Daily Clips for September 21, 2011

PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS

Florida Grows Private-Sector Jobs While Government Work Withers
By Kenric Ward
Sunshine State News
Excerpt: "Is Rick Scott turning Florida into Rick Perry's Texas, where there are more low-wage workers than anywhere else in the nation? That's the question Floridians need to ask. There's a difference between hourly wage, no-benefits jobs and the kinds of jobs that help rebuild the middle class," Progress Florida executive director Mark Ferrulo said.

FEATURED STORIES

Another first for Rick Scott: leading the state GOP
By Michael C. Bender
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Related: Gov. Rick Scott's approval rate rises to 37 percent
To win a primary election one year ago, Gov. Rick Scott filled the mailboxes of Republican voters with embarrassing details about alleged money laundering and theft at the state party.

Gov. Rick Scott considering controversial legislative agenda
By Kathleen Haughney
Orlando Sentinel
Gov. Rick Scott has yet to formally roll out his 2012 legislative agenda, but documents from his office show that the first-term governor is looking at bills to abolish personal injury protection insurance, reform immigration laws, spend a dedicated amount of money in the classroom — and maybe give raises to state employees.

Rick Scott, GOP look at taking courts out of Florida foreclosure process
By Janet Zink
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
The push is on in Florida to cut the courts out of the foreclosure process.

Federal budget cuts could bleed Florida economy
By Steve Bousquet
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Reducing the federal deficit cuts both ways in Florida, because the state is so dependent on federal money.

Florida independent voters who supported Barack Obama in 2008 looking for another change
By Alex Leary and Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
If anyone should worry President Barack Obama, it's Marie Lane, a soft-spoken 27-year-old Walmart clerk with long brown hair and glasses.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Florida congressmen make ‘Most Corrupt’ list
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
Related: Judge shoots down motion to add Buchanan to FEC lawsuit
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington has released its annual report on the “most corrupt” members of Congress. Making the list for the third time is Florida’s own Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota.

Poll: Voters like Scott more, still not fond of his policies
Staff Report
Tampa Tribune
Efforts by Florida Gov. Rick Scott to soften his image seem to have helped make him more likeable with voters but haven't done much to change their view of his policies, a new poll shows.

Haridopolos taps his point man for PIP changes
By Christine Jordan Sexton
Florida Current
He did such a good job of handling the controversial Medicaid rewrite last year that Senate President Mike Haridopolos named Sen. Joe Negron the point man for what promises to be one of the more hot-button issues of the 2012 session: changes to personal injury protection (PIP) insurance.

A productive, long-awaited visit from Gov. Rick Scott
Editorial
Florida Times-Union
Gov. Rick Scott's visit to the editorial board of the Times-Union was greatly anticipated given his previous policy against such things.

POLITICAL RACES

Gov. Rick Scott leans toward early Florida primary
By Michael C. Bender and Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
Gov. Rick Scott has been clear about when he wants Florida's presidential primary: as early as possible without violating the Republican National Committee calendar and losing delegates to the convention in Tampa next year.

Obama reelection political director in Florida this weekend
By Marcos Restrepo
Florida Independent
Barack Obama’s reelection campaign is quietly working in Florida the same week the Conservative Political Action Conference will be held in Orlando.

Romney was darling of Florida donors, pre-Perry
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
Mitt Romney was the overwhelming favorite of Florida donors to GOP presidential candidates — at least before Texas Gov. Rick Perry threw his cowboy hat into the ring.

Florida lawmakers get briefed on security issues for 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa
By Janet Zink
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
With the 2012 Republican National Convention less then a year from its descent on Tampa, state lawmakers on Tuesday got a rundown from law enforcement agencies on security issues surrounding the event.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

The trouble with sprawl: You pay for it
By Scott Maxwell
Orlando Sentinel
Next week, the state's growth-planning agency will be demolished — and one of the greatest cons in the history of Florida politics will be complete.

DEP to propose statewide rule for key environmental permit
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection will propose a statewide rule to replace permitting rules that now vary among water management districts, a top DEP official told a House subcommittee on Tuesday.

