Daily News Clips for February 14, 2013

FEATURED STORIES

‘Big Gulp’ aside, Rubio himself was what was new in GOP response
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Does Florida Sen. Marco Rubio have the bipartisan appeal to succeed on the national stage?

Obama puts Florida back in the spotlight for election incompetence
By Laura Green
Palm Beach Post
Florida’s growing history of flawed elections regained national attention Tuesday when President Obama used the story of a 102-year-old former Belle Glade farmworker who waited hours to vote to highlight a new nonpartisan voting commission.

House panel approves election-law changes
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Current
Reacting to voter anger over long lines at polling places this past November, a House elections panel swiftly approved a four-part package Wednesday that will give Florida voters more days and places to cast early ballots.

"Parent Trigger" Fight Gears Up For Round Two
By Lynn Hatter 
WFSU Tallahassee
The so-called parent trigger bill is back again after a narrow defeat in the Florida Senate last year, when several Republicans joined with Democrats to vote against the measure, resulting in a tie.

Jim Greer pleaded guilty, but why?
By Lucy Morgan
Tampa Bay Times
For three years, former Republican Party of Florida chairman Jim Greer denied doing anything wrong and promised a trial that would embarrass a lot of people.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Dems want into the election-reform game
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
Emboldened by their 2012 victories, minority-party Florida Democrats are quietly muscling Republican legislative leaders to roll back a larger number of controversial changes made to election law in 2011 and blamed for last year's presidential election meltdown.

Gov. Rick Scott turns to lobbyists to help push his agenda
By Steve Bousquet
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
After winning election as an outsider in 2010, Gov. Rick Scott initially refused to invite lobbyists into his Capitol office (only their clients).

Former Gov. Jeb Bush talks immigration, bipartisanship at Saint Leo
By Adam C. Smith
Tampa Bay Times
Jeb Bush wouldn't say Wednesday night whether he's likely to run for president in 2016, but at Saint Leo University he did suggest a surprising role model for the sort of president he'd strive to be: Lyndon Johnson.

Come 2016, Sen. Rand Paul could be the anti-Rubio choice for tea party faithful
By James Rosen
Miami Herald
Sens. Marco Rubio’s and Rand Paul’s delivery of back-to-back rebuttals of President Barack Obama’s speech to Congress — Rubio as the Republican response, Paul as the tea party rejoinder — raises some tantalizing questions.

Rubio’s PAC offers $25 water bottles
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Making the most out of every opportunity — even a nationally televised bout of xerostomia and awkward lunge for a swig of water — Sen. Marco Rubio‘s Reclaim America PAC is offering Rubio water bottles to contributors who give at least $25.

Lawmakers take aim at limits on alimony payments
By Jim Saunders
News Service of Florida
After hearing sharply divided opinions from people who have been through divorces, a House panel Wednesday began moving forward with a controversial bill that would place new limits on alimony.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Demand that Scott, Legislature restore Florida’s rivers
By Bob Graham and Nathaniel P. Reed
Palm Beach Post
Recent reporting by Craig Pittman of The Tampa Bay Times and Kevin Spear of The Orlando Sentinel reveal the dramatic, widespread problems facing many of Florida’s rivers and springs.

Rising sea levels more than just South Florida’s costly problem, officials say
By John Kennedy
Palm Beach Post
South Florida lawmakers got a stark look Wednesday at how rising sea levels could dramatically change Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade counties and the Keys in coming years, leading to calls for more state aid to stem the tide.

Judge to rule on Transocean's plea deal over spill
By Michael Kunzelman
Associated Press
A federal judge was expected to decide Thursday whether to approve Transocean Ltd.'s agreement with the Justice Department to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge and pay $400 million in criminal penalties for its role in the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

DEP heads off Suwannee land swap controversy by moving to buy riverfront property
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection is working towards buying 608 acres in Madison County that the Suwannee River Water Management District had proposed acquiring through a swap for 670 acres in Twin Rivers State Forest.

LGBT

Lake County Board Is Doing Its Own Bullying
By Susan Clary
Florida Voices
Imagine if we could end bullying, if we could take away the pain and humiliation endured by kids who are teased and tormented by fellow classmates.

EDUCATION

Feds want answers from Florida after tutoring dollars go to crooks, cheaters
By Cara Fitzpatrick
Tampa Bay Times
Lax oversight of Florida's mandated tutoring program has allowed federal tax dollars to flow into the hands of cheaters and criminals, a Times investigation found.

Christian girls' reform home closes after Times investigation
By Alexandra Zayas
Tampa Bay Times
After years of allegations ranging from extreme discipline to rape, a Christian girls' reform home in the Panhandle is shutting its doors.

Fla. universities low on tuition, loan defaults
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
President Barak Obama's college scorecard shows Florida's state universities generally rank low for tuition, borrowing and loan defaults.

UF may take the lead in state's online degree project
By Joey Flechas
Gainesville Sun
State higher education leaders want to coordinate the university system's online education efforts, and the University of Florida might be leading the charge.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Firefighters: Retirement of FL Public Employees in Jeopardy
By Stephanie Carroll Carson
Public News Service Florida
A proposal to change the retirement benefits of public employees, such as teachers and firefighters, is gaining momentum in the Florida House of Representatives.

Study that faults health of local pension funds is criticized
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Gainesville Sun
A major study questioning the financial health of local governments' pension programs came under fire in a Florida House committee Wednesday, with one analyst saying it was "way off."

Rick Scott Wants to Double Economic Incentive Budget During Controversy Over Program’s Effectiveness
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
There is a big debate going on in Tallahassee about whether a state agency whose sole purpose is to create and keep jobs in Florida is doing its own job.

House panel passes bill increasing interest rates for small loans
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
A bill increasing the amount of interest charged by lenders for small loans cleared the House Insurance and Banking Subcommittee on Wednesday, despite concerns from one member that the bill is unnecessary.

Fla. Gov. to lead trade mission to Paris
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
Florida Gov. Rick Scott is heading on another trade mission, and this time he's going to Paris.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

Pros overwhelm cons in Medicaid expansion for Florida
Editorial
Bradenton Herald
The state of Florida should accept Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act as more evidence comes to light indicating the positives outweigh the negatives.

Thrasher to AHCA: Resolve DRG dispute or lawmakers will
By James Call
Florida Current
It’s either a standardization of payment of services that rewards efficiencies in a $3 billion program or it’s a reckless reimbursement plan that will shred Florida’s “safety-net” hospitals: teaching hospitals, children’s hospitals and nonprofit hospitals that serve the poor.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

After sharp questioning, House Democrats call prison privatization "a shell game"
By James Call
Florida Current
Democratic members of the House Justice Appropriations Subcommittee fired a series of questions Wednesday about privatization efforts at the Department of Corrections. 

DOC Hopes To Get Prison Budget Deficit Of $95M Down To Zero By June
By Sascha Cordner      
WFSU Tallahassee
The Florida Department of Corrections is aiming to further reduce its budget deficit of $95 million with the help of Governor Rick Scott.

Florida's Prison Privatization Isn't Paradise
By Rick Outzen
Florida Voices
In his fiscal year 2014 budget, Gov. Rick Scott proposes to eliminate 2,355 jobs by privatizing health services for state prisoners.