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Progress Florida -- Progressive Solutions for Florida

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Daily Clips for July 1, 2010

FEATURED STORIES

GOP power brokers ousted Greer but weren't queried by investigators

By John Frank

St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau

Related: Jim Greer's downfall as RPOF chairman came slowly, steadily

Jim Greer and Delmar Johnson called them "the four horsemen."


Fired Florida GOP office manager: Jim Greer's expense receipts were altered

By Rene Stutzman and Aaron Deslatte

Orlando Sentinel

The office manager who reviewed credit card bills at the Florida GOP grew suspicious of Jim Greer and Delmar Johnson III, the two men who ran the party, and what they were buying.


Storms hammer Florida Panhandle, tossing oil on beaches and stalling spill

By Dara Kam

Palm Beach Post

Despite the Panhandle's escape from Hurricane Alex's winds, white-capped waves churned by the far-off storm pushed oily mats and tar balls ashore Wednesday. Stalled cleanup crews hunkered away from lightning and intermittent, torrential rain Wednesday could only watch.


Advocacy groups to sue BP, Coast Guard for burning endangered turtles

By Brett Ader

Florida Independent

Wildlife advocacy groups have outlined their intentions to sue BP and the U.S. Coast Guard in an effort to stop the practice of "controlled burns" in the Gulf of Mexico until endangered sea turtles can be rescued.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Democrats ask for help linking Greer investigation to Thrasher and others

By David Hunt

Florida Times-Union

With a number of investigative materials publicly filed in the criminal case against former Republican Party of Florida Chairman Jim Greer, Florida Democrats want a look at the documents.


Florida utility regulators claim their ouster is payback for rejecting rate hikes

By Susan Salisbury

Palm Beach Post

Two Florida Public Service commissioners were bounced from their posts Wednesday, and they blamed their refusal to grant rate increases to Florida Power & Light and another utility for their ouster.


Many new laws take effect in Florida

By Charles Rabin

Miami Herald

As the clock struck 12:01 a.m. Thursday, gamblers grinned, kids frowned and the faithful said a prayer of thanks.


New Laws Take Effect Today

By Lloyd Dunkelberger

Lakeland Ledger

From banning the sale of exotic pythons to raising graduation standards for high school students, more than 150 new state laws take effect today.


Florida ends employees' double-dipping of pension and salary

By Dave Weber

Orlando Sentinel

Starting Thursday, it becomes a whole lot harder for Florida public employees to double-dip into payroll and retirement funds.


PSC nominating process favors utilities over consumers

Editorial

St. Petersburg Times

Five months after the Florida Public Service Commission acted on behalf of consumers by rejecting two utilities' record requests for rate increases, a handful of legislators have helped the industry extract another pound of flesh.

POLITICAL RACES

Florida's unsavory billionaire candidates embarrassing selves

By Alex Pareene

Salon.com

As usual, Florida is making a mess of its elections this year.


Loophole keeps party primaries closed

By Lee Logan and Carrie Wells

Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau

Voters in a Little Havana-based district will have two choices for state senator in November ballot: the winner of the Republican primary and a blank line for a write-in candidate's name.


McCollum pitches himself to tea party activists

By Anthony Man

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum won applause from hundreds of tea party activists Wednesday evening with his conservative-themed stump speech.

BALLOT INITIATIVES

Group sues to block 'Health Care Freedom' amendment over 'misleading language'

By Virginia Chamlee

Florida Independent

Four Florida women filed a suit against Florida Secretary of State Dawn Roberts and the Department of State on June 24 in Leon County court, seeking an injunction that would strike Amendment 9 from the November ballot.


Amendment 9 draws legal challenge

By Christine Jordan Sexton

Florida Tribune

A legal challenge has been mounted against Amendment 9, the proposed constitutional amendment to weaken the federal health care reform overhaul.


Amendment would empower people on land use issues

By Michael D. Bates

Tampa Tribune

This November, voters will go to the polls to vote on Amendment 4, a proposed change to the state constitution that could alter the landscape of local planning projects for years to come.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Interior Delays Offshore Expansion Hearings

By John M. Broder

New York Times

Related: Day 71: The Latest on the Oil Spill

The Interior Department, preoccupied with its response to the BP oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, said Wednesday that it was pushing back the date of public hearings on the administration's plan, announced before the disaster began, to expand offshore drilling.


Tests: Dispersants OK Alone, Threats From Mixing with Oil Still Unknown

By Eric Mack

Public News Service Florida

The first round of testing of chemical dispersants being used to treat the Gulf oil spill show little threat to human health or wildlife, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).


Clean Energy Congress calls for special legislative session, House leadership balks

By Travis Pillow

Florida Independent

Participants in Florida's Clean Energy Congress, which discussed the business of renewable energy in the state and wrapped up on Tuesday, called for the Florida legislature to hold a special session to place two constitutional amendments on November's ballot: one to permanently ban offshore drilling and another to create a renewable portfolio standard -- a mandate that 20 percent of Florida's electricity come from renewable sources by 2020.


Florida solar program ends with $41 million backlog

By Bruce Ritchie

FloridaEnvironments.com

Florida's solar energy rebate program ended Wednesday with a backlog of more than 11,000 applications totaling at least $41.6 million.


