Peter Schorsch
Sixty Days — A prime-time look at the 2019 Legislative Session
The Last 24
Good Tuesday evening. In TV ratings, “sweeps” are a good thing. In state budgeting, not so much. Democratic House members, who started rummaging through Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposed 2019-20 state budget, were cheered to see no sweeps of Florida’s housing trust funds. Also, a bill in honor of the late Sen. Dorothy Hukill got a move on in the Senate. Sixty Days always gives you ratings gold. Here’s your nightly rundown.
Bipartisan enthusiasm: Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee expressed optimism over the Governor’s proposed budget, the largest in state history.
Hukill’s way: The “Dorothy L. Hukill Financial Literacy Act” cleared its first review panel. It would require high schoolers to learn to balance checkbooks and manage debt.
No victory for vaping: A bill implementing a voter-approved ban on electronic smoking devices in workplaces is moving forward in the Senate.
Paramedics packing heat? Sen. Ed Hooper wants some medical professionals to be able to carry guns while they’re on duty.
Bonus round: We know it’s not a “legislative” story per se, but Process players might want to know former Speaker Steve Crisafulli opened his own shop.
Quote of the Day
“This is the best-proposed budget in eight years, let’s go with eight years.” — Democratic state Rep. Evan Jenne (as tweeted by reporter Ana Ceballos), on Gov. Ron DeSantis‘ first proposed state budget, in a jab at former Gov. and now U.S. Sen. Rick Scott.
Bill Day’s Latest
3 Questions
The Governor’s budget received high praise from Democrats today during a House Appropriations meeting. But reporters afterward heard measured caution from budget chief Travis Cummings. Here’s what the Orange Park Republican had to say just three days after DeSantis unveiled his spending proposal.
Florida Politics: Do you think a $91.3 billion budget is too much?
Cummings: Clearly, it’s always a concern as we increase the budget each year. I can remember not too long ago we were at $60-$70 billion … but with Medicaid and our ability to fund our public school system, you gotta throw a disaster or two in there — I think you’re going to at times see some growth [in the budget], but it’s a matter of how you fund reserves, how you evaluate our current spending to make sure we’re putting those dollars in the core areas of what we think state government should provide.
FP: Are the environmental asks reasonable?
Cummings: The Governor’s been very transparent. Obviously, he’s come out with a $2.5 billion ask over four years, so about $625 million this year. … I will say the $625 million we’ve got to figure out how we’re going to do that and where those dollars are going to come from. We think about $225-250 million we’re short in terms of what we had already planned for, what was going to be proposed. So we’ve got to really get a plan and obviously, we’ll work with the Speaker and our team to try to see how we’re going to honor that request and so forth.
FP: Do you expect to revisit nursing home and ALF mandates?
Cummings: … We need to make sure nursing homes and ALF’s are safe and provide the care and can protect some of our most vulnerable. Revisiting that policy I think through Health [Appropriations] and Health Policy is probably a wise decision … I think ultimately it’s a budgetary issue too and also a mandate on businesses to provide, which I think we’re very cautious of … If folks want to revisit it, they can, but it’s not necessarily on my radar at this time.
Lobby Up
The obesity epidemic is what health professionals refer to as a “wicked problem” — there are myriad causes and no obvious solution.
But every now and then, there’s a public health initiative that produces real, tangible results. That’s the case in Miami-Dade County, where Common Threads has been helping educate school children and their parents on how to make healthier choices at mealtime.
The Austin-based company has been in the county for several years and has earned the support of educators including county Superintendent of Schools Alberto Carvalho.
Common Threads recently retained GrayRobinson to help them secure some cash in the state budget so they can expand their footprint in Miami-Dade, the nation’s fourth-largest school system. That expansion would bring them into more schools and allow them to reach more students.
“It’s all about access to information,” said Kim McDougal, GrayRobinson’s lead on the legislative effort.
“The whole thing is based on improving eating choices. You can have free and reduced lunch, which is a great program, but you have to be able to teach them to make healthier eating choices outside of school.”
McDougal added that Common Threads’ curriculum does more than fight obesity, it improves outcomes in the classroom as well: “The healthier the kids are, the better they learn.”
Breakthrough Insights
The Next 24
The House Energy & Utilities Subcommittee will hold a panel discussion on telecommunications law. That’s at 8 a.m., 212 Knott Building, The Capitol.
