Attorney General Pam Bondi today released the following statement regarding the Florida Supreme Court’s ruling in Aramis Donell Ayala v. Rick Scott:
“Today’s Florida Supreme Court decision is a tremendous victory for victims and their loved ones. As my Solicitor General argued, the Governor has every right to reassign these cases to prosecutors who will uphold the laws of our great state. This year, we have seen the brutal murders of law enforcement officers in State Attorney Aramis Ayala’s circuit, and her unconscionable decision to never seek the death penalty will not be tolerated. The governor and I will continue to do all we can to protect our citizens.”
The League of Women Voters of Florida announced on Thursday that Marty Monroe has accepted the position of lobbyist for the upcoming 2018 legislative session. Marty Monroe
LWV Florida president Pamela Goodman stated, “Marty brings a treasure chest of League knowledge and a great background of skilled advocacy to the League of Women Voters of Florida. She is passionate and professional, and will represent us with grace, wit, facts, and force in Tallahassee. We are honored to welcome her to our team.”
Monroe stated, “I am delighted to be a part of this team of dedicated, tireless, and very focused advocates for good government and great outcomes for our citizens of Florida.”
Marty attended public schools in College Park/Orlando, graduated from Tusculum College with an undergraduate degree, and completed her graduate work at Florida State University. She lived for a short time in Ft. Myers, and returned to Tallahassee to work for several statewide campaigns. She also took a part-time job lobbying on behalf of the Florida Association on Aging/Florida Council on Aging.
Early in her career, she worked in the Florida Department of Education as a regional coordinator. While working with School Boards around the state, she was introduced to curriculum publishing companies.
Marty was recruited to work as a Sales Representative for Scott Foresman/Addison Wesley and later for Glencoe McGraw-Hill. She led the nation in sales for a newly formed division of Glencoe McGraw-Hill, which sold curriculum software/testing. Marty exceeded sales goals, receiving company leadership awards such as the Pacesetter Award.
She had another opportunity to work for a leading national integrated software curriculum company, Compass Learning. As an Account Executive, she met multiple territory expectations in the first year to join the Million Dollar Club.
As the software market expanded, Marty accepted the challenge of opening a new market in Alabama for Scientific Learning, a neurological intervention software company. In her initial year she generated over a half a million in sales and services.
Marty’s most recent sales position involved large enterprise sales solutions. She served as the Southeast Sales Account Manager for Educational Solutions Development, which provided administrative software for school systems nationwide. She oversaw installation of multiple year sales contracts totaling over $20 million.
Marty has been a member of the League of Women Voters for many years. She has served on the local board, and most recently served as interim executive director of the LWVFL.
The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
The Board of Governors discussed a progress report of the State University System’s gains
toward its Strategic Plan Goals and heard from a Think Florida: A Higher Degree for
Business panel about the role universities can play in helping start-up companies succeed.
Reaffirming its commitment to accountability and efficiency, the Board of Governors this week advanced several initiatives to promote excellent student outcomes and ensure the State University System is meeting its Strategic Plan goals.
The Board discussed a progress report on the System’s achievements, which showed the System is on track to meet or surpass its goals on retention and graduation rates, degrees in areas of strategic emphasis and more. In the 2015-16 academic year, 86 percent of first-time-in-college students met the System standard for retention– an increase of 7 percentage points since 2005-2006. Similarly, over the past five years, four-year graduation rates have increased by 10 percent and six-year graduation rates have increased to rank Florida second among the 10 largest states. Meanwhile, the System has reached its goal four years early of meeting Florida’s demand for degrees in strategic areas, including STEM.
“Due to performance funding and other accountability initiatives, the State University System’s progress in recent years has truly been remarkable,” said Tom Kuntz, Board of Governors Chair. “We’ve seen nearly across-the-board improvement on several quality indicators, and we have every reason to believe our momentum will continue.”
During the meeting, the Board also received a visit from Senate President Joe Negron, who discussed his recently filed Senate Bill 4 and his commitment to the State University System and to students.
Additionally ,the Board also hosted a Think Florida: A Higher Degree for Business panel, which focused on the role that universities can play in boosting start-up companies. Panelists were Helena Cowley, CEO of Captozyme, and Sue Washer, CEO of AGTC, both of which develop therapies to treat various medical conditions, as well as UF Vice President for Research David Norton.
Chancellor Marshall Criser III, who moderated the discussion, also presented on the Board of Governors’ new ‘concierge’ website, which provides a single portal to recruit from all 12 public universities.
