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Fix a Leak Week: PSC Offers Easy Repairs to Save Water and Money

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Are you ready to chase down leaks? Household leaks can waste more than 1 trillion gallons of water annually nationwide, equaling the water use of more than 11 million homes. Joining with the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) reminds consumers to “hunt down the drips” during Fix a Leak Week 2017, March 20-26.

Sponsored by EPA’s WaterSense program, the ninth annual Fix a Leak Week encourages consumers to find and fix household leaks to save valuable water and money. Ten percent of homes have leaks that waste 90 gallons of water per day. If left unrepaired, these leaks waste more than 30,000 gallons a year, enough water to wash more than 800 loads of laundry!

“Add finding and fixing leaks to your spring cleaning to-do list,” said PSC Chairman Julie Brown. “The PSC makes the hunt for leaks both inside and outside your home easier with our Drop by Drop brochure. A few simple repairs can save water and reduce your utility bill year round.”

According to the EPA, fixing water leaks can lower your water bill by more than 10 percent. Here are some easy repairs for common household leaks:

  1. CHECK toilets for silent leaks by putting a few drops of food coloring in the tank to see if the color appears in the bowl before you flush. Don’t forget to check irrigation systems and spigots, too.
  2. TWIST and tighten pipe connections. To save even more water without a noticeable difference in flow, twist in a WaterSense labeled faucet aerator or showerhead.
  3. REPLACE the fixture if necessary. Look for the WaterSense label when replacing plumbing fixtures, which signifies the product has been certified to save water and perform well.

Find more information on Fix a Leak Week here.

For additional information, visit www.floridapsc.com.

Follow the PSC on Twitter, @floridapsc.

SR 655 (Recker Highway) Over CSX Railroad Public Meeting Scheduled in Auburndale

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The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), District One, is hosting an alternatives public meeting as part of the Project Development and Environment (PD&E) study of a new overpass to carry State Road 655 (Recker Highway) over the CSX railroad in Auburndale. The study limits are Recker Highway from east of Barton Park Road to US 92 and Thornhill Road from Recker Highway to one-half mile south of Recker Highway.
The public meeting is from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday, March 21, 2017 at Auburndale Civic Center, 115 West Park Street in Auburndale. The meeting offers people the opportunity to express their views about the location, conceptual design, and social, economic, and environmental effects of constructing a Recker Highway overpass.
FDOT will display information about construction of a new overpass and will show a video explaining the alternatives that will play continuously. The meeting will be an open house format where people can ask questions and provide comments to FDOT representatives in a one-on-one setting. Written comments will be accepted. For more information about the PD&E study, please visit the project website www.swflroads.com/sr655/recker/overcsx.
FDOT solicits public participation without regard to race, color, national origin, age, sex, religion, disability, or family status. People who require special accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act or who require translation services (free of charge) should contact Patrick Bateman, E.I., FDOT project manager, at 863-519-2792 or [email protected]. We need one week advance notice to make arrangements.

Law professor supports prosecutor’s decision to forgo death penalty prosecutions

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UF Law Professor Kenneth B. Nunn is available to comment on the decision by Orange-Osceola State Attorney Aramis Ayala’s decision not to pursue the death penalty for cases in her jurisdiction.
Gov. Rick Scott removed Aramis this week as the prosecutor from the case of Markeith Loyd, who is accused of killing a police officer, after Aramis announced she would not seek the death penalty in the case.
Professor Nunn teaches criminal law and procedure at UF Law and issued the following statement:
“I commend the courageous decision by 9th Judicial Circuit Prosecutor Aramis Ayala to refuse to seek the death penalty in cases originated by her office. Only a few prosecutors continue to seek the death penalty, less than 1 percent nationwide. This is because the death penalty is expensive, it is racially discriminatory, and it is impossible to correct should a wrongfully convicted person be put to death. The death penalty in Florida is a mess. In 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court found that Florida’s death penalty law was unconstitutional. The Florida Supreme Court recently found that hundreds of death row inmates would have to be resentenced. The state legislature has yet to come up with a process for doing so, and the death penalty is on hold statewide.
“Death sentences in Florida are already in a steep decline. Florida death sentences declined from 45 in 1991 to just 10 in 2015. More wrongfully convicted persons, 26, have been freed from Florida’s death row than have been freed from any other state. And blacks represent 40 percent of the persons on death row in Florida, a percentage that’s almost three times the percentage of the state population that is black. Most importantly, there is little evidence to suggest that the death penalty deters crime or keeps citizens any safer than a life in prison sentence would.
“In light of these realities, State Attorney Ayala’s decision to decline to use this failing method of punishment is sound, reasoned and responsible.”

