Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiMarch 22, 2018

During a Wednesday public notice meeting regarding the pros and cons of selling JEA, John Crescimbeni, who chairs a special committee on the “potential sale” of JEA, advised a Council colleague who thought the local utility’s electrical component could fetch $5 billion on the open market to “stay tuned to our special committee.” That special committee met […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 21, 2018

Lost in all the drama and metadiscourse regarding Jacksonville’s potential sale of local utility JEA: whether the sale is good for the city or not. A meeting at 1 p.m. at Jacksonville City Hall between City Council members moved to resolve that question. Councilman Matt Schellenberg (the Council liaison to JEA, who is as open to […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 19, 2018

Committees run Monday and Tuesday for the Jacksonville City Council; high-profile measures ranging from cannabis regulation changes to a JEA sale straw ballot have already been deferred in Monday committees. JEA Referendum: Ordinance 2018-141 would set a public straw vote referendum on the November 2018 ballot regarding selling more than 10 percent of JEA. The […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 16, 2018

On Thursday, a Jacksonville City Council panel again delved into the relative merits of selling JEA, the local utility. As has been the case throughout this discussion, flashpoints of tension abounded, kicked off by a familiar antagonist of the Mayor’s Office. The tension led to not one but two witnesses refusing to testify, given the committee […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 9, 2018

Yet another group of Jacksonville community stakeholders will now weigh in on a potential sale of JEA, the city’s municipal utility. Friday saw the Jacksonville Civic Council announce its creation of a “public finance task force,” which will have a special committee to look at a potential sale or other options for the 128-year-old utility. […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 9, 2018

The Jacksonville Ethics Commission legislative subcommittee continued its inquiry Friday into conflicts of interest, transparency issues, and post-employment matters. The issue has a new urgency in light of the exploration of the sale of JEA, which could potentially offer incentives to outgoing officeholders and candidates. The discussion included those issues (and corollaries) such as the use […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 8, 2018

Jacksonville City Council members convened, via a special committee, to discuss the potential sale of JEA on Thursday. While Mayor Lenny Curry and his political allies have been open to exploring valuation and potential privatization, Council President Anna Brosche and many of her colleagues (including the members of the committee) have been more circumspect about the prospect. […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 28, 2018

Jacksonville City Councilman Aaron Bowman secured on Tuesday the ten pledges needed to secure the Council Presidency starting in July. Jim Love backed his fellow Republican, joining Scott Wilson, Sam Newby, and Reggie Gaffney, who committed last week. Prior to that, Bowman secured the commitments of former Council Presidents Lori Boyer and Greg Anderson, along with Doyle Carter, Matt Schellenberg, and […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 27, 2018

Not for the first time in recent months, Jacksonville City Council members again discussed septic tank woes in the Northwest Quadrant. This time, however, a potential legislative remedy is in play. Budget hearings in August saw multiple members, including Council members Katrina Brown and Reggie Brown, lament the slow pace of septic phaseout. $6 million a year […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 23, 2018

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry took office in 2015, and even before he officially took over in July, there were discussions of reforms of government services. His transition committees discussed some concepts, and by the time Curry’s team settled into office, explorations continued on a conceptual level of privatizing or otherwise reforming the way services were […]

Tag: JEA

Jacksonville Council auditor throws cold water on JEA sale fever

Jacksonville City Councilor seeks $5B net for JEA electric sale; colleagues skeptical

Jacksonville City Council committee defers JEA sale straw ballot bill

Jacksonville City Council panel to subpoena JEA CEO Paul McElroy

Jacksonville Civic Council forms committee to ‘assess’ possible JEA sale

Jacksonville ethics panel probes tightening code in light of JEA sale talks

Jacksonville City Council panel mulls JEA sale

Aaron Bowman clinches Jacksonville City Council presidency

Jacksonville City Councilors link septic woes to business relocation, blight

For Lenny Curry’s team, privatization of public resources is not a new concept