All talk, but little action on energy

Editorial

Gainesville Sun

This week a group of citizen activists and business people held a "Clean Energy Congress" in Tallahassee and recommended an offshore drilling ban and the establishment of renewable energy goals for Florida.


Don't weep for the oil industry

Editorial

Sarasota Herald-Tribune

The federal judge who blocked the Obama administration's six-month moratorium on deep-water Gulf drilling operations appeared worried about the future of the offshore industry.

LGBT

Scott bashes McCollum for backing 'pro-homosexual rights' Giuliani

By Beth Reinhard

Miami Herald

Former hospital executive Rick Scott, a deep-pocketed and increasingly serious candidate for governor of Florida, attacked his Republican Primary rival today for having backed former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani in 2008.

EDUCATION

Changes to FCAT writing tests spur confusion, spread doubt on surge in students' performance

By Cara Fitzpatrick

Palm Beach Post

In any other year, state Education Commissioner Eric Smith might have touted this week's dramatic jump in FCAT writing scores.


Who needs college? Many students skipping higher education for jobs, military

By Denise-Marie Balona

Orlando Sentinel

President Barack Obama wants the United States to become the best-educated country in the world by 2020.


FCAT Reading Scores: Better, But Not Nearly Good Enough

By John Koenig

Florida Thinks!

Improvement is always good, so I was pleased to learn Wednesday that Florida's middle-and high-school students posted their highest-ever scores on the FCAT reading test this year.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Florida to get $7M grant for retraining programs

By Jim Ash

Tallahassee Democrat

While local governments struggle to get reimbursed for millions spent fighting the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill, the federal government is about to grant Florida $7 million in retraining programs for laid off workers in the fishing, hospitality and tourism industries in 27 coastal counties.


Business owners blast BP's claims rules

By Mary Ellen Klas

Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau

As hundreds of business owners shuffle through the claims process to recover losses caused by the oil disaster, BP's promise that it will ``deny no legitimate claim'' is taking on a bitter meaning.


Crist asks BP for $50 million more for Fla. ads

The Associated Press

Tampa Tribune

Gov. Charlie Crist has asked BP for $50 million more to promote Florida tourism.


Florida delegation splits party line on 'Wall Street reform'

By Alex Leary

St. Petersburg Times

The U.S. House moments ago voted 237-192 to approve a set of far-reaching financial regulations, and Florida reflected the partisan divide.


For Senate advocates of unemployment insurance extension, a battle to nowhere

By Annie Lowrey

Florida Independent

On Wednesday night, a bare-bones measure to keep federally funded unemployment insurance checks headed to the long-term unemployed failed in the Senate.


An Ant Hurts An Elephant

The Progress Report

Think Progress

With millions of Americans unemployed, the nation struggling to recover from the greatest financial crisis in decades, and "job creation and economic growth" top priorities for the public, President Obama is poised to sign landmark financial regulatory reform meant to ensure the country won't ever face these same dire problems in the future.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

Health reform kicks in today

By Susan Jenks

Florida Today

People previously denied health insurance because of a pre-existing medical condition can begin enrolling today in high-risk pools, now being set up across the country.


State probe sought on WellCare

By Jim Saunders and Carol Gentry

Health News Florida

Amid claims of widespread fraud by the state's largest Medicaid HMO, a state official has called on Attorney General Bill McCollum to prosecute WellCare Health Plan officials involved in trying to "rip off" the taxpayers.


Florida seniors a growing target for scam artists

By Anika Myers Palm

Orlando Sentinel

If your parents are 60 or older and live near here, chances are they've been scammed.


Experts fear new wave of addiction

By James H. Burnett III

Miami Herald

While drug-related deaths across Florida rose an alarming 20 percent last year over 2008, South Florida saw a notable decrease in two key areas of substance abuse: cocaine and heroin.


Oxycodone overdose deaths jump 26% statewide

By Michael LaForgia

Palm Beach Post

As cash-and-carry pain clinics spread across Florida in 2009, and state lawmakers haggled over ways to confront pain clinic problems, the number of people who died of oxycodone overdoses statewide leapt by 26 percent, according to a medical examiner's report made public this morning.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Call for Arizona-style law in Florida elicits concern

By Alfonso Chardy

Miami Herald

Julio Salgado, an undocumented immigrant worker from Nicaragua, has been questioned by the police in the past after business owners called authorities to complain about the presence of day laborers.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

New state law aims to find cheaters among defendants on public tab

By Jane Musgrave

Palm Beach Post

A measure designed to keep Bentley-driving drug dealers and mansion-owning murderers from getting taxpayers to pick up the tab for their defense will likely waste limited resources and could slow down an already overburdened court system, public defenders, judges and court clerks said Wednesday.


Feds indict Broward cops and lawyers in mortgage-fraud scheme

By Jay Weaver, James H. Burnett III, and Amy Sherman

Miami Herald

A network of Broward County attorneys, law enforcement officers and mortgage brokers are accused of falsifying a slew of documents to obtain $16.5 million in loans that they used to buy and flip properties during the real estate boom, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday.


New public corruption investigation in Broward: Sue Gunzburger

By Brittany Wallman

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

The Broward Sheriff's Office has opened a corruption investigation into County Commissioner Suzanne Gunzburger, a stunning move on BSO's part that could be politically devastating to the longtime commissioner.

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