Staff Reports
Sixty Days — A prime-time look at the 2022 Legislative Session:
The Last 24
After initially requesting the House scrap their “Putting Parents First” plan, Gov. Ron DeSantis is on board with the Chamber’s approach to holding accountable school districts that enforced mask mandates against state law. DeSantis previously criticized the plan, but Rep. Randy Fine said he came around after budget writers ensured the shifted funds would “come entirely from central offices.” In a statement, DeSantis thanked Fine and House Speaker Chris Sprowls for “heeding” his call “to protect students and teachers from accountability measures affecting union-controlled politicians and bureaucrats who defied Florida law by force masking kids.” The House plan would dock a collective $200 million from the pay of high-paid administrators from the 12 districts that imposed mask mandates. The plan would use those dollars to reward the remaining 55 districts. Administrators making more than $100,000 annually would be subject to the reductions. Here’s your nightly rundown.
Precedented. DeSantis’ office introduced a proposed map for Florida’s 28 congressional districts … again.
Certified ‘organic.’ CFO Jimmy Patronis lauded the “organic” process governing the advance of controversial bills (SB 1834/HB 1557) restricting LGBTQ discussions.
Data dump. The Senate Rules Committee OK’d a bill (SB 1258) that would require Medicaid-managed care plans to report more data to the state.
Stay at home. Florida hospitals would have the ability to use paramedics to offer inpatient services at patients’ homes under a bill (SB 1222) advanced by the Senate Rules Committee.
Not-so-simple battery. A bill (HB 379) that would differentiate sexual crimes from simple battery is ready for its final committee in the House.
Tamper-proof package. The Senate Rules Committee OK’d legislation (SB 796) that would ramp up penalties for evidence tampering in certain felony cases.
Deadline extension. The state may soon provide first responders more time to file PTSD-related workers’ compensation claims under a bill (SB 1066) advanced by the Senate Rules Committee.
Made in USA. A proposal (HB 619) to require state and local governments in Florida to exclusively use American-made iron and steel moved forward in the House.
Declining balance. Both the Senate and House budget bills lack $6 million requested by Space Florida and the Governor for a financing fund, leading officials to plead for it Tuesday.
Snuff it. A bill (SB 224) that would give counties and cities the power to regulate smoking in public parks is ready for a floor vote in the Senate.
Plugging away. A bill (HB 737) that would encourage private investment to expand the EV charging network in Florida cleared its first House panel.
Fast and furious. Bills (SB 876/HB 399) that would help lawmakers crack down on stunt driving and “street takeovers” are racing toward the finish line in the House and Senate.
No shirt, no shoes, yes service. A bill (HB 719) legalizing swim-up bars cleared its second-to-last House committee with nary a splash of opposition.
Cut it out. The House passed a memorial bill (HM 43) calling on the federal government to condemn the ongoing human rights abuses by the Communist government in Cuba.
Local matters. A bill (HB 1493) giving voters the choice to reshape the Alachua County Commission passed its second committee in the House.
Quote of the Day
“They listen to their constituents. They go home every single weekend and make sure the policies they’re pushing make sense. And these ideas they come up with, they’re organic. Moms and dads want these policies.”
— CFO Jimmy Patronis, defending the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Bill Day’s Latest
3 Questions
Ron Sachs has spent the last three decades building one of the most successful public relations firms in the state, but he’s not going to be in the building forever.
Florida Politics sat down with the firm founder to get a clearer picture of what the company will look like when he hangs up his hat — and how he plans to spend his retirement.
Q: Today’s announcement about Sachs Media’s succession plan was not a shocker because you and Michelle Ubben developed and advanced a team of five longtime executives as partners back in 2017. Now there’s a multiyear process for them to acquire ownership and operation of the company. What triggered all of this?
“A few years after starting the company, I was meeting with some expert consultants in our industry, and they asked me what my exit plan was from the company. Seriously, I answered: ‘Someday, I’m gonna die.’ They laughed and suggested developing a plan to survive my working life and to have the firm go on. What a concept! For years, Michelle and I looked at deals offered by outsiders to buy the firm — but that felt too much like the tail would be wagging the dog. We are truly a family at work. The talented five-partner executive team that Michelle and I promoted are exactly the right people to lead the company for its next many decades. So, we built a great plan around that wonderful truth. Seamless transition is what’s happening. There’s no disruption for any client or project. Our Partners — Lisa Garcia, Herbie Thiele, Ryan Cohn, Drew Piers and Karen Cyphers — are stars in their own right. Our colleagues and clients know them, trust them, respect them, and work so well with them. “
Q: A few years from now when this transition is complete, what does a Ron Sachs-style ‘retirement’ look like?
“I’ll never be a stay-at-home guy, even after my active career years are officially over. I look forward to some regular vacation travel with my wife and special times with my three wonderful daughters. I’ll always help the company in every way possible — but I will also continue to feed my need to develop special projects and initiatives that hopefully do good and do well. Toward that end, my entrepreneurial genes will also likely lead to some outside projects with my wife that don’t compete or conflict with Sachs Media, including a new and cool wine label and a crazy fun, new app. Expect some news about those kinds of things in the near future.”