“Through Think Florida: A Higher Degree for Business, the Board of Governors is actively striving to learn more about the needs of our businesses and meet them where they are,” said Chancellor Criser. “We are using the feedback we receive from the business community to make sure our students are ready for the workforce and to provide the services that will help our businesses thrive.”
Additional meeting highlights include:
University of West Florida, University of Central Florida, Florida A&M University and Florida State University presented their Strategic Plans to the Board for approval.
The Board approved its 2018-2019 Legislative Budget Request, with a focus on performance funding and key System or state initiatives.
For more information, consult the meeting’s official minutes at http://www.flbog.edu/. The Board’s next meeting is scheduled for November 8-9 at the University of Central Florida in Orlando.
There’s still time to remove lionfish and win prizes by participating in the 2017 Lionfish Challenge. The statewide lionfish removal incentive program will come to a close Sept. 4. The winners, also known as the Lionfish King/Queen (recreational category) and the Commercial Champion, will be crowned at the Lionfish Safari in St. Petersburg at 4 p.m. Sept. 9. Join Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) staff along with Lionfish Safari organizer Reef Monitoring, as we celebrate these amazing lionfish hunters at the North Straub Park, 400 Bay Shore Drive NE.
Competition is fierce. The 100 recreational and commercial participants have removed more than 12,300 lionfish so far (just over 6,000 recreationally and just under 6,000 commercially) and have received prizes ranging from T-shirts, tumblers and heat packs to ZombieStickz Lionfish Eliminator and Neritic pole spears, Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium gift bags and ZooKeeper Lionfish Containment Units. Lionfish Challenge winners will be given a custom-made FishBone Design trophy and a No Shoes Reefs limited edition Engel 85 cooler.
The FWC’s Lionfish Challenge started on Lionfish Removal and Awareness Day, May 20.
To enter, participants register online at MyFWC.com/Lionfish and submit their harvest of 25 lionfish (or 25 pounds commercially).
The more lionfish you enter, the more prizes you will receive.
Think you have what it takes to be crowned the next Lionfish King/Queen or Commercial Champion? Sign up and learn more today at MyFWC.com/Lionfish.
Learn more about the Lionfish Safari at ReefMonitoring.org by scrolling over “Event Page” and clicking on “Lionfish Safari.”
Also, be sure to check out the new and improved Reef Rangers website at ReefRangers.com, which will be launched Sept. 5.
Today, August 31st, Governor Rick Scott will announce his appointment for Hillsborough County Sheriff following Sheriff David Gee’s retirement. WHAT: Press Conference WHEN: 4:15 PM WHERE: Boys & Girls Club of Tampa Bay
Freddie Solomon Club at Nuccio Park
4805 East Sligh Avenue
Tampa, Florida 33610
The Florida Lottery’s new and exciting Fast Play game, CORNHOLE CASH™, goes on sale tomorrow, Friday, September 1. At just $2 per ticket, CORNHOLE CASH offers top prizes of $10,000. Fast Play game tickets print on-demand from the Lottery terminal, and can be played immediately. If the ticket is a winner, the prize can be claimed instantly! Fast Play can be purchased at the Lottery’s more than 13,000 retailers statewide.
“Fast Play is an innovative way to enhance the Lottery’s lineup of games while creating more winning moments for Florida players,” said Florida Lottery Secretary Jim Poppell. “Just like with every Florida Lottery game, Fast Play comes with the added benefit of generating additional funding for Florida’s education system.”
Players can visit a Florida Lottery retailer and ask for a Fast Play ticket for the CORNHOLE CASH game; or present a Fast Play tear-away sheet; or Fast Play barcode to the retailer and a CORNHOLE CASH ticket will print automatically.
To play, follow the instructions printed on the ticket to determine if it is a winner. The overall odds of winning a prize are one-in-4.14 and the odds of winning the top prize are one-in-360,000. Prizes up to $10,000 can be claimed at any Florida Lottery office and prizes less than $600 can be redeemed immediately at any Florida Lottery retailer. Fast Play game prizes must be claimed within 60 days after the end of game date.
JMI notes taxpayer funds help public employees push against taxpayer interest
Local governments in Florida are allowing a “blatant misuse of taxpayer money” by paying employees to perform union tasks unrelated to their public duties, essentially giving away scarce tax resources to private entities for private benefit, The James Madison Institute says in a new policy brief. Released just four days before Labor Day, the analysis concludes that Florida should put an end to “union release time,” a taxpayer-funded subsidy that allows members of public employee unions to conduct union business during working hours without loss of pay.
