Elevator pitch

Phil AmmannMay 31, 2017

One of the great joys of serving as an elected state Representative is the opportunity it provides me to interact with the people of our community and act as a voice on their behalf in Tallahassee. That’s why I’m excited to have been afforded the chance to write an occasional column to fill you in […]

Phil AmmannMay 26, 2017

Department of Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly has made the right decision to extend temporary protected status (TPS) for Haitians living in the United States. Deporting Haitians right now would have been disastrous for them and for Haiti, which is currently in no condition to accept them. At the same time, by promising them only […]

Phil AmmannMay 26, 2017

The sun rises, as we are told, every day in downtown Jacksonville. But for the City Council class of 2011, slated for term-limits in 2019, those sunrises are beginning to fade. Chosen Tuesday, the Council officers — who first took office in 2015 — show that the balance of power has shifted, the baton has […]

Phil AmmannMay 26, 2017

Florida TaxWatch, the nonpartisan government watchdog organization, served up its annual list of “Budget Turkeys,” naming almost $178 million in line-item projects part of the $82.4 billion budget passed May 8 by the Florida House and Senate. For the Tampa Bay region, Florida TaxWatch targeted more than $33 million in local projects as individual line […]

Phil AmmannMay 26, 2017

Thanksgiving is six months away, but Friday is “turkey” day for Gov. Rick Scott. Florida TaxWatch, the nonpartisan government watchdog group, released its annual “Budget Turkey List,” of almost $178 million in line-item projects that are part of the $82.4 billion budget passed May 8 by the Florida House and Senate. Budget Turkeys are individual […]

Phil AmmannMay 26, 2017

Political hacking wasn’t limited to just the Democratic National Committee in 2016; Florida was also part of the act. Last year, a Republican political operative and part-time blogger from Florida asked for and received an extensive list of stolen data from Guccifer 2.0, the infamous hacker known for leaking documents from the DNC computer network. […]

Phil AmmannMay 22, 2017

State Rep. Heather Fitzenhagen is offering her Southwest Florida constituents a list achievements of the 2017 Legislative Session, which ended May 8. During the last two weeks of Session, the Fort Myers Republican said in an email that lawmakers spent a majority of time on House floor debating the state’s “Tax Package” and the upcoming […]

Phil AmmannMay 18, 2017

The ongoing Corrine Brown drama pushed our legislative roundup back a week — but given the drama that ensued this week regarding what the Duval Delegation accomplished, that’s just as well. Boils down to this: the legislators think they brought home the bacon, and some in City Hall believe that they brought home crumbs. As […]

Phil AmmannMay 17, 2017

Now that the 2017 Legislative Session is in the history books (for the most part), Florida lawmakers are beginning to take stock. And Palm Harbor Republican Chris Sprowls is no different. Sprowls offers his own post-Session review, in an email to supporters highlighting some of his major legislative actions in the House over the past […]

Phil AmmannMay 17, 2017

Senate Democrats are ready to work with Gov. Rick Scott should he veto the massive education reform bill pushed by House leaders in the final days of the 2017 Session. Mary Ellen Klas of the Miami Herald reports that Senate Minority Leader Oscar Braynon is prepared to help prevent an override of Scott’s veto, under […]

Phil Ammann
Lake Mary’s team celebrates in the eighth inning of the Little League World Series Championship game against Taiwan. Florida won in eight innings 2-1. Image via AP.

Bobby DuBose: Rick Scott must veto HB 7069 on behalf of our public schools

Ted Deutch, Mark Hetfield: Six-month extension for Haitian TPS is not enough

Jacksonville Bold for 5.26.17 — Sunrise, sunsets

Tampa Bay region marked for $33M in Florida TaxWatch ‘turkeys’

Rick Scott gets $178M serving of Florida TaxWatch ‘budget turkeys’

Florida GOP operative, blogger teamed up with Guccifer 2.0 for hacking dump

Heather Fitzenhagen highlights Session wins for Southwest Florida

Jacksonville Bold — 5.19.17 — It was a very good year?

Chris Sprowls looks back on successful 2017 Session

Senate Democrats could help block budget veto override – with caveats