Daily Clips for February 17, 2011

PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS Rick Scott Rejects Stimulus Money for High-Speed Rail By Kenric Ward Sunshine State News Excerpt: Progress Florida said Scott's decision was driven by a desire "to make President Obama look bad." FEATURED STORIES Florida Governor Rejects Tampa-Orlando High-Speed Rail Line By Timothy Williams New York Times Gov. Rick Scott of Florida on Wednesday rejected plans for a high-speed rail line linking Tampa and Orlando, in the process turning down $2 billion in federal funds and thwarting a critical piece of President Obama’s goal of building a national high-speed rail network. Train wreck of a governor Editorial St. Petersburg Times Gov. Rick Scott rashly acted in his own political interests and sacrificed the best interests of Florida Wednesday by rejecting federal money for a high-speed rail line between Tampa and Orlando. State Senate unveils pension reform plan By Mary Ellen Klas St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Two new Senate bills would require state and local governments to close their traditional retirement plans to new hires, enroll all employees in 401(k)-style plans and limit retirement options. Scott's health insurance proposal would hit state workers' wallets hard By Paul Flemming Florida Capital News State employees — seven years without a general pay raise, layoffs looming and a separate proposal to require them to pay 5 percent of their salaries into pensions — also face the possibility of a massive change to their health benefits. FLORIDA POLITICS Gov. Rick Scott rejects funding for high-speed rail By Janet Zink St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Related: As Florida says no, other states scramble for high-speed rail money Related: Reaction to Gov. Rick Scott's decision to reject rail money Never mind that the federal government was willing to pay nearly all the cost to build a high-speed rail line connecting Tampa to Orlando. Lawmakers seek way around Scott's rail decision By Ted Jackovics Tampa Tribune Related: Tampa leaders: Scott's rejection hurts area's recovery Gov. Rick Scott's rejection of $2.4 billion in federal high-speed rail funds stunned elected officials of both major parties Wednesday, prompting them to seek a statutory end-run on the governor's decision. Spread the nitrogen and pass the ammo By Howard Troxler St. Petersburg Times The law of our state currently says that each local government in Florida can adopt its own rules about the topic of…fertilizer. Rooney leads vote to defy Boehner, cancel fighter engine contract By George Bennett Palm Beach Post With an odd alliance between tea party Republicans and the Obama administration, the U.S. House today defied Speaker John Boehner and voted for an amendment by Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta, to cancel a $3 billion alternate fighter jet engine program. Congressional pay raises in sights of Buchanan, others By Rob Hotakainen and Lesley Clark Bradenton Herald Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state says it’s time to end the practice of giving automatic pay raises to members of Congress, who currently earn a minimum of $174,000 per year. POLITICAL RACES Rubio backs early Florida primary By Alexander Burns Politico Defenders of Florida's early primary date have a new ally with some serious clout: Marco Rubio. Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty says he'll decide on presidential run within six weeks By Michael C. Bender St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a likely Republican presidential candidate in 2012, urged Florida lawmakers on Wednesday to approve a bill to make it easier to fire public school teachers. ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY Poll shows Floridians don't want to pay for new water quality standards By Bruce Ritchie Florida Tribune With Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Herschel Vinyard possibly meeting this week with federal environmental officials, a new poll released Wednesday shows Floridians may not have an appetite for paying the cost of new federal water quality standards. EDUCATION Florida House unveils its teacher quality bill By Jeff Solochek St. Petersburg Times The Florida Senate is no longer the only game in Tallahassee in the state's ongoing debate about teacher contracts, evaluations and pay. Florida teacher salaries fall to No. 37, and appear to be sinking fast By Ron Matus St. Petersburg Times Florida teacher salaries continue to fall relative to other states. Senator wants school funding formula scrutinized By Gary Fineout Florida Tribune A South Florida senator wants to revive the battle over the state's complicated school funding formula. Florida looks at taking school textbooks completely digital by 2015 By Marlene Sokol and Jeffrey Solochek St. Petersburg Times Get ready to say goodbye to bulky books. JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY Change to veterans' nursing homes would eliminate roughly 1,000 jobs By Christine Jordan Sexton Florida Tribune One thousand state jobs would be eliminated under a move pushed by Gov. Rick Scott to create a public nursing home corporation for Florida veterans. Florida’s Insurance Sinkhole: No Hurricanes, 30 Percent Rate Hike By Ralph De La Cruz Florida Center for Investigative Reporting If these folks were my neighbors, I’d be calling the police. Welcome back: Florida tourism rebounds By Kevin McQuaid Sarasota Herald-Tribune Bolstered by gradual economic recovery and new attractions, tourism rebounded in Florida last year by 2.1 percent, the state's visitor agency reported Wednesday. HEALTH AND SENIORS State workers, get ready By Jim Saunders Health News Florida State employees have always described it as a trade-off: They work for lower pay than private-sector workers in return for good benefits -- including a generous health-insurance plan. Speaker calls suggestion that Florida drop out of Medicaid a "hazardous threat" By Christine Jordan Sexton Florida Tribune House Speaker Dean Cannon reacted warily to a suggestion from Senate Republicans that Florida may drop out of Medicaid, calling it a "hazardous threat" that could jeopardize negotiations with the federal government. Florida lawmakers want to penalize Medicaid recipients for not making healthy choices By Travis Pillow Florida Independent If you’re in Florida, and you’re on Medicaid, and you’re a smoker, now might be a good time to consider quitting. Governor Scott Ignites Battle Over Pill Mill Legislation By Dennis Maley Bradenton Times Governor Scott made waves this week when he proposed scrapping the state's prescription drug monitoring program, which was approved in 2009, while implementation has been delayed by a bid dispute currently before a judge in an administrative hearing. Pro-choice advocates say Trujillo bill threatens to “chip away” at Roe v. Wade By Marcos Restrepo Florida Independent House bill 321, the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, filed yesterday by state Rep. Carlos Trujillo, R-Miami, represents the first time the Florida legislature has filed a bill to restrict abortion beyond 20 weeks. The Right's War On Women The Progress Report Think Progress Yesterday on the House floor, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) blasted the Republican "anti-woman, anti-child agenda." JUSTICE AND THE COURTS Appellate court says prosecutor can stay on Sansom case By Tom McLaughlin Northwest Florida Daily News An appellate court has upheld a judge’s ruling allowing State Attorney Willie Meggs to remain as prosecutor in the criminal case against Ray Sansom, Bob Richburg and Jay Odom.