Even though Florida is a right-to-work state – meaning no employee can be forced to join a union in order to get a job – Florida municipalities give public employee unions access to millions of taxpayer dollars each year in the form of release time, according to the JMI policy brief.
“The business conducted on release time has no public benefit – it exclusively serves the interests of government unions. At a time of increasing scrutiny at all levels of taxpayer funding in Florida, organized labor, not taxpayers, should incur those costs. Yet, release time sticks taxpayers with the tab for private union activity,” according to the policy brief authored by Trey Kovacs, JMI adjunct scholar and policy analyst with the Competitive Enterprise Institute, and Sal Nuzzo, JMI’s vice president of policy.
The policy brief assails unions for release time practices that use tax dollars to promote the unions’ interests and notes that Florida governments do not effectively track their employees’ release time activities. In some places, employees are involved in activities that support union efforts that conflict with taxpayers’ interests.
“Government employees have a special responsibility to the public, and they should honor those responsibilities,” said Dr. Bob McClure, president and CEO of The James Madison Institute. “Labor Day was conceived to honor the many contributions of working men and women, and hard working taxpayers shouldn’t be expected to subsidize private unions that, in furthering their own agendas, often work against the interests of the taxpayer.”
Working in conjunction with JMI, researchers from the Competitive Enterprise Institute compiled public records from Miami-Dade County and the cities of Tampa and Jacksonville to examine the number of hours of union release time, activities paid for with release time, and the cost.
“As a right-to-work state, Floridians are not forced to pay union dues, yet release time amounts to a multi-million dollar taxpayer-funded subsidy,” said Nuzzo. “The so-called public unions are not required to return anything to the public, and local governments exercise little control over the use of release time. This glaring issue erodes the trust that taxpayers place in their government and should be addressed.”
Miami-Dade, Florida’s most populous county, allowed nearly 100,000 hours of release time in 2016. The same year, the City of Tampa spent $366,771 for unionized employees to conduct various union-related activities, while the City of Jacksonville used $314,677 for similar release time.
In reviewing the release time data, CEI’s Kovacs said it was particularly concerning that some county officials do not track or record what activities are taking place on union release time. “This practice is unsettling as it demonstrates a complete lack of transparency and accountability,” he said. “Public unions exist across the country as some of the most powerful and well-funded political machines, and it is wrong for taxpayers to be held accountable to provide these employees compensation when they are performing non-public work.”
JMI recommends that Florida eliminate union release time, citing several ways this can be accomplished including via specific policy or through an elimination of release time provisions in collective bargaining agreements. The government should focus on ways to cut taxpayer funds to private organizations that do not benefit the public, JMI said, and government employees should not perform duties unrelated to their public duties while on the clock at their government jobs.
“The Sunshine State has the tools at its disposal to put an end to the practice of giving away scarce taxpayer resources to private entities for private benefit. It is now time to use those tools,” the policy brief concludes.
The policy brief is available at: bitly.com/releasetime. The James Madison Institute is Florida’s premier free-market think tank. JMI conducts research on such issues as health care, taxes, and regulatory environments. Founded in 1987, JMI is one of the nation’s oldest and largest 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational organizations.
pureALTA uses groundbreaking technology in a potable reuse pilot project that has the potential to expand the City’s water supply by hundreds of thousands of gallons per day
The City of Altamonte Springs is conducting a pilot project aimed at meeting its future water needs and the challenges brought on by continued growth, shrinking groundwater supplies and the potential of drought.
The project, called pureALTA, is taking reclaimed water and treating it to meet or exceed all drinking water quality standards without using expensive, energy-consuming reverse osmosis. The project is being done in partnership with the St. Johns River Water Management District, and is currently in the testing phase through October 2018.
“This past year is a prime example of the impact that drought can have on Florida’s groundwater supply,” said Ed Torres, Director of Public Works and Utilities. “We’re embarking on this project now to explore ways to create additional water supplies in the future, if and when they are needed.”
For pureALTA, the City built a network of advanced water treatment processes: ozonation and biological activated carbon filtration (O3/BAF), ultrafiltration (UF), granular activated carbon filtration (GAC) and ultraviolet light with advanced oxidation process (UV AOP). This system of water purification has produced outstanding results during the testing phase.
A handful of other U.S. cities have potable water reuse projects, but most rely on high pressure filtration as the core treatment process of purification, rather than pureALTA’s unique combination of systems which includes biological treatment processes. pureALTA is proving to be less expensive, more energy efficient and doesn’t create the harmful byproducts that some other systems produce.