Deadline to Apply for Secretary of Florida Department of Transportation Extended

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New deadline to submit resumes is May 1st

The Florida Transportation Commission today announced that the deadline to apply for Secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation has been extended to Monday, May 1st at 5:00 p.m. 

Commission Chairman Jay Trumbull said the Commission has been very encouraged with the applications it has received so far.  The Commission needs the additional time to complete a robust search and conduct the interview process post-Legislative session. 

The Commission is seeking an outstanding forward-thinking individual to lead and manage Florida’s Department of Transportation, an agency with over 6,000 employees and an annual budget of $10.8 billion.

This successful candidate must be personally committed to improving the mobility and economic strength of one of the nation’s fastest growing states through effective planning strategies that support the utilization of innovative technology, finance and industry best practices. 

The Secretary of Transportation must have a proven track record as an effective administrator who, by a combination of education and experience, possesses a broad knowledge of the administrative, financial and technical aspects of the development, operation and regulation of multimodal transportation systems and facilities. 

The Florida Transportation Commission will conduct interviews and nominate three candidates for submission to the Governor. The Secretary will then be appointed by and will serve at the pleasure of the Governor of Florida.  Note that the “Government in the Sunshine” laws of Florida require that all documents related to the search process, including applications, will be available for public inspection. All interviews will be open to the public. 

Please direct detailed resumes to: Jay Trumbull, Chairman, Florida Transportation Commission, 605 Suwannee Street, M.S. 9; Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0450, or submit by facsimile to 850-414-4234 or e-mail to [email protected]. Resumes will be accepted until 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, May 1, 2017. If submitting by facsimile or e-mail, applicant must confirm receipt by calling the Commission to obtain a receipt confirmation code. Inquiries may be made by contacting the Florida Transportation Commission at (850) 414-4105. 

The Florida Transportation Commission is an appointed body that provides performance and fiscal oversight of the FDOT, and makes transportation policy recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature.

Mast, Crist Lead Letter To Trump: Create Everglades Restoration Infrastructure Taskforce

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18 Members of Florida Delegation Sign Bipartisan Letter

Congressmen Brian Mast (FL-18) and Charlie Crist (FL-13) today led a letter with 16 of their colleagues urging President Donald Trump to “join our efforts to expedite and energize the federal government’s role” in restoring the Everglades.  In the letter, the Congressmen call on the President to convene an “Everglades Restoration Taskforce” to develop a plan to “secure new infrastructure funding and accelerate project completion.”
The letter was also signed by Reps. Matt Gaetz (FL-1), Neal Dunn (FL-2), Ted Yoho (FL-3), John Rutherford (FL-4), Al Lawson (FL-5), Ron DeSantis (FL-6), Bill Posey (FL-8), Darren Soto (FL-9), Val Demings (FL-10), Daniel Webster (FL-11), Gus Bilirakis (FL-12), Kathy Castor (FL-14), Vern Buchanan (FL-16), Tom Rooney (FL-17), Carlos Curbelo (FL-26) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL-27).
The text of the letter is below:
Dear Mr. President:
In your address to a joint session of Congress, you called for bolstering our nation’s infrastructure. Florida’s Congressional Delegation has been working in a bipartisan manner for years on the largest hydrologic infrastructure project in American history – restoring America’s Everglades. We urge you to join our efforts to expedite and energize the federal government’s role in this critical mission. Specifically, we ask you to convene an “Everglades Restoration Infrastructure Taskforce” to develop an action plan to secure new infrastructure funding and accelerate project completion to meet or beat the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ current Integrated Delivery Schedule timeline.
The bipartisan Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), authorized by Congress in 2000, is one of the most ambitious ecological restoration projects ever undertaken. Beyond restoring the unique Everglades ecosystem, CERP would improve vital flood protection for neighboring communities, protect the main source of drinking water for 8 million South Floridians, and enhance the Everglades’ substantial $2 trillion economic impact in the state. Working together, the State of Florida, the Army Corps, and other federal agency partners have made important—but incremental— progress towards meeting the Plan’s Integrated Delivery Schedule roadmap of completing over 60 proposed projects over a 30-year period.
More must be done, however, as many projects are still awaiting construction, and delays could threaten to increase project completion costs. Along with finishing interrelated projects like the Herbert Hoover Dike Rehabilitation and Kissimmee River Restoration, incomplete CERP projects such as Indian River Lagoon-South (C-44, C-23, C-24 & C-25 ), the Caloosahatchee River (C-43) West Basin Storage Reservoir, and other additional water storage reservoirs, as well as the newly authorized Central Everglades Project, are critical to halting damaging water releases from Lake Okeechobee into surrounding coastal estuaries where harmful algae blooms threaten human health, wildlife, and important fisheries, and dramatically impact local economies through downturns in tourism and the real estate market.
Floridians have worked toward the goal of a restored Everglades since Marjory Stoneman Douglas penned “The Everglades: River of Grass,” and after years of scientific study and intergovernmental and interagency cooperation, we have a comprehensive series of flood control and ecosystem restoration infrastructure proposals to achieve that dream through CERP and related non-CERP and Foundation projects. Directing just a fraction of the $1 trillion investment of which you spoke could fully fund the construction of these outstanding projects and save one of our nation’s most iconic landscapes while also yielding the economic and job benefits the American people expect and deserve.
Once again, we urge you to expedite and energize the federal government’s efforts to restore the Everglades and create an “Everglades Restoration Infrastructure Taskforce” charged with developing an action plan to secure new infrastructure funding and accelerate project completion to meet or beat the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ current Integrated Delivery Schedule timeline.

