Peter Schorsch
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
There was no joy in the halls of the Capitol — or on Adams Street — as efforts to call a Special Session on gaming died Wednesday.
Sources told Florida Politics, later confirmed by Senate President-designate Bill Galvano, that negotiations between the chambers fell apart, in part because of a disagreement over allowing slot machines in counties that passed a local referendum allowing them.
Specifically, it was over St. Lucie County, which has a jai alai fronton and card room now known as Casino Fort Pierce and is in Senate President Joe Negron’s district.
Only the Seminole Tribe can offer slots outside of South Florida, where slots are currently offered at pari-mutuels.
Also foiling talks was a lack of a solution to making up revenue that could have been lost from added gambling that infringed on the Seminoles’ exclusive rights to slots outside of Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
If the Tribe considers its exclusivity broken under a 2010 agreement between it and the state, it’s entitled to reduce payments or stop them altogether. The Tribe paid the state paid a little more than $290 million last fiscal year.
The latest news comes a week after an agreement was signed between the state and the Seminoles guaranteeing that the Tribe will keep sharing gaming revenue from its casinos at least till May 2019.
Now the Legislature faces having its hands indefinitely tied by a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot. That measure, which current polls show will likely pass, would require a statewide vote to approve any future expansions of gambling.
In a statement, Senate President Joe Negron said “significant progress was made on a number of important gaming issues from the Regular Session, including the availability of slots approved by voters in referendum counties, reducing the applicable tax rate, decoupling and overall contraction of the gaming footprint in Florida.
“Ultimately, however, there were other factors that led President-designate Galvano and Speaker-designate (Jose) Oliva to recommend that we not have a special session on gaming. These factors include budget unpredictability, uncertainty as to the effect of a proposed constitutional amendment and potential challenges in limiting the scope of the call.
“I would like to thank both the President-designate and the Speaker-designate for their good faith efforts in this matter.”
Evening Reads
“Bill Nelson mum on Mike Pompeo” via Alex Leary of the Tampa Bay Times
“Florida and Texas are expected to take the biggest economic hit from climate change” via Ciara Linnane of MarketWatch
“Florida Republicans may be forced to act on voting rights” via Gary Fineout of The Associated Press
“Why his opponents should fear Adam Putnam” via Adam Smith of the Tampa Bay Times
“Jeff Greene for governor?: If I ran, I’d ‘spend whatever it would take’” via George Bennett of the Palm Beach Post
“Mike Fernandez starts new political committee with $5 million” via Matt Dixon of POLITICO Florida
“Jose Oliva draws election challenger” via The News Service of Florida
“Jeff Brandes says the end of Session was “terrible.” Here’s why.” via Emily Mahoney of the Tampa Bay Times
“How a Florida Supreme Court case could affect attorney pay” via Samantha Joseph of the Daily Business Review
“College newspapers across US campaign to secure their future” via Alexandra Villarreal of The Associated Press
Quote of the Day
“These are our family members, friends, and neighbors that have paid their full debt to society and earned the opportunity to participate in and give back to their communities.” — Desmond Meade, organizer of the effort behind a constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would automatically restore voting rights to certain felons.
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Wake Up Early?
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will discuss issues such as goliath grouper and a rule for Gulf red snapper. That’s at 8:30 a.m., Fort Lauderdale Marriott North, 6650 North Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale.
CFO Jimmy Patronis hosts Manage My Money Day, a free event offering resources and educational activities to help Floridians with disabilities learn and achieve financial independence. That’s at 9 a.m., The Arc Tampa Bay, 1501 Belcher Road, Suite 249, Clearwater. More information at MyFloridaCFO.com/MyMoney or call (877) MY-FL-CFO (693-5236).
The Florida Re-employment Assistance Appeals Commission will meet at 9:30 a.m., Re-employment Assistance Appeals Commission, 101 Rhyne Building, 2740 Centerview Dr., Tallahassee.
The Florida Department of Financial Services will hold one in a series of “Be Scam Smart” workshops to help seniors avoid financial scams. That’s at 10 a.m., Coastal Region Main Library, 8619 West Crystal St., Crystal River.
The Florida Supreme Court is scheduled to release its weekly opinions at 11 a.m.
The Rev. Al Sharpton, president of the National Action Network, and state, local and national religious leaders will hold a march and rally that is expected to include calls for changing gun laws and restoring felons’ voting rights. The march starts at 11 a.m., Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, 224 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Tallahassee. The rally begins at noon at the Old Capitol.
Tequesta Republican MaryLynn Magar hosts a “Rally for Victory” in her re-election bid for House District 82. That’s at 5:30 p.m., J.J. Taylor Companies Inc., 655 N. A1A, Jupiter. RSVP to [email protected].
Tampa Republican Jackie Toledo kicks off her House District 60 re-election campaign. That’s at 5:30 p.m., Byblos Café, 2832 S. MacDill Ave., Tampa. RSVP to Lynnette Russell at [email protected].
Palm Harbor Republican Chris Sprowls fundraises for his House District 65 re-election effort. That’s at 5:30 p.m., Catcher in the Rye, 917 11th St., Palm Harbor. RSVP to Brant Bartlett at [email protected] or by visiting the Facebook event listing.
Democrat Jennifer Webb hosts an LGBT House Party in support of her bid for House District 69. That’s at 6 p.m. in the home of Sussie Stroud and Robbie Kety, with an address provided upon RSVP at [email protected] or (850) 841-9020.
Longtime Florida Republican Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who is retiring this year, will receive a “lifetime achievement award” during the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s Legislative Summit. That’s at 7:30 p.m., The Willard InterContinental, 1401 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C.
