election.
Tallahassee’s top prosecutor has turned down a request from a group of retirees to investigate Gov. Scott’s response to pleas for help from a nursing home in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.
Quote of the Day
“We are in fact the good neighbors who want to share our world, and actually want to make the world a better place to live.” —Lisa Robertson, who rents out bedrooms in her Destin home through Airbnb, at a Senate hearing on vacation rental regulations.
Bill Day’s Latest
3 Questions
Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, a Fort Myers Republican, is backing legislation (SB 8) to limit first-time prescriptions to opioid painkillers to no more than three days. The proposal mirrors one that Gov. Rick Scott made earlier this year and is also similar to a plan backed by a drug manufacturers trade group that would limit new scripts to a week-long supply. What makes Benacquisto’s legislative roll-out different is that it was accompanied by a video, with interviews of family members of those claimed by the opioid epidemic.
Q: Why did you make the video?
EB: You cannot hear the stories of addiction, family destruction and communities being ravaged without wanting to do something to help. I am honored that President (Joe) Negron entrusted me with this Senate priority and that he has encouraged and empowered our team to tell the stories of the families tragically impacted by opioid addiction.
Q: What’s key to finding a solution?
EB: This is a multifaceted problem that is going to require addressing the causes and effects from many angles. The details will be debated at great length in the coming months, but Senate Bill 8 calls for specific improvements in prevention, treatment, education and enforcement.
Q: What do you tell those who don’t think this rises to the level of a public health crisis?
EB: People are dying. Children are losing their parents and landing in our foster care system. Emergency rooms are administering Narcan to revive overdosed addicts every single day and law enforcement are dealing with Opioid related crimes at skyrocketing levels. If you are not moved by the human toll this epidemic is having on our communities, then consider the financial resources being drained from our healthcare, law enforcement and social services institutions.
Lobby Up
Brian Ballard, principal at Ballard Partners, continues to do well with his Washington D.C. expansion.
Third quarter (July-August-September) revenue rankings, according to disclosures under the Lobbying Disclosure Act, show Ballard’s team reporting $2.8 million.
That’s compared to $2.3 million for the second quarter (April-May-June).
Ballard, who has close ties with the Donald Trump White House, most recently inked a $600,000 one-year contract to promote “free and fair elections” in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
He also formed an international strategic alliance with Alber & Geiger, a political lobbying powerhouse in the European Union, in efforts to leverage both firms’ governmental expertise in their respective countries.
Ballard was an early supporter of Trump and is also a regional vice chair of the Republican National Committee, where he helps leads the party’s fundraising.
In January, Ballard opened his Washington outpost and staffed it with a team with extensive ties to Trump and Republican-controlled D.C.
Meantime, his new office tower in downtown Tallahassee speeds toward completion. It’s on the southeast corner of Park Avenue and Monroe Street.
Breakthrough Insights
The Next 24
The House Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee will receive presentations on the funding formula and performance funding in the Florida College System at 8 a.m., 212 Knott Building.
The House Health Innovation Subcommittee will receive a presentation from the Agency for Health Care Administration about Medicaid pharmacy networks at 8:30 a.m., 306 House Office Building.
The House Justice Appropriations Subcommittee will receive presentations on budget requests and potential reductions from a series of agencies, including the Department of Corrections, at 8:30 a.m., 17 House Office Building.
The Senate Appropriations Committee will discuss issues related to Hurricane Irma, including expenditures and potential responses to the hurricane at 9 a.m., 412 Knott Building.
The House Natural Resources & Public Lands Subcommittee will take up a bill to combat invasive species such as Burmese pythons, tegu lizards and lionfish at 9 a.m., 12 House Office Building.
The House Health Quality Subcommittee will receive a presentation from the Department of Health about the trauma-care system at 10:30 a.m., 306 House Office Building.
The House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an update on the state’s petroleum-tank cleanup program at 10:30 a.m., 17 House Office Building.
The House Criminal Justice Subcommittee will take up a bill to prevent people from making online threats to kill or injure other people at 10:30 a.m., 404 House Office Building.
The Senate Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an update about Department of Corrections security operations, including staffing patterns and use-of-force incidents, at 1 p.m., 37 Senate Office Building.
The Senate Environment and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee will consider a bill to set aside at least $50 million a year to help address issues such as beach erosion at 1 p.m., 301 Senate Office Building.
The House Children, Families & Seniors Subcommittee will receive a presentation from Department of Children and Families Secretary Mike Carroll about the child-protective investigations workforce at 1:30 p.m., 12 House Office Building.
The House Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee will take up a bill to pay $2.4 million to the parents of infant Nicholas Patnode, who died after a mistake at a Martin County Health Department clinic, at 1:30 p.m., 404 House Office Building.
The House Oversight, Transparency & Administration Subcommittee will receive a presentation from the Department of State about the new online voter-registration system at 1:30 p.m., 17 House Office Building.
The Senate General Government Appropriations Subcommittee will take up issues related to underground utilities at, 3:30 p.m., 301 Senate Office Building.
The Senate Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee will discuss funding issues related to the opioid epidemic at 3:30 p.m., 401 Senate Office Building.
The Senate Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee will review issues related to preeminence funding and performance funding for universities at 3:30 p.m., 412 Knott Building.
The House Careers & Competition Subcommittee will consider a bill to reduce the number of members of the Florida Building Commission from 27 to 11, at 4 p.m., 212 Knott Building.
The House Government Operations & Technology Appropriation Subcommittee will take up a bill to create a slavery memorial at the Florida Capitol at 4 p.m., 17 House Office Building.
The House Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee will hear a budget request and potential reductions from the Department of Children and Families at 4 p.m., 404 House Office Building.
The House PreK-12 Innovation Subcommittee will hold a panel discussion about issues related to school discipline at 4 p.m., 306 House Office Building.
The “Right on Crime” organization will host a reception about conservatives and criminal justice reform in Florida at 5:30 p.m., Governors Club, 202 South Adams St., Tallahassee.
State Sen. Jack Latvala is scheduled to hold a capital-area fundraiser for his 2018 campaign for governor. That’s at 5:30 p.m., DoubleTree by Hilton, 101 S Adams St., Tallahassee.