Sincerely,

FWC encourages boaters to ‘Spring Aboard’ by taking a boater education class

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World-class fishing, crystal blue waters, endless sunshine – there’s so much about Florida’s waterways to enjoy. During the week of March 19-25, the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) encourage all boaters to take part in the national “Spring Aboard” campaign by taking a boating safety course.
“We know that an educated boater is safer on the water. If a boat operator has taken a boating safety education course, the likelihood of their time spent on the water being a safe and enjoyable experience is much greater for them as well as their passengers,” said Stephanie Weatherington, president of NASBLA. “March is the perfect time to take a course before the summer boating season begins.”
Many course providers will offer incentives or course discounts for students who enroll in or complete a course during the “Spring Aboard” campaign. For a summary of Florida’s regulations and available courses, go to MyFWC.com/Boating.
“In Florida, boaters who were born on or after Jan. 1, 1980, are required to complete and pass a boater safety education course. But everyone interested in boating should take a course – it’s the smart thing to do,” said Maj. Robert Rowe, FWC’s Boating and Waterways section leader. “Boaters have many ways to get educated, from classroom courses offered by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and United States Power Squadrons to online offerings available anytime day or night. There’s no reason to head out on the water without this knowledge.”
Florida boating accident statistics from 2015 indicate that, when the level of operator education was known, 72 percent of boating deaths occurred on boats where the boat operator had never received boating education instruction.
About NASBLA
The National Association of State Boating Law Administrators is a national nonprofit organization that works to develop public policy for recreational boating safety. NASBLA represents the recreational boating authorities of all 50 states and the U.S. territories. The association offers a variety of resources, including training, model acts, education standards and publications. Through a national network of thousands of professional educators, law enforcement officers and volunteers, NASBLA affects the lives of over 73.5 million American boaters.

Office of Insurance Regulation Issues Designated Statistical Agent for Workers’ Compensation RFP

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The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (Office) today issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the purpose of seeking one or more qualified firms to perform the functions of a designated statistical agent for Workers’ Compensation and Employers Liability insurance as permitted by Florida Statutes. This procurement will be accepting qualified responses and required documents through April 27, 2017. The anticipated date to announce the Notice of Intent to Award to the qualified vendor or vendors will be on May 8, 2017. The RFP may be viewed on the Vendor Bid System.
About the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has primary responsibility for regulation, compliance and enforcement of statutes related to the business of insurance and the monitoring of industry markets. For more information about the Office, please visit www.floir.com or follow us on Twitter @FLOIR_comm and Facebook.

