Daily Clips for February 25, 2011

FEATURED STORIES Gov. Rick Scott is done with high-speed rail; advocates explore court challenge By Alex Leary, Bill Varian and Janet Zink St. Petersburg Times Related: Facts don't faze Scott's world Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday rejected a plan for a coalition of local governments to take over a controversial high-speed rail project but advocates were exploring ways to challenge him in court. Florida's new GOP attorney general aims to undo automatic restoration of felons' rights By Dara Kam and John Kennedy Palm Beach Post In a shocker for civil rights advocates and Democrats, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Thursday she wants to undo Florida's limited automatic restoration of rights for felons who have completed the terms of their sentences. Colleagues scold Haridopolos for ethics violation By Jim Ash Florida Capital News The Rules Committee voted unanimously this afternoon to admonish one of its own, Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, for mistakes in his financial disclosure forms. Florida, 24 states want to stop implementing health reform now Associated Press Tampa Tribune Florida and 25 other states suing to stop President Barack Obama's health care overhaul say in a new legal filing that they should be allowed to stop following the law immediately. FLORIDA POLITICS Critics blast Scott for not budging on high-speed train By Dan Tracy and Aaron Deslatte Orlando Sentinel Gov. Rick Scott refused to budge Thursday on his earlier decision to kill a high-speed train between Orlando and Tampa, triggering an onslaught of criticism from backers of the $2.7 billion project. Senate President Mike Haridopolos admonished in ethics case, apologizes By Marc Caputo St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos was formally admonished by his own Rules Committee on Thursday for failing to accurately disclose his finances on state ethics forms. Haridopolos: One way or another, state should create prescription drug database By Travis Pillow Florida Independent Gov. Rick Scott has opposed creating a database intended to help the state crack down on pill mills, citing privacy and cost concerns. Scott overstepped on planes By Aaron Sharockman St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald PolitiFact Related: J.D. Alexander demands Scott turn over public records on state plane sale The checks have been cashed, and the planes are gone, but that isn't stopping state Senate budget Chairman J.D. Alexander from continuing to question Gov. Rick Scott over his authority to unload the official state aircraft. Hispanic and Black Dems to sue over redistricting lawsuit By Janet Zink St. Petersburg Times As if the once-a-decade process of redistricting wasn’t complicated enough, there’s a new wrinkle: At least five black and Hispanic Democrats from Tampa Bay and South Florida are filing a court motion soon to ensure that the voter-approved “Fair Districts” amendment becomes law. Rep. David Rivera says his 'official conduct most transparent of any member of Congress' Staff Report Naples Daily News Will freshman District 25 U.S. House member David Rivera of Miami survive three criminal investigations in Miami-Dade? BALLOT INITIATIVES Political action committee wants to eliminate permits ‘for any manner of bearing arms in Florida’ By Marcos Restrepo Florida Independent Florida Ballot Initiative, a political action committee led by Jupiter’s Richard Antolinez, is seeking to gather enough signatures to place a constitutional amendment on the 2012 ballot that would dictate that “no permit shall be required” to bear arms in Florida. ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY Scientists investigating dolphin deaths in gulf say BP oil spill is possible cause By Craig Pittman St. Petersburg Times Usually, a few dead dolphins wash ashore along gulf beaches in the first few months of the year. Some are killed by Red Tide or other toxic algae blooms, some by diseases, some by cold. Anti-regulation zealots jeopardize environment By Ron Littlepage Florida Times-Union Florida's environment - the very heart and soul of our state - is under attack. LGBT Gay-rights advocates protest antigay activist's appointment to county board By Kim Wilmath St. Petersburg Times Hundreds of people this week wrote to Hillsborough County commissioners protesting the December appointment of antigay rights advocate Terry Kemple to the county's Board of Human Relations. EDUCATION Machen proposes 30 percent tuition hike By Nathan Crabbe Gainesville Sun University of Florida President Bernie Machen said Thursday that a 30 percent increase to undergraduate tuition might be needed to get through possible state budget cuts. JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY With officers' deaths adding emotion, modified pension reform bill proposed By Mary Ellen Klas St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau A Senate committee proposed a modified bill Thursday that focuses more on shoring up the Florida Retirement System and less on using the savings to close the state budget gap. Associated Industries leader takes aim at state's pension plan By Bill Cotterell Florida Capital News The head of Florida's major business organization bluntly told legislators Thursday state employees should "have some skin in the game" with pension payments put into investment accounts — and consider themselves lucky to have jobs. Haridopolos: Under modified revenue cap, lawmakers would have flexibility By Travis Pillow Florida Independent Senate President Mike Haridopolos responded Wednesday to criticism of the “Smart Cap” proposal he plans to pass during the first week of the upcoming legislative session. Town hall 'rage' over spending By Marin Cogan Politico The two town halls couldn’t have been any more different — one a blue-jeans-and-ball-cap affair, rowdy and filled-to-capacity near an impoverished urban strip — the other a smaller confab of polo-shirt-and-Bermuda-shorts clad seniors in a sleek conference room outside Orlando. Cannon on internet sales tax: Complicated issue, probably for feds By Scott Maxwell Orlando Sentinel In penning part of today’s follow-up column on the Internet sales tax, I was struck by how many business owners had already taken their concerns to state legislators. Shuttle Discovery Lifts Off on Final Mission Associated Press Lakeland Ledger Discovery, the world's most traveled spaceship, thundered into orbit for the final time Thursday, heading toward the International Space Station on a journey that marks the beginning of the end of the shuttle era. HEALTH AND SENIORS Key House chair targets database By Jim Saunders Health News Florida House Health and Human Services Chairman Rob Schenck does not like Florida's prescription-drug database. That much is clear. Future of prescription drug monitoring database headed for legislative battle By Janet Zink St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau The future of a database to help fight Florida's prescription drug abuse epidemic appears headed for a battle in the state Legislature. Hastings amendment to support AIDS Drug Assistance Programs passes By Marcos Restrepo Florida Independent An amendment supported by Democratic U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Fort Lauderdale, to increase funding for AIDS Drug Assistance Programs was passed last Friday as part of the continuing resolution for federal spending. Fewer Florida nurses have bachelor's degrees, study finds By Diane Chun Gainesville Sun Nurses in Florida are falling behind the rest of the country in terms of education, and that could be bad news for patients, a new University of Florida study suggests. State budget: Protecting kids Editorial Florida Times-Union Florida should not balance its budget on the backs of its children. CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES Attorney General Pam Bondi wants to stop automatic restoration of civil rights By Steve Bousquet St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Attorney General Pam Bondi says it is too easy for felons to regain their civil rights in Florida and will urge new restrictions, including a waiting period of up to five years before they can seek clemency. Gadsden County government embroiled in race plot scandal By Lucy Morgan St. Petersburg Times White Gadsden County officials successfully conspired to remove or demote every black supervisor in county government, multiple lawsuits claim. Shooting off his mouth Editorial Pensacola News Journal Imagine how University of West Florida President Judy Bense felt this week when she woke up to find her campus portrayed as a crime scene. JUSTICE AND THE COURTS Proposed bills would eliminate mandatory sentencing for drug trafficking By Marcos Restrepo Florida Independent Two bills filed in the Florida legislature this week would eliminate mandatory sentencing for trafficking in marijuana, cocaine, heroin and other controlled substances like methamphetamine. Herald sues DCF for records in case of abused twins By Diana Moskovitz Miami Herald The Miami Herald sued the Department of Children & Families Thursday, seeking records the agency has refused to release about a call made to its abuse hotline days before adopted twins were found — one dead, the other with severe chemical burns — in a truck on the side of Interstate 95.