Peter Schorsch
The Last 24
Good Tuesday evening. Well, the Governor and Cabinet met Tuesday, interviewed candidates, but held off on hiring a new Commissioner for the Office of Financial Regulation (OFR). Those interviewed were Russell Weigel, a securities lawyer from Coral Gables; Mike Hogan of Gainesville, a former banking executive and now a consultant; and David Weintraub, an investor-plaintiff’s lawyer from Plantation.
“I appreciated those interviews,” Ron DeSantis said after the Cabinet meeting. “I want to go back and look at some of the information we have, talk to my staff, and then we’ll have a public conference call. You all will be able to be on it and then we’ll have our final discussion and people will be able to put up a nominee at that point. We’re going to try to do that pretty quick.”
The OFR Commissioner post pays $166,000 a year (at least for now), oversees an agency of nearly 360 employees with an operating budget of about $41 million a year. The Office regulates banks, credit unions and other financial institutions, along with finance companies, and the securities industry. The last OFR head, Ronald Rubin, was fired in July after complaints of sexual harassment and inappropriate comments in the workplace. Sixty Days believes the waiting is the hardest part. Here’s your nightly rundown.
Follow the money: DeSantis mostly declined to address questions from reporters about his interactions with those indicted associates of Rudy Giuliani, though he did say one had been turned down to serve on a transition committee.
Not his problem: The Governor also said Broward voters basically would have to live with themselves if the Senate removes Scott Israel as county sheriff this week — and then Israel runs again in 2020 and wins.
It’s back: A House panel on party lines cleared a bill, which was filed last year but didn’t pass, requiring parental consent before a minor can pursue an abortion.
Time’s (not) up: A Senate panel advanced a Linda Stewart bill to remove the statute of limitations in cases of the rape of minors.
Protecting the protectors: A bill by Keith Perry to grant confidentiality to first responders who seek psychological help was unanimously cleared by a Senate panel.
Prioritizing things: Legislative Black Caucus members announced that school choice, support for historically black colleges & universities, would be issues among their 2020 Session priorities.
‘Quackery’? Democrats are again sponsoring legislation to bar licensed professionals from offering so-called conversion therapy to gay teens.
Funding the farms: Jayer Williamson asked for state funding for the Farm Share program.
Don’t drink the water — yet: Brevard County’s Randy Fine wants $50 million to save Indian River Lagoon.
Keep calm, swim on: Sen. Jason Pizzo filed legislation to require water safety instruction for public school students.
Don’t buy that booze: Attorney General Ashley Moody announced she was going after illegal online liquor sales.
Quote of the Day
“I see no similarities between a presidential impeachment and the removal of a county official.” — Gov. Ron DeSantis, answering a reporter’s question about the possible removal this week of Broward Sheriff Scott Israel, whom he suspended in January.
Bill Day’s Latest
3 Questions
While best known for paintings of sea life, marine biologist Dr. Guy Harvey — through his institute at Nova Southeastern University — compiled significant data on shark migration in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. Harvey met today with DeSantis about his recent cause: Stopping shark finning and encouraging sustainable shark diving tourism. He’s been working with Shark Allies on raising awareness; we spoke with him this week. (Questions and answers have been edited for clarity and brevity.)
Florida Politics: Why do you feel shark fishing has become a significant ecological threat?
Harvey: In the last 30 or 40 years, numbers of sharks have declined dramatically because of overfishing. We [at the Guy Harvey Research Institute] were first to identify the number of sharks killed annually. We estimate 40 million to 73 million sharks have been killed in the shark fin trade. Our research work has taken us into the Caribbean. I live in the Cayman Islands, but this affects Florida, the Bahamas, Bermuda. We have done work on a variety of sharks, and we have found mortality rates in the last decade to be eye opening. We have found mortality rates of about 30 percent of sample size, which is 10 items higher than normal. So alarm bells went out.
FP: What should Florida be doing to address this issue?
