Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
Attorney General Ashley Moody marked National Consumer Protection Week by detailing a half-dozen pro-consumer court wins secured by the Consumer Protection Division she oversees.
They include a $12.5 million judgment against Client Care Experts for phony tech support services; an $11 million judgment against mortgage company Ocwen Financial Corp.; and a multistate suit against student loan company PEAKS Trust, which saw Florida receive $24 million in relief.
In total, the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division has secured more than $260 million in restitution and other relief for Floridians since Moody took office in early 2019.
Much of that money was recovered during the pandemic. Since the Governor declared a state of emergency, the division has followed up on more than 10,000 consumer complaints.
“As COVID-19 spread, so did scams exploiting the pandemic. Inevitably, as millions of Floridians started working from home to slow the spread of the virus, new schemes emerged, capitalizing on fear of the virus and using the government’s response as a basis for creating new scams. These schemes relied heavily on technology — using emails, texts and robocalls as tools to reach targets in order to steal consumers’ money and personal information,” Moody said.
“I am proud of the response by my Consumer Protection attorneys and investigators quickly adapting to this new environment to protect Floridians from fraud and deception. Because of their hard work, we have recovered millions of dollars for consumers and helped prevent countless Floridians from falling victim to emerging scams by issuing Consumer Alerts as we learn of new schemes. This Consumer Protection Week, we will focus on some of the great work these dedicated public servants are doing to help build a Stronger, Safer Florida.”
Moody’s office has listed more information on its efforts to prevent price gouging and provide consumer relief amid the COVID-19 State of Emergency online and plans to highlight additional efforts and reach out to consumers through social media for the rest of National Consumer Protection Week.
Coronavirus Numbers
Positive cases:
— 1,875,818 FL residents (+1,664 since Sunday)
— 35,103 Non-FL residents (+36 since Sunday)
Origin:
— 14,883 Travel related
— 723,510 Contact with a confirmed case
— 20,298 Both
— 1,117,127 Under investigation
Hospitalizations:
— 79,426 in FL
Deaths:
— 31,556 in FL
Vaccinations:
— 4,725,849 Doses administered
— 3,034,636 Total people vaccinated
— 1,343,423 First dose
— 1,691,213 Series completed (+10,983 since Sunday)
Evening Reads
“Donald Trump will never stop lying about the 2020 election. His CPAC speech proved it.” via Aaron Rupar of Vox
“A party of ideas, not a cult of personality” via Francis Rooney for The Hill
“How pro-Trump forces pushed a lie about antifa at the Capitol Riot” via Michael M. Grynbaum, Davey Alba and Reid J. Epstein of The New York Times
“Johnson & Johnson vaccine deepens concerns over racial and geographic inequities” via Isaac Stanley-Becker of The Washington Post
“Is inflation a risk? Not now, but some see danger ahead.” via Greg Ip of The Wall Street Journal
“Behind the lines of Britain’s COVID war” via Andrew Testa and Alan Cowell of The New York Times
“5 pandemic mistakes we keep repeating” via Zeynep Tufekci of The Atlantic
“Year 1 of Florida’s coronavirus outbreak: 8 key Ron DeSantis decisions” via the staff of the Tampa Bay Times
“One year with COVID-19: What happened, and why it’s too early to loosen up on safety precautions” via Isaac Morgan of The Florida Phoenix
“As Governor cherry-picked data, the pandemic took a toll on Florida sunshine laws” via Mary Ellen Klas of the Miami Herald
“COVID vaccines for people under 65 with health conditions: Publix says no doctor’s note required, but state disagrees” via David Fleshler and Cindy Krischer Goodman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel
“Florida police, firefighters and teachers over 50 to get vaccine, DeSantis says” via Kirby Wilson and Allison Ross of the Tampa Bay Times
“Latest DeSantis order on COVID-19 vaccines creates fresh confusion for medically vulnerable” via Kate Santich of the Orlando Sentinel
“Three top priorities this Session: COVID, COVID and COVID” via Peter Schorsch of Florida Politics
“House set to target social media concerns” via Jim Saunders of the News Service of Florida
“DeSantis wants crackdown on China stealing trade secrets at Florida universities” via Gray Rohrer of the Orlando Sentinel
“With several booze bills on draft, front-runners emerge for 2021 Session” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics
“House bill targeting COVID-19 vaccine fraudsters flies through final committee” via Kelly Hayes of Florida Politics
“Publix sales soar to $44.9 billion in 2020, with COVID-19 shopping key” via Austin Fuller of the Orlando Sentinel
Quote of the Day
“I hereby request that you immediately suspend Vanessa Baugh from public office. I expect that, despite her being your noted political ally, you will do so with all due haste in the name of Floridians denied vaccines whose lives hang in the balance.” — Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, calling on Gov. Ron DeSantis to suspend Manatee County Commissioner Vanessa Baugh.
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