UCF has launched a national research center focused on finding big-picture solutions to threats facing coastal communities.
In 2017, federal and local governments in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico spent more than $284 billion to deal with the impact of hurricanes and flooding, according to NOAA.
“There’s a perfect storm coming,” said Graham Worthy, UCF biologist and director of the National Center for Integrated Coastal Research. “We’ve already seen some of it. With economic constraints, environmental threats and extreme weather events becoming more and more common, now is the time to look at how we develop resilient communities that aren’t constantly in expensive recovery mode.”
While many institutions are studying ways to help coastal communities, UCF’s center is unique by bringing together dozens of experts including biologists, economics, medical care professionals, social scientists, engineers and emergency management personnel to come up with long-term solutions that incorporate multiple disciplines.
“As a biologist, I may find a solution to a water quality issue,” Worthy said. “But I don’t know the economic impact, or whether my solution may create another issue for emergency management or maybe there’s a social impact I haven’t even thought of. By having experts in all these areas together we will begin speaking the same language and come up with solutions that are big picture, and that’s the kind of solutions we need as a society.”
And while some may argue that people who live on the coast know the risks, the threats impact residents living hundreds and even thousands of miles away.
In Florida, much of the economy relies on tourism with people going to the beaches and theme parks. But sea-level rise would harm beaches and it may no longer be a draw to tourists resulting in fewer dollars coming to the state. The coast is connected to rivers and streams. Sea-level rise could also impact water quality, resulting in negative impacts to agricultural production, cattle production and even ecotourism businesses that rely on rivers.
The center, housed on the main UCF campus, includes more than 40 faculty members. The center’s researchers are pursuing multiple partnerships with national and international groups to expand its work. Claire Knox, a UCF public administration associate professor, will focus on environmental and emergency management plans and policies. She provides the connection between coastal science and policy making.
“Specifically, my research in Louisiana and Florida concludes that many land use plans lack a hazard mitigation element and are not being fully implemented,” Knox said. “Our environmental policies say one thing, yet do another. Both practices have led to a disjoined effort to restore Louisiana’s coastal wetlands and Florida Everglades ecosystem.”
The problems facing Florida are similar to those found in other states and countries that have coastlines, so the faculty expect that the solutions they develop may become national models. Knox is just one of many faculty who conduct research outside the state of Florida.
“As a Cajun from coastal Louisiana, coastal is personal. It means home,” Knox said, “A home comprised of coastal wetlands that we are losing at a rate of a football field every 45 minutes. This increases the vulnerability of coastal communities, displaces multiple unique cultures, and includes the relocation of the U.S. first climate change refugees at Isle de Jean Charles.”
Senate Committee Moves Predatory Payday Lending Product Forward
Consumer, Faith and Civil Rights Groups Strongly
Oppose The Bill Legalizing a New 200% Interest Loan
Despite strong and vocal opposition to predatory payday lending from consumer, faith, seniors, civil rights and community organizations, a Florida senate committee approved a new predatory product today, just days into the new session.
The Banking and Insurance Committee heard testimony on the bill backed by payday lenders AMSCOT and Advance America, voting in favor of advancing the bill.
Senators voting for 200% APR payday loans were: Senators Flores, Steube, Bracy, Bradley, Braynon, Broxson, Gainer, Grimsely, and Thurston.
We are thankful to Senators Garcia and Taddeo for their votes opposing the payday lenders’ dangerous bill.
Payday lenders are lobbying aggressively, attempting to drown out the voices of individuals and groups who understand the harmful impact of a business model based on trapping people in repeat, triple-digit interest rate loans.
The Florida Alliance of Consumer Protection spoke for many groups today in asking the senators to reject the proposal. The coalition calls on the House Insurance and Banking subcommittee to reject matching bill HB 857 when that bill comes before them on Wednesday.