Q: Now in its 27th year, Sachs Media is known for being one of the best in your field in Florida and nationally, but you’re also known for being deeply involved in community service — locally and statewide. How would you summarize what creation of this company has meant to you?
“Well, it’s like a baby you bring into the world. It needs constant care and nurturing. Michelle Ubben’s leadership helped raise this ‘child’ of ours into its adulthood. I’m very proud of what we’ve built with our Partners and the people who have worked with us over the years. To create a healthy little economy that helps our work family take care of their families is so very rewarding. And the major positive impacts we’ve been able to make for our clients is coupled with the community impacts we have been privileged to create in Tallahassee and in Florida. Those things are a legacy, in my view.”
Lobby Up
The fate of your favorite network, cable and streaming shows is decided in an Oldsmar office complex.
That’s where Nielsen Media Research houses a team of data wizards who crunch the numbers on what Americans are watching.
Nielsen ratings got its start with radio programming in the early 1940s before moving on to TV in 1950. In recent years, the company has developed tech to track viewership for paid streaming platforms and even video game streaming sites, such as Twitch.
Though the company is headquartered in New York City, most of its employees work in the Oldsmar building, which has been described as its “nerve center.”
Nielsen measures viewership in a variety of ways. Some Americans fill out a “diary” listing out everything they watch over the course of the week; others respond to phone, mail or online surveys; there’s a smartphone app; and it also has an array of equipment that meters usage.
No matter the method, Nielsen goes to great lengths to ensure most data it collects cannot be used to directly identify any individual, and the identifying information it does have is closely guarded.
Still, it’s keeping its eye on data privacy legislation (SB 1864/HB 9) moving through the legislature. As evidenced by the single-digit bill number, the bill is a top priority in the House.
In short, the proposal would give consumers the right to know what information has been collected, delete or correct the data, and opt-out of the sale or sharing of that personal information.
As of now, Nielsen’s not too worried it will impact its business model. The company isn’t taking chances, however, so it’s hired the team at RSA Consulting to keep tabs on the bills as they move through the process.
RSA president and CEO Ron Pierce says the company is mainly eyeing legal definitions in the bill and aren’t seeking any major changes. Nielsen’s secondary goal: meeting their “neighbors” in the Legislature, many of whom aren’t aware there’s a top-tier data research firm right in their backyard.
Breakthrough Insights
The Next 24
— The House Infrastructure & Tourism Appropriations Subcommittee will take up a bill (HB 1215) that would create a Historic Cemeteries Program within the Division of Historical Resources to coordinate research, repair, restoration, and maintenance efforts at abandoned African American cemeteries. The committee meets at 8 a.m. in Reed Hall.
— House Civil Justice & Property Rights Subcommittee will consider a bill (HB 403) that would require local governments to evaluate the business impact of local ordinances before passing them when it meets at 8 a.m. in Room 404 of the House Office Building.
— The Senate Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee will consider a bill (SB 1950) that would consolidate the state’s 11 Medicaid managed care regions into eight when it meets at 10 a.m. in Room 412 of the Knott Building.
— A bill (SB 364) related to the state’s specialty license plate system will go before the Senate Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development Appropriations Subcommittee when it meets at 10 a.m. in Room 110 of the Senate Office Building.
— The House Regulatory Reform Subcommittee will consider a bill (HB 969) that would require any person or entity who offers non-transferable tickets for sale to also offer the ticket in a transferrable format. The committee meets at 10:30 a.m. in Room 212 of the Knott Building.
— The House Finance & Facilities Subcommittee will take up a bill (HB 79) that would require health insurers to cover hearing aids for children when it meets at 10:30 a.m. in Morris Hall.
— A bill (HB 1115) that would require all students to take a half-credit financial literacy class before graduating will go before the House PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee when it meets at 10:30 a.m. in Reed Hall.
— Legislation (SB 1728) aimed at stabilizing the state’s property insurance system will go before the Senate Agriculture, Environment and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee when it meets at 1 p.m. in Room 110 of the Senate Office Building.
— The Senate Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations Subcommittee will take up a bill (SB 760) that would bolster anti-human trafficking laws when it meets at 1 p.m. in Room 37 of the Senate Office Building.
— A bill (SB 268) that would establish “Victims of Communism Day” will go before the Senate Education Appropriations Subcommittee when it meets at 1 p.m. in Room 412 of the Knott Building.
— The House will hold a floor Session at 2:30 p.m. Bills on the agenda include the House’s budget proposal (HB 5001), a bill (HB 5) that would establish a 15-week abortion ban and a measure (HB 3) that would provide incentives to recruit law enforcement officers.
Also, the following committees will meet.
— The House Secondary Education & Career Development Subcommittee meets at 8 a.m. in Room 212 of the Knott Building.
— The House Insurance & Banking Subcommittee meets at 8 a.m. in Morris Hall.
Full committee agendas, including bills to be considered, are available on the House and Senate websites.