The House Health Quality Subcommittee will hold a discussion about a 2017 law that was designed to carry out a constitutional amendment broadly legalizing medical marijuana. The law has drawn legal challenges because of issues such as a ban on smoking medical marijuana. That’s at 8 a.m., 306 House Office Building, The Capitol.
The House Transportation & Tourism Appropriations Subcommittee and the House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee will receive presentations about Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposed 2019-2020 budget. Transportation & Tourism, 8 a.m., Reed Hall, House Office Building, The Capitol. Also, Agriculture & Natural Resources, 8:30 a.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, The Capitol.
The House Local, Federal & Veterans Affairs Subcommittee will consider a nonbinding memorial that would call on Congress to intensify financial sanctions against the regime of Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro and support urging the Venezuelan government to allow humanitarian assistance. That’s at 8:30 a.m., 12 House Office Building, The Capitol.
The House Criminal Justice Subcommittee will take up a bill that would expand the circumstances in which law-enforcement agencies can use aerial drones. The bill would allow drones for such things as assisting in crowd control or traffic management. That’s at 9 a.m., 404 House Office Building, The Capitol.
The Senate Appropriations Committee will receive a presentation about Gov. DeSantis’ proposed 2019-2020 state budget. That’s at 10 a.m., 412 Knott Building, The Capitol.
The House PreK-12 Quality Subcommittee will take up a proposed constitutional amendment that would ask voters to place eight-year term limits on county school-board members. That’s at 10:30 a.m., Reed Hall, House Office Building, The Capitol.
The House Health Market Reform Subcommittee will receive a presentation on the “certificate of need” regulatory process for new health care facilities and programs. Also, it will receive a presentation on ambulatory surgical centers. That’s at 10:30 a.m., 306 House Office Building, The Capitol.
The House Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee and the House Justice Appropriations Subcommittee will receive presentations on Gov. DeSantis’ proposed 2019-2020 budget. Higher Education, 10:30 a.m., 212 Knott Building, The Capitol. Also, Justice, 10:30 a.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, The Capitol.
The House Workforce Development & Tourism Subcommittee will receive overviews of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, Enterprise Florida and VISIT FLORIDA. That’s at 10:30 a.m., 12 House Office Building, The Capitol.
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried will make a “major announcement related to cannabis in Florida.” That’s at 1:30 p.m., in front of the Commissioner’s Office, Plaza level, The Capitol.
The Senate Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee and the Senate Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development Appropriation Subcommittee will receive presentations about Gov. DeSantis’ proposed 2019-2020 budget. Health and Human Services, 1:30 p.m., 412 Knott Building, The Capitol. Also, Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development, 1:30 p.m., 110 Senate Office Building, The Capitol.
The House State Affairs Committee and the House Oversight, Transparency & Public Management Subcommittee will hold a joint meeting to review issues in the 2018 general election. A panel will include Nassau County Supervisor of Elections Vicki Cannon, Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley, Leon County Supervisor of Elections Mark Earley, Madison County Supervisor of Elections Thomas Hardee, Lafayette County Supervisor of Elections Travis Hart, Volusia County Supervisor of Elections Lisa Lewis and Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Christina White. That’s at 3 p.m., 212 Knott Building, The Capitol.
The House Public Integrity & Ethics Committee will receive an update from Marshall Criser, chancellor of the state university system, about improper spending on university building projects. The issue has primarily focused on improper spending at the University of Central Florida. That’s at 3 p.m., 404 House Office Building, The Capitol.
A group of woman lawmakers will hold a news conference and rally in support of “legislation to combat limited economic opportunities for women.” Among those slated to appear are Sens. Linda Stewart, Lori Berman and Janet Cruz, and Reps. Dotie Joseph and Fentrice Driskell. All are Democrats. That’s at 3:30 p.m., 4th floor Rotunda, The Capitol
The Senate Agriculture, Environment and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee, the Senate Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations Subcommittee and the Senate Education Appropriations Subcommittee will receive presentations about Gov. DeSantis’ proposed 2019-2020 budget. Agriculture, Environment and General Government, 4 p.m., 110 Senate Office Building, The Capitol. Also, Criminal and Civil Justice, 4 p.m., 37 Senate Office Building, The Capitol. Also, Education, 4 p.m., 412 Knott Building, The Capitol.