LGBT

With Repeal Of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' An Era Ends
By Liz Halloran
NPR
The law that for almost 18 years has banned openly gay Americans from serving in the armed forces will be officially repealed Tuesday, nine months after Congress voted to end the Clinton-era edict.

Out and proud to serve
By Elisabeth Bumiller
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Now it can be told: A prominent gay rights advocate who called himself J. D. Smith is in fact 1st Lt. Josh Seefried, a 25-year-old active-duty Air Force officer.

Gays and lesbians claim unstoppable advance toward equality
By Anthony Man
South Florida Sun Sentinel
South Florida gays and lesbians cheered Tuesday's end of the "don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays serving openly in the military as a major advance, but they're uncertain if it will produce momentum for the next big issue on their agenda — gay marriage.

Opening eyes and hearts to gay adoptions
By Candy Olson
Tampa Tribune
In Florida today, nearly 2,000 children are living in what's nicely called "out of home care."

EDUCATION

School of Hard Financial Knocks
By Mc Nelly Torres
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
As part of the 2009 economic stimulus package, millions of federal dollars flowed to Florida’s public school districts.

Jeb Bush leads lively education debate in Orlando
By Leslie Postal
Orlando Sentinel
All the hot-button education issues — from merit pay to charter schools to virtual education — were on the menu today at a luncheon where former Gov. Jeb Bush and other education leaders debated the future of public schools in Florida.

South Florida public schools losing students as charter enrollment increases
By Laura Figueroa and Laura Isensee
Miami Herald
Student enrollment in Broward and Miami-Dade traditional public schools declined this year, a drop off fueled by the growing popularity of charter schools.

Florida sets tougher standards for VPK
By Mary Kelli Palka
Florida Times-Union
Florida is raising the bar for voluntary pre-kindergarten providers in the hopes of helping better prepare children for kindergarten.

Education Lawsuits: Teacher Torture Needless
Editorial
Lakeland Ledger
It is not the greatest time to be a teacher in Florida.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Incentives lure Time Warner to create 500 jobs in new Tampa-area center
By Katie Sanders, Richard Danielson and Jeff Harrington
St. Petersburg Times
Time Warner has pledged to create 500 jobs in Hillsborough County over the next five years, promising average salaries of $57,200.

Foreclosure mediation program's low rate of success leaves its future in doubt
By Kimberly Miller
Palm Beach Post
Florida's landmark mandatory foreclosure mediation program is under scrutiny by the state courts administrator because of its limited success.

Florida's pension plan drops $12B in three months amid global debt crisis
By Katie Sanders
Miami Herald
Florida's pension fund fell to $116.9 billion after a dismal August stretch, a drop of about $12 billion from the second quarter ending June 30.

Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty helps Citizens sinkhole rates settle at sane levels
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has brought some pragmatism to the firestorm over rate increases for sinkhole coverage provided by Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

Medicaid Reform Pilot extension faces hurdles
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
The Agency for Health Care Administration today told a Florida Senate health committee that the federal government has concerns over an absent medical loss ratio in Florida’s Medicaid Reform Pilot, as well as the future of Low Income Pool dollars in the state.

Lawmakers express continued frustration with DCF response in Barahona case
By Dara Kam
Palm Beach Post
Frustrated lawmakers grilled the head of Florida's Department of Children and Families Tuesday and expressed doubt about whether he's doing enough to make the state's children safer in the aftermath of the alleged Barahona child abuse case.

Pain pill use down, deaths up: study
By Brittany Davis
Health News Florida
The number of Floridians using oxycodone and other prescription narcotics declined from 2009 to 2010 even as deaths increased, according to a study released last week.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Latinos, blacks threaten legal action over Orange districts
By David Damron and Jeannette Rivera-Lyles
Orlando Sentinel
A coalition of black, Hispanic and Democratic activists complained Tuesday that Orange County's redistricting process so far has resulted in proposals that would weaken minority voting strength.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

Rep. Bernard: State prisons chief says Glades prison will close Dec. 1
By Dara Kam and Jennifer Sorentrue
Palm Beach Post
The state Department of Corrections has decided Glades Correctional Institution in Belle Glade will close Dec. 1, the state representative for the area said Tuesday, marking yet another blow to the already struggling region.