“We’ve had several experts and engineers from cities and water agencies around the country come and look at pureALTA already,” said Frank Martz, Altamonte Springs City Manager. “They’re interested in how they could adapt this technology to augment their own water supplies. We see the project as not only something that can benefit our residents, but as a model that can be adapted by other utilities throughout Florida as well as the rest of the country.”
The pureALTA project is currently treating approximately 28,000 gallons of water each day. During the study-phase, the purified water is returned to the City’s reclaimed water system where it is used for irrigation. Based on the final results of the pilot project, the City could build a full-scale system with the potential to create 300,000 to 500,000 gallons of purified water daily; that’s about 5 percent of the City’s future daily water demand – without drawing it from the aquifer.
Altamonte also built a S.T.E.M. education program named the Altamonte Springs Science Incubator, or AS2I. The City created AS2I to help prepare the next generation of engineering and conservational innovators. Through this program, students will learn about pureALTA, water treatment processes, the impact of drought and the need for diversified water alternatives. Thousands of middle and high school students get hands-on education on how this potable reuse project works and how it can be an important component of Florida’s water supply in the future.
The City of Altamonte Springs has a long history of implementing innovative projects to expand its water portfolio, save water and money and protect the environment. A-FIRST is a stormwater management initiative that generates as much as 4.5 million gallons of reclaimed water daily which is approximately 1.6 billion gallons of alternative water supply each year. The project utilizes runoff as a water resource instead of just filling up retention ponds without using its water. The City also developed Project APRICOT which delivers reclaimed water to almost every property in the city for lawn, landscape and other non-drinking purposes, rather than using drinking water. The project, which began in the 1980s, was one of the first projects of its kind and it’s still in use today.
For more on the pureALTA project, please click here.
Tuesday evening, CFO and State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis spoke to Texas State Fire Marshal Chris Connealy with Texas’ Department of Insurance and offered the full support and resources of Florida’s fire service community to assist with Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts.
“Even in the heart of a devastating situation, Fire Marshal Connealy remains optimistic about recovery efforts thus far, and was grateful for the support of Florida and other states as Texas begins to pick up the pieces following the worst storm in recent memory,” said CFO Patronis. “We know recovery is measured not in days or weeks, but in months and even years, and we’re prepared to support Texas recovery efforts for the long haul.”
As waters slowly start to recede in Texas, CFO Patronis is also offering the full resources of Florida’s experienced insurance fraud investigators, who are trained to combat scams that are common following natural disasters, such as rampant unlicensed contracting and fake FEMA representatives who attempt to charge for assistance with the filing of federal flood insurance claims.
“After disaster, families should be free to focus on their health and safety, without worrying about the possibility of scammers wanting to take even more away from them than what they’ve already lost,” said CFO Patronis. “Our investigators have years of experience dealing with these types of opportunistic scammers, and we know how to track them and take them down. As the next phases of recovery come into focus, we stand ready to put more boots on the ground.”
Additionally, CFO Patronis and Fire Marshal Connealy forged a partnership to allow Florida officials to participate in Texas’ future after-action activities. This partnership will offer Florida a unique opportunity to learn valuable information about successful disaster recovery strategies and strategies that could be improved upon for future storms.
“Hurricane Harvey could easily have hit Florida’s shores, and I believe there’s much that can be learned from our Texas counterparts. I thank Texas officials for offering Florida a seat at the table to learn, to share best practices, and to improve upon our own Florida strategies ahead of the next storm.”
SB 4 Secures Permanent Expansion of Bright
Futures Academic and Medallion Scholarships
Senator Bill Galvano (R-Bradenton) today filed Senate Bill 4, the Florida Excellence in Higher Education Act of 2018. The legislation expands the state university and student financial aid portions of the higher education agenda the Senate advanced last session, a top priority of Senate President Joe Negron (R-Stuart), including a permanent expansion of the Bright Futures Academic Scholar award at 100 percent of tuition and fees and the Bright Futures Medallion Scholar award at 75 percent of tuition and fees.
“In addition to securing full funding for the Bright Futures Academic Scholar award starting this academic year, Senate Bill 4 also reinstates funding for the Bright Futures Medallion Scholar award at 75 percent of tuition and fees for fall and spring semesters, beginning in the 2018-19 academic year,” said President Negron. “These two changes ensure the permanent expansion of the Bright Futures Scholarship for approximately 94,000 students expected to qualify for new or renewed Bright Futures Academic and Medallion Scholarships.”
