Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 17, 2016

The key to understanding how Jacksonville’s current pension tax proposal will retire the unfunded liability rests in understanding the concept of “deferred contribution” outlined in the projections for the use of the extension of the Better Jacksonville Plan to pay off the unfunded pension liability. Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry is not prone to exaggeration. When […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 17, 2016

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry has a variety of “individual meetings” scheduled in Tallahassee Wednesday to push the Discretionary Sales Surtax bill. Four of them are set up with Senate Rules Committee members, which will be the final Senate committee to deliberate the bill. The bill has cleared two of three Senate committees, and both House committees. […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 16, 2016

The Jacksonville City Council Finance Committee meeting on Tuesday OKd the settlement with John Keane, while it OK’d the JEA Agreement, and increased property donation limits. The settlement between the city and John Keane, a bill described as the “gorilla in the room,” was the big talker. The settlement version of the plan would pay Keane $225,000 in […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 12, 2016

While Jacksonville leaders wait to see whether Tallahassee will give them the go-ahead on the Pension Tax referendum, they might want to consider the latest annual report from the Police and Fire Pension Fund, which offers disturbing auguries for the future of fund holdings. The Jax PFPF report indicates a major downturn in equity investment […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 1, 2016

The Jacksonville City Council Finance Committee had an action-packed Monday meeting, highlighted by unanimous approval of two pension bills, FSCJ downtown housing, and Maxwell House incentives. Meanwhile, the Term Limit referendum proved more controversial. And the Safety Officer cure legislation discussion, as ever, was “delicate.” • • • 2015-422 would allow Police and Fire Pension Fund Board […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 21, 2016

The second of two big public notice meetings of Jacksonville City Council members Thursday involved a familiar subject: the subpoenas of Police and Fire Pension Fund material, requested last year as part of the “forensic audit” of the pension fund that some on Council regard as gospel, and that others outside of Council regard as blasphemy. […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 21, 2016

Two interesting Jacksonville City Council public notice meetings are slated for Thursday, and both of them have to do with public safety-related legal concerns. At 1 p.m, Councilwoman Anna Brosche meets with Council VP Lori Boyer regarding 2015-783, the so-called Cure Legislation to resolve a controversial budget night allocation of $330,799 from the stormwater budget to salaries for […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 18, 2016

Where do we go from here? And when we get there, can we Build Something That Lasts? The 1967 Martin Luther King Jr. speech referenced above was given at the 10th annual session of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. It epitomized King’s late period in terms of calling for social justice for African-Americans. Among other calls […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 14, 2016

With the MLK Birthday Breakfast Friday calling him back to Jacksonville, Mayor Lenny Curry will wrap up his Tallahassee trip Thursday after meetings galore. One would surmise that those meetings are intended to create buy-in for his pension sales tax proposal, which some worry was advanced a bit late for this Legislative Session. Curry’s meeting schedule […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 9, 2016

While most of the #jaxpol world focuses on whether the Lenny Curry pension tax proposal is a “new” tax, the real sticking point may be the defined contribution requirement that the Curry administration imposed as a precondition for new employees. In that context, Curry’s “political capital” necessarily will be used, to a considerable degree, to get […]

Tag: Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Fund

“Deferred Contribution” key to how proposed Jax pension tax works

Lenny Curry lobbying Senate Rules Committee members

Jax Finance Committee reluctantly OKs John Keane settlement

Jax Police and Fire Pension Fund investments underperform

Jax Council Finance OKs pension bills, FSCJ downtown housing, term limit expansion

Jax Council renews call for transparency from Police and Fire Pension Fund

Interesting public notice meetings in Jax Thursday

Lenny Curry PAC draws parallel between Jax mayor, MLK

Lenny Curry wraps up Tallahassee junket Thursday with more pension tax meetings

Pension tax pushback begins against Lenny Curry