SB 920/HB 857 would authorize up to 208% annual interest rates for loans that are larger and have longer terms than the payday loans Florida law currently allows. The senate committee that heard testimony is chaired by Senator Anitere Flores, and the bill is co-sponsored by Senator Oscar Braynon II and Senator Rob Bradley. HB 857 will be heard in the house subcommittee chaired by Rep. Danny Burgess and sponsored by Rep. J.W. Grant and Rep. Janet Cruz.
“I am extremely disappointed in those Senators who supported a bill today that negatively impacts Black and Brown people in this state. They voted against the interest of Black and Brown people. There are too few people who have too much power to impact the lives of too many people with no power, when you define power as having the money needed to control the outcome. But, I have great faith, that before the end of this legislative session that enough people without money will demonstrate the power of faith.” says Rev. James T. Golden, social action director of the AME Church in Florida, who spent time talking with the Senators about his concerns.
The FL NAACP, the FL AARP, Florida Veterans for Common Sense, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Florida, the League of Southeastern Credit Unions are among the many groups who oppose legalizing a product that would snare borrowers in a debt trap even deeper and more damaging than traditional payday loans.
“Florida is already flooded with harmful, debt trap loans. The payday lenders believe they can sneak this one in, but we’re not having it,” said Alice Vickers, director of the Florida Alliance of Consumer Protection. “Loans that are designed to trap people in long-term debt at triple-digit interest rates are counter to what any person or group wants if they have the best interests of Floridians at heart. Payday lenders, unfortunately, are not among those groups.”
SB 920/HB 857 would allow payday lenders to make loans up to $1,000 with terms of 60 to 90 days. Research documents that these longer-term loans create the same cycle of repeat loans that traditional payday loans create, making borrowers worse off than when they took the first loan. Payday borrowers often experience multiple overdraft fees that end in closed bank accounts and even bankruptcy. They are often unable to keep up with other bills once caught in the costly cycle of debt.
The coalition supports a bill that would stop the cycle of harmful debt through a rate cap of 30%. Reform passed in 2001 failed to stop the cycle of debt that payday lending intentionally creates. Payday lenders obtain 75% of their revenue from customers caught in 10 loans per year. Over 83% of loans go to people with seven or more loans per year, and the payday lenders suck $311 million annually out of our state’s economy – from those who need those dollars the most.
Faith groups marched for an end to payday lending abuse last October in a prayer walk in St. Petersburg.
Legal aid offices and credit unions also oppose predatory payday lending in Florida.
For more information about payday loans in Florida visit stopthedebttrapflorida.org
North Fort Myers man gets early birthday present playing FLORIDA LOTTO®
The Florida Lottery announces that Raymond Cromley, of North Fort Myers, claimed the $11 million FLORIDA LOTTO® jackpot from the drawing held on January 3, 2018, at Florida Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee.
Cromley, who claimed the prize one day before his birthday, chose to receive the winnings as a one-time, lump-sum payment of $7,678,421.67. The jackpot-winning FLORIDA LOTTO ticket was purchased from Winn-Dixie, located at 5690 Bayshore Road in North Fort Myers. The retailer received a bonus commission of $70,000 for selling the jackpot-winning FLORIDA LOTTO ticket.
Total ticket sales for this series of FLORIDA LOTTO rollovers generated more than $12.6 million for the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF).
The next FLORIDA LOTTO drawing will be held tomorrow, January 17, 2018, at 11:15 p.m. ET, with a $3.5 million jackpot. FLORIDA LOTTO drawings are broadcast on 17 carrier stations throughout the state. Drawings are also available for viewing on the Florida Lottery website. Winning numbers are available on the Lottery website, at retailers statewide and by phone at (850) 921-PLAY.
Senator Campbell’s DACA Memorial to Congress Passes First Senate Committee
Democratic Senator Daphne Campbell’s bill urging the US Congress to protect children of immigrants living in the states under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA) passed its first committee of reference today.
