Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Janelle Irwin TaylorJanuary 7, 2019

The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority’s Board of Directors narrowed its list of potential CEOs to four during a meeting Monday. The short list includes one internal applicant and others from Jacksonville, Atlanta and Lexington, Kentucky. The board’s internal candidate is HART Chief Administrative Officer and Chief of Staff Kenyatta Lee. “As an internal candidate, […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorJanuary 4, 2019

Hillsborough County and the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority both filed defenses to a lawsuit seeking to overturn the one-percent transportation tax voters approved in November. Both entities argue, among other defenses, that Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy White does not have legal standing to file the suit. White is seeking to overturn the voter-approved county […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorJanuary 4, 2019

In the fight to maintain Hillsborough County’s recently enacted one-percent transportation sales tax, the All For Transportation campaign won its first legal battle. A Hillsborough County Circuit judge ruled Friday the group could defend the tax in a lawsuit seeking to overturn it. Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy White sued the county, the three cities within […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorDecember 21, 2018

Virgin Trains U.S.A., formerly Brightline, could serve Tampa sooner than expected. Bob O’Malley, Vice President of Government Affairs, told the Hillsborough County Legislative Delegation Thursday the company now thinks it could combine work on two legs of its project, speeding up the timeline to “far less than a decade.” The company had planned to expand […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorDecember 20, 2018

Attorneys seeking to overturn the voter-approved transportation tax in Hillsborough County are asking the judge to expedite the case, according to court filings. The motion calls for an expedited case management conference to settle the lawsuit brought forth by Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy White. Its basis for a speedy judgment in the plaintiff’s favor is […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorDecember 20, 2018

The All For Transportation campaign filed a motion Wednesday to have a team of its own lawyers intervene in the defense of its transportation referendum increasing sales tax by 1 percent, which voters approved last month. That motion provides some insight into how defending entities might argue their case. The primary argument is simple: “Counties […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorDecember 19, 2018

The All For Transportation campaign parent company, Keep Hillsborough Moving, filed a motion in Hillsborough County Circuit Court Wednesday to intervene in the defense of the voter-approved transportation referendum Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy White is challenging. The group is offering up its own team of lawyers to defend the referendum against challenges that it is […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorDecember 19, 2018

The Federal Transit Administration awarded the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority $1.2 million through its Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development Planning, the agency announced Wednesday. The grant will fund transit-oriented development planning along the proposed Central Avenue Bus Rapid Transit route planned to connect downtown St. Petersburg to the Gulf Beaches along First Avenues North and […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorDecember 19, 2018

Editor’s note: A previous version of this story incorrectly noted that Darryl Shaw, one of Ed Turanchik’s campaign donors, had also contributed to Americans For Prosperity. In an interview Turanchik said Shaw had contributed to AFT (All For Transportation) not AFP (Americans For Prosperity.) The story has been updated to reflect his support from a transportation […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorDecember 18, 2018

A lawsuit that sought to overturn the 1 percent sales tax voters approved last month for transportation and transit improvements in Hillsborough County has been reassigned to a new judge following concerns the initially assigned judge could not provide a fair trial for defendants. Judge Laurel Lee, the wife of Florida Senator Tom Lee, recused herself […]

Tag: transit
Golf ball and golf club in bag on green grass

Hillsborough transit agency eyes new CEO to effectively manage new transit tax revenue

HART, Hillsborough County say Stacy White has no right to challenge transportation tax

Judge rules All For Transportation can defend itself against Stacy White lawsuit

Private high-speed rail could serve Tampa sooner than expected

Overturning Hillsborough transportation tax rests on argument denied by Florida Supreme Court

All For Transportation court filing hints at possible transportation tax defense

All For Transportation wants to use their own legal team to defend transportation tax

Central Avenue BRT nabs $1.2 million grant for transit-oriented development

Ed Turanchik’s campaign fueled by anti-transportation tax donor

Tom Lee’s wife recuses herself from transportation tax lawsuit amid questions about conflicts