Attorney Ben Crump Headlines Gideon’s Promise Igniting Change Event

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Renowned social justice advocate and attorney Ben Crump to
give a speech on Gideon v. Wainwright today in Atlanta

Civil rights attorney and advocate Ben Crump, of Tallahassee, Florida, will give the keynote address during the Gideon’s Promise Annual Igniting Change Awards in Atlanta at the Ritz-Carlton Downtown on Friday. Crump will break down the narrative behind Gideon v. Wainwright and how it’s relevant in the criminal justice system today.

 The Igniting Change awards celebrate individuals and organizations working tirelessly to uplift marginalized communities. Gideon’s Promise is an organization of advocates and public defenders focused on improving the public defense system available to all, especially poor and minority groups. 

Crump is a nationally renowned civil rights attorney who has represented dozens of victims’ families in tragic, high-profile cases across the country, advocating for civil rights, social justice and greater diversity in the legal profession and the justice system. Crump has served as president of the National Bar Association — the oldest and largest organization of predominantly African-American attorneys and judges — and is the founder of the Benjamin Crump Social Justice Institute. 

WHO: Attorney Ben Crump

WHAT: Keynote Speech at Gideon’s Promise Igniting Change Awards

WHEN: Friday, March 17, 2017 at 6 p.m.

WHERE: The Ritz-Carlton Downtown, 181 Peachtree St., NE, Atlanta, GA 30303

Statement by Sen. Victor Torres on State Attorney Ayala's Death Penalty Decision

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In response to the decision by State Attorney Aramis Ayala not to seek the death penalty in the murder case against Markeith Loyd, Senator Victor Torres (D-Orlando) released the following statement:
“In any murder case, all legal sentencing options, including the death penalty, should be considered.  I agree that the death penalty in Florida has had a troubled history. Even with the passage of the new law requiring jury unanimity in death sentences, 75% of those currently on death row were reportedly convicted with non-unanimous juries.
“But as a former police detective, I strongly believe that when any law enforcement officer loses their lives in the line of duty and in the service to others, all available legal consequences should be considered. While I respect State Attorney Ayala’s right to decide her office’s future course, I disagree with her decision to leave the death penalty off the table.”
For more information, please contact Senator Torres’s Legislative Aide Al Yorston at (850) 487-5015 or via email at: [email protected].

Three Arrested in Medicaid Fraud Scheme Targeting Homeless

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Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, the Kissimmee Police Department, the Orlando Police Department and the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrests of three individuals for allegedly defrauding the Medicaid program out of more than $10,000. According to the investigation, the owner of Genesis TCM, a provider of Targeted Case Management services and two Genesis employees, allegedly billed Medicaid for Targeted Case Management services never provided. The defendants allegedly conspired with Tranquility HealthCare Solutions owner, Christina M. Benson, and others to fraudulently bill the Medicaid system.

“My Medicaid Fraud Control Unit works tirelessly to recover stolen Medicaid funds and we will not stand for anyone taking advantage of homeless individuals to essentially steal from taxpayers,” said Attorney General Bondi. “Since taking office we have recovered more than $689 million in Medicaid fraud settlements and judgments, and we will continue to aggressively pursue anyone who attempts to steal from the Medicaid program.”  

In 2015, authorities arrested the additional conspirators for allegedly recruiting the homeless to bilk Medicaid out of more than $200,000. For more information on these previous arrests, click here.

The Attorney General’s MFCU began investigating Genesis after learning that Genesis did not provide TCM services to Medicaid recipients, including the homeless. According to the investigation, Genesis promised temporary free housing to these recipients, however once recipients filled out free housing forms, Genesis provided limited or no further contact. Genesis allegedly used the recipients’ Medicaid information listed on the forms to bill for TCM services.

Authorities arrested the following defendants in connection to the case:

  • Deborah Del-Moral, 55, Orange County;
  • Humberto Javier Santiago, 36, Osceola County; and
  • Humberto Santiago, 38, Orange County.

All three defendants face one count of Medicaid provider fraud, a second-degree felony, and one count of organized scheme to defraud, a third-degree felony. If convicted, each defendant faces up to 30 years in prison and more than $15,000 in fines. The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the case.

The Florida Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigates and prosecutes providers that intentionally defraud the state’s Medicaid program through fraudulent billing practices. Medicaid fraud essentially steals from Florida’s taxpayers. From Jan. 2011 to the present, Attorney General Bondi’s MFCU has obtained more than $689 million in settlements and judgments. Additionally, the MFCU investigates allegations of patient abuse, neglect, and exploitation in facilities receiving payments under the Medicaid program.