“DREAMers are under protected status,” Senator Campbell (D-Miami) testified in the Senate Children, Families, and Elder Affairs Committee, using the acronym commonly associated with these immigrants. “They have been brought to the US by their parents, they have established a life of their own, they have had their own children, they are working and paying taxes, they are contributing to the US economy. Why send them back to a country that they have never known?
“Would we be having this discussion if these kids came from Norway or a similar county where most of the inhabitants are white?”
Senator Campbell’s measure, SM 882, calls on Congress to preserve DACA. The program, begun under President Barack Obama in 2012, allows immigrants who came to the United States as children to apply for temporary residence and eligibility for a work permit in this country. Last September, President Donald Trump abruptly rescinded the program, but deferred full implementation of the rescission until March 5, 2018, kicking the resolution of the issue to Congress.
Almost 800,000 immigrants qualified under DACA, including 50,216 in Florida. Requirements included arrival in the U.S. prior to the age of 16, and ongoing residence since June 15, 2007.
“By sending this message to Washington DC, we are urging Congress to put its foolishness aside and pass the DACA for these children so they can stay here and they don’t have to be deported,” Senator Campbell told the committee. “We are the ones who have the voices. They are the voiceless.”
The committee passed SM 882 on a 3-2 vote. The bill goes next to the Judiciary Committee.
Senator Campbell's DACA Memorial to Congress Passes First Senate Committee
Democratic Senator Daphne Campbell’s bill urging the US Congress to protect children of immigrants living in the states under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA) passed its first committee of reference today.
“DREAMers are under protected status,” Senator Campbell (D-Miami) testified in the Senate Children, Families, and Elder Affairs Committee, using the acronym commonly associated with these immigrants. “They have been brought to the US by their parents, they have established a life of their own, they have had their own children, they are working and paying taxes, they are contributing to the US economy. Why send them back to a country that they have never known?
“Would we be having this discussion if these kids came from Norway or a similar county where most of the inhabitants are white?”
Senator Campbell’s measure, SM 882, calls on Congress to preserve DACA. The program, begun under President Barack Obama in 2012, allows immigrants who came to the United States as children to apply for temporary residence and eligibility for a work permit in this country. Last September, President Donald Trump abruptly rescinded the program, but deferred full implementation of the rescission until March 5, 2018, kicking the resolution of the issue to Congress.
Almost 800,000 immigrants qualified under DACA, including 50,216 in Florida. Requirements included arrival in the U.S. prior to the age of 16, and ongoing residence since June 15, 2007.
“By sending this message to Washington DC, we are urging Congress to put its foolishness aside and pass the DACA for these children so they can stay here and they don’t have to be deported,” Senator Campbell told the committee. “We are the ones who have the voices. They are the voiceless.”
The committee passed SM 882 on a 3-2 vote. The bill goes next to the Judiciary Committee.
Attorney General Bondi’s Statement on Passage of SB 8 by the Senate Committee on Health Policy
Attorney General Pam Bondi today issued the following statement on the unanimous approval of SB 8 by the Senate Committee on Health Policy:
“Our fight against the national opioid crisis claiming lives in Florida continues, and this legislation would help bolster state efforts and save lives. I want to thank Senator Lizbeth Benacquisto for sponsoring this important legislation and each member of the Senate Committee on Health Policy for voting in favor of these legislative reforms. We look forward to continue working with the House and Senate to ensure the passage of this legislation.”
All Aboard Florida/Brightline’s Risks Becoming a Reality: Three Pedestrians Killed Before Service Even Begins
Deaths highlight need for High Speed Rail Safety Measures Now
The deaths of three women in three separate incidents, in which they were stuck by AAF/Brightline High Speed Trains between July 2017 and last Friday, January 12, 2018, clearly demonstrate the urgent need to reconsider the safety measures that will be necessary to protect pedestrians and motorists across Florida.
Between 2011 and 2017, data collected by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Rail Administration shows that there have been a total of 105 deaths, over 350 miles of Florida East Coast Railway tracks. With the AAF/Brightline deaths, that number is now at least 108.
