Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiNovember 21, 2016

More transparency. More community engagement. More meetings. More body cameras. And higher millage rates. And that August pension reform referendum? Spoiler: that sales tax extension is not going to provide enough money to pay for what’s needed. Such insights abounded in the long-awaited final report from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office‘s strategic initiative task forces. It […]

A.G. GancarskiOctober 8, 2016

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry briefed media Saturday morning on the catastrophe wrought by Hurricane Matthew. “It’s a new day here in Jacksonville,” Curry said, adding that we’re on the other side of the storm and “there’s a lot of work to be done.” More than 214,000 JEA customers lacked power as of 8:45 a.m. Saturday. Branches […]

A.G. GancarskiOctober 7, 2016

On Friday afternoon, as the worst of Matthew threatened his city with hurricane conditions through nightfall, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry briefed media and a home audience on the storm. At his last briefing Friday morning, the message was “hunker down.” In the afternoon, the message was similar. “We are in the middle of it, so my […]

A.G. GancarskiSeptember 28, 2016

Slowly but surely, Jacksonville is moving toward affording its LGBT citizens the same rights others have. The latest example of progress: the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and four independent authorities (The Jacksonville Aviation Authority, JEA, Jacksonville Port Authority, and Jacksonville Transportation Authority) protect LGBT employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Activists hailed […]

A.G. GancarskiSeptember 27, 2016

On Tuesday night, the Jacksonville City Council should pass its budget. There should, at least in theory, be no real hiccups to the process. Going into the evening, there could be some floor amendments to the bill; but none look especially prohibitive or particularly interesting. Among them: moving $112,000 from the property appraiser’s fund balance to purchase aerial […]

A.G. GancarskiSeptember 26, 2016

A controversial bill (2016-489) moving $70,000 from council contingency for special events for each of the fourteen district council members got hung up in committees last week. Monday, bill sponsor Reggie Brown held a public notice meeting with council colleagues. And after that meeting, there may be a conceptual way forward. Brown, who represents Northwest Jacksonville, noted […]

A.G. GancarskiAugust 11, 2016

Even in a tight budget year in Jacksonville, the sheriff’s office, and the fire and rescue department still have to be fed. On Thursday afternoon, the Jacksonville City Council Finance Committee took a look at public safety budgets. There was little in the way of controversy, even on enhancements, compared to the surprisingly contentious inspector […]

A.G. GancarskiAugust 10, 2016

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In one of the longest running and most depressing soap operas in Jacksonville history, the city council’s Hemming Park special committee met Wednesday, agreeing reluctantly to amend 2016-385, which would have appropriated $150,000 to Friends of Hemming Park (FOHP). The committee opted to amend the bill to approve two months of operating funds — $29,000 a month. […]

A.G. GancarskiAugust 10, 2016

On Thursday, the Jacksonville City Council Finance Committee begins seven days of deliberations of the mayor’s budget, meetings that will sprawl out over the next 15 calendar days. Lenny Curry‘s budget was by and large flat, with enhancements for public safety, and drainage projects in traditionally underserved communities. The enhancements, as we wrote last month, include: — […]

A.G. GancarskiAugust 2, 2016

Addressing a Jacksonville City Council committee Tuesday, Sheriff Mike Williams signaled his department’s commitment to a pilot program for body cameras “sooner than later,” even as major questions remain about hardware costs, capabilities of cameras, and time frame of deployment. Williams expects to have the program begun “no later than the spring,” he told the […]

Tag: Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office
And all the best to newlyweds Melissa Kuipers Blake and Jason Stein.

Transparency, taxpayer money billed as solutions to Jacksonville police problems

Lenny Curry briefs media on disaster recovery; evacuees can return home at noon

Jacksonville braces for worst of Hurricane Matthew

Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, independent authorities codify LGBT protections

Why budget night should go well for the Jacksonville City Council

Jacksonville City Council members make progress on special events bill

Jax City Council mulls police, fire budgets

The Hemming Park experiment looks likely to limp along for a while longer

Jax Council Finance committee begins budget deliberations Thursday

Jax Sheriff: body camera pilot program to roll out ‘sooner than later’