“A college or university education is a significant investment of both time and money. The permanent expansion of Bright Futures Academic and Medallion Scholarships, along with flexible tuition policies for full-time students will incentivize on-time graduation. Providing an opportunity for advanced planning will help reduce the financial burden on students and families and improve both student retention and on-time graduation,” said Senator Galvano. “In addition, Senate Bill 4 provides an opportunity for advanced planning for our universities by instituting a transition period for universities seeking preeminence status to adjust to the new 4-year graduation rate for full-time students.” Summary of Senate Bill 4 – The Florida Excellence in Higher Education Act of 2018 PRESERVE ACCESS AND AFFORDABILITY FOR STUDENTS AND FAMILIES
Senate Bill 4 expands merit-based and need-based financial aid funding and establishes flexible tuition policies available to families so every student in Florida who qualifies and earns the privilege to attend one of our state universities has the opportunity to pursue a higher education. Expands Student Financial Assistance and Support
Expands need-based state aid, and university or college gift aid, for students with demonstrated financial need.
Expands the First Generation Matching Grant Program to include community college students and doubles the state match for private donations supporting the program (2:1 match).
Creates a new Florida Farmworker Student Scholarship for children of migrant families to earn technical and college credentials.
Expands merit-based state gift aid for high-performing students.
Reinstates full funding of the Bright Futures Florida Academic Scholar award at 100 percent of tuition and fees, plus $300 in fall and spring semesters to cover instructional materials and other costs, beginning in this 2017-2018 academic year.
Guarantees funding for 2018 summer term tuition and fees for Bright Futures Florida Academic Scholar awards.
Reinstates funding for the Bright Futures Florida Medallion Scholar award at 75 percent of tuition and fees for fall and spring semesters, beginning in fall semester of the 2018-2019 academic year.
Expands Benacquisto Scholarship awards (full cost of attendance) to recruit out-of-state National Merit Scholar award winners.
Establishes Flexible Tuition and Fee Policies
Requires universities to implement an institutional block tuition and fee policy for full-time, in-state, undergraduate resident students.
Fall 2018 semester implementation for at least the entering freshman class – may be extended to include other students.
Must accommodate full-time student enrollment in at least 30 credits across any combination of fall, spring, or summer terms of the academic year.
Must maximize accelerated and transfer credit to facilitate on-time graduation and minimize excess hours.
Must be publicly approved by university boards of trustees and the Board of Governors, with updates and progress reports provided to the Legislature.
Increases Student Access to Internship and Job Opportunities
Requires each state university to use labor market projections and related degree production analyses to identify internship opportunities for students to benefit from industry experts and mentors, earn industry certifications, and become employed in high-demand fields.
RECRUIT AND RETAIN TOP FACULTY
Senate Bill 4 expands and enhances policy and funding tools state universities can leverage to recruit and retain the very best faculty, enrich professional and graduate school strength and viability, and bring aging infrastructure and research laboratories into the 21st century. Establishes World Class Faculty Scholar Program
Creates the World Class Faculty Scholar Program to help universities recruit, recognize, and retain exemplary faculty, research scholars, and expert teams, as funded in the GAA.
Establishes University Professional and Graduate Degree Excellence Program
Creates the University Professional and Graduate Degree Excellence Program to promote quality and excellence in university professional schools, and improve graduate study outcomes in high-impact fields of medicine, law, and business, as funded in the GAA.
ELEVATE UNIVERSITY DISTINCTION AND NATIONAL PROMINENCE
Senate Bill 4 ensures universities remain accountable to Florida taxpayers by refining university performance expectations to incentivize and reward state university performance excellence and recognition in academics, instruction, research, and community accomplishments and achievements. Incentivizes On-Time Graduation of Full-Time Students
Refines university performance expectations to incentivize and reward institutions for graduating full-time bachelor degree students in four years.
Preeminent State Research University: Upgrades the graduation metric to a 4-year graduation rate of 60 percent or higher. The current metric is a 6-year rate at 70 percent or higher. The bill provides one transitional year for any university having earned preeminent or emerging preeminent status based on the 2018 determination under current metrics to maintain that status for the 2018-19 academic year and receive 2018-19 preeminence funds accordingly.
University Performance Incentive Funding: Updates metrics to specify a 4-year graduation rate and require benchmarks for the “access” metric that reward institutions for performance success in serving Pell grant students.
Tightens state university relationships with their direct-support organizations’ leadership, use of funds, and public disclosure activities.
Promotes State University Programs of Excellence
Directs the Board of Governors to establish standards and measures to recognize, enhance, and promote individual degree programs in state universities across the system, which reflect national excellence, prominence, and distinction.