Citizens Against Rail Expansion in Florida (CARE FL), along with Martin County and Indian River County, have continued to express concerns about inadequate safety measures in place along the rail corridor where there are approximately 350 at grade crossings. The most recent death reportedly involved a 32-year-old woman, Melissa Lavell, who was ducking under a guard rail when she was struck and killed by the Brightline train that was making its inaugural trip with VIP passengers. The women killed in the earlier incidents were 35-year-old Jennifer Reed and a teenager whose name was not reported.
“First and foremost, we express our deepest condolences to the family members of all three victims,” said Brent Hanlon, Chairman of CARE FL. “This is exactly why we are fighting for our communities. Enough is enough. We need safety measures in place that will protect our pedestrians, our school children who may walk or bike along the tracks to school, our first responders and members of our community. AAF continues to tout its commitment to safety, but three deaths during test runs indicate something is seriously wrong.”
“How many more deaths or injuries will it take before AAF acknowledges the need for enhanced safety measures?” added Hanlon.
In December 2017, an Amtrak train making its inaugural trip in Washington State derailed, killing at least 3 people and injuring about 100. Speed was a factor which is why AAF’s high-speed passenger train gives us pause in Florida where it is expected to exceed 110 miles per hour as it transports passengers across the state.
And this is why CARE FL is supporting two very important bills that have been filed for the 2018 Legislative Session. Sen. Debbie Mayfield has once again filed her High Speed Passenger Rail Safety bill SB 572 that would require protections be put in place to prevent similar accidents from taking place. The bill would also ensure that affected counties would not be held responsible for the costs of the safety upgrades.
Representatives Erin Grall and Mary Lynn Magar have also filed a similar bill HB 525 that would address the cost of upgrades.
We stand with our local elected leaders of Martin County and Indian River County who, along with CARE FL members, have continued to fight to protect the safety and well-being of our residents.
CARE FL plans to host an informational meeting on Monday, January 29 at the Lyric Theatre in downtown Stuart. The meeting will give CARE FL an opportunity to provide community members with new information and to answer any questions they may have about the ill-conceived rail project.
The meeting is scheduled to kick-off at 7 p.m. and will feature the following speakers:
- Brent Hanlon, Chairman of the CARE FL Steering Committee,
- Steve Ryan, McDermott, Will & Emery, CARE FL attorney,
- Bob Crandall, CARE FL Steering Committee member and former CEO of American Airlines.
Sen. Steube and Rep. La Rosa File Bills to Protect Private Property Rights
SB 1400 and HB 773 Statewide Regulation for Vacation Rentals
Senator Greg Steube (R-Sarasota) and Representative Mike La Rosa (R-St. Cloud) today highlighted SB 1400 and HB 773 which aim to protect private property rights of vacation rental owners who have been unfairly targeted by a growing number of local regulations. Over the last several years local governments have attempted to restrict or outright ban vacation rentals – in violation of Florida state law.
“It is extremely disconcerting to hear stories from my constituents and other homeowners from across that state who are being targeted by their very own local officials for choosing to rent out their homes,” said Sen. Steube. “I believe this is nothing more than an effort by the hotel industry to put an end to vacation rentals which are a vital part of Florida’s tourism economy.”
An increasing number of local governments have recently been passing onerous regulations and some have even gone as far as fining private property owners for violating local ordinances to the tune of $20,000 a day.
“I believe that all private property owners should be treated equally, regardless of whether they choose to rent out their homes for one day, one month or one year,” said Rep. La Rosa. “Vacation rentals reflect both an industry and a travel experience that has existed in Florida for decades – long before popular online platforms such as Airbnb and HomeAway even existed. Vacation rentals give property owners a chance to earn additional income while driving tourists to local businesses in the community.”