Harvey: Our neighbor, the Bahamas, had the vision 30 years ago to ban commercial long line fishing in territorial waters, and the reason is they have sharks in the archipelago. My institute with a charitable trust and the Bahamas national trust have worked to further strengthen protections. They have banned all commercial shark fishing, and they have a wonderful robust shark tourism eco-business that brings $110 million to $130 million a year without killing a single animal. We have double that figure in Florida, with about $200 million made in shark ecotourism. But that’s in a precarious position where the fishing and any type of commercial exploitation of these species flies in the face of sustainable use of this resource.
FP: Shark finning is already illegal in U.S. waters. What else can Florida do to stop it?
Harvey: The problem Florida faces is that 13 states have banned all trade in shark fin, so Florida is a bit of a hub for the trade. What happens is, people come in from other countries and operate with little oversight or control. We have loopholes that exist currently. You can’t separate the legally- and illegally-caught sharks because you can’t tell which species fins come from unless you are an expert. What will help is Florida taking a more robust position in banning the shark trade in the state. The thing is, any sensible person believes the shark fin trade is diabolical and we shouldn’t put up with it.
Lobby Up
Money for school construction and renovation projects is tight, making it hard for some counties to build and maintain schools.
That’s the case in Bradford County. The county has needed a new school for years, but it doesn’t have the tax base to afford such a massive undertaking.
Luckily, there’s a process to help counties meet critical needs: The Special Facility Construction Account.
Every year, school districts that need a helping hand make their pitch to a panel of superintendents and staff who then rank the projects before shipping their recommendations over to the Education Commissioner.
Bradford has been climbing the rankings since it started applying for the special facility funds — it was No. 6 when it first applied, and a few years later it’s in the No. 1 spot.
To help the Bradford County School District bring it home, they’ve hired Shawn Foster and Sam Wagoner of Sunrise Consulting Group.
The project has made it into the Department of Education’s budget request, and Senate Budget Committee chair Rob Bradley represents Bradford County, so there’s a good chance Bradford will break ground sooner than later.
Breakthrough Insights
The Next 24
(Unless otherwise noted, all locations are in the Capitol Complex.)
It’s USF Day at the Capitol. Afterward, a reception will be held at 5:30 p.m., DoubleTree Hotel, 101 S. Adams St., Tallahassee.
The Florida Retirement System Actuarial Assumption Conference meets to consider the funding valuation. That’s at 10 a.m., 117 Knott Building.
The Senate will meet in Special Session to consider a Rules Committee report on removing or reinstating Israel as Sheriff of Broward County. That’s at 2 p.m., Senate chamber.
State Reps. Alex Andrade, a Gulf Breeze Republican, and Dan Daley, a Coral Springs Democrat, will host a “Bipartisan Digital Town Hall” with special guest Peter Schorsch, founder and publisher of Florida Politics. That’s at 6 p.m., on either representatives’ Facebook page, here and here.
Also, the following committees will meet:
— House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee: 9 a.m., 17 House Office Building.
— House Energy & Utilities Subcommittee: 9 a.m., 306 House Office Building.
— House Health Quality Subcommittee: 9 a.m., 212 Knott Building.
— House Local, Federal & Veterans Affairs Subcommittee: 9 a.m., 12 House Office Building.
— Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice: 9 a.m., 37 Senate Office Building.
— Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services: 11 a.m., 412 Knott Building.
— House Business & Professions Subcommittee: 12:30 a.m., 212 Knott Building.
— House Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee: That’s at 12:30 p.m., 404 House Office Building.
— House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee: 12:30 p.m., 102 House Office Building.
— House Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee: 3 p.m., 212 Knott Building.
— House PreK-12 Innovation Subcommittee: 3 p.m., 102 House Office Building.
— House Workforce Development & Tourism Subcommittee: 3 p.m., 12 House Office Building.
Committee agendas are available on the House and Senate websites.