Joining Sen. Steube and Rep. La Rosa at today’s event were members of the Florida Vacation Rental Management Association, the Airbnb host community, and HomeAway and its homeowners. The groups traveled to the Capitol to express their support for SB 1400 and HB 773 and to meet with legislators from their districts urging them to also support these private property rights measures as well.
According to a 2013 study commissioned by the Florida Vacation Rental Management Association, Economic Impact: Florida’s Vacation Rental Industry, vacation rentals have become a boon to the economy, infusing more than $31.1 billion from an estimated 17 million vacation rental visitors that year. The study also found that Florida’s vacation rental industry directly or indirectly supports over 320,000 jobs annually, generating more than $12 billion a year in labor income.
With the growth in popularity of online vacation rental platforms, those numbers are likely to have significantly increased in recent years, and for a state that relies heavily on sales tax revenue, that economic impact is significant.
It is also important to note that the growth of vacation rentals is occurring in parallel to hotel growth. According to Visit Florida, hotels throughout the state continue to see strong growth in revenue, pricing and occupancy. This suggests vacation rentals are introducing Florida to new visitors.
Senate Bill 1400 and House Bill 773 merely ensures private property owners are treated equally across the state regardless if they rent their home on a short-term basis, long term basis, or don’t rent at all.
For more information or to track the bills, visit myfloridahouse.gov and flsenate.gov.
UT Holding Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service Jan. 20
University of Tampa students, faculty and staff will honor the legacy of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a day of service to the Tampa Bay community on Saturday, Jan. 20.
“Through the PEACE Volunteer Center’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service students get the opportunity to celebrate Dr. King’s dedication to activism by participating in community service in the Tampa Bay area,” said Liz Ho Sing Loy-Keiler ’19, a student coordinator in UT’s PEACE Volunteer Center.
Ho Sing Loy-Keiler said just as Dr. King’s activism continues to inspire many, the PEACE Volunteer Center also hopes to inspire new UT students and introduce them to the importance of activism and volunteerism.
Participants will volunteer their time and energy at several area nonprofits, including:
Keeping Tampa Bay Beautiful
Project location TBD
Contact: Moira Foley, [email protected]
Metropolitan Ministries
2002 N. Florida Ave., Tampa
Contact: Maria Mitchell, [email protected]
Tampa Bay Harvest: Sustainable Living Project
918 W. Sligh Ave., Tampa
Contact: Georgea, [email protected] or (813) 230-7437
Plant City Commons Community Garden
2001 E. Cherry St., Plant City
Contact: Karen Elizabeth, [email protected]
Zaksee Bird Sanctuary
7647 Gardner Road, Tampa
Contact: Magic, [email protected]
Habitat for Humanity of Hillsborough County Florida Inc.
Silvermill Plaza Restore
Contact: Victoria Richards, [email protected] or (813) 239-2242
The event begins at 9 a.m. with registration in the Vaughn Center Courtyard (rain location is Vaughn Center Reeves Theater). Volunteers will then travel by van to a volunteer location.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service is organized by UT’s PEACE Volunteer Center. For more information, email [email protected] or call (813) 253-6263.
Bradenton Man Sentenced for Role in Investment Fraud Scheme
The Office of Financial Regulation today announced that Terrance Taylor was recently sentenced to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for his role in an investment fraud scheme. He was also ordered to pay more than $3 million in restitution to his victims.
Commissioner Drew J. Breakspear said, “I thank the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida for their assistance in this case. The Office of Financial Regulation will continue to work with state and federal partners to bring financial criminals to justice.”
Taylor, along with co-defendant Timothy Roberts, sold stock in Savtira Corporation, Inc., a Ybor City based company, which purportedly offered a centralized, cloud-based shopping cart platform for online and traditional retailers to sell goods. They lured victim investors by making false claims and misrepresentations about the company’s profitability, alleged contracts and ownership of patents. The investigation revealed that the stock certificates were essentially worthless and the victims’ money was used for personal expenses.
