Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: A Pause For Giving Thanks
December 18, 2016
The most significant development of the week in Florida politics and government likely was the appointment of a new Florida Supreme Court justice, but the most noise was made by a rapper’s new release — which landed with a thud among the critics.
While Gov. Rick Scott was firming up his choice for the next justice to join the high court, lawmakers were busy demanding and then denouncing a $1 million contract with rapper Pitbull, whose song “Sexy Beaches” was used as part of an ad campaign to promote the state’s sands. “Drive You Crazy” is one of the Pitbull’s other songs, and that was exactly what the tourism deal did to some lawmakers.
SHAKING IT UP
As Scott made his first appointment to the Florida Supreme Court, there was no real doubt he would pick a conservative jurist. The conservative Federalist Society has become something like the governor’s farm team for court jobs, and the three Supreme Court finalists sent to Scott all leaned to the right.
But what was more surprising was when the governor drew a line of sorts concerning three spots on the Supreme Court that are set to come open at the end of his term: Scott said those appointments will belong to him, rather than his successor.
First, the appointment Friday: The governor chose C. Alan Lawson, chief judge of the Daytona Beach-based 5th District Court of Appeal, to replace Justice James E.C. Perry, who is leaving the state’s highest court because he has reached the mandatory retirement age. Lawson, 55, will join the seven-member court on Dec. 31.
In line with a conservative judicial philosophy, Scott said the primary question he asks potential judges is whether they understand the separation-of-powers doctrine for the three branches of government.
“My goal is, they interpret the law, they don’t create law,” said Scott, who is a lawyer.
The unstated goal was to tip the court a little bit away from the more liberal majority, which has included Perry, Chief Justice Jorge Labarga and justices R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince. Lawson will more likely team up with justices Charles Canady and Ricky Polston, the two most conservative jurists on the court.
Lawson, who is a 1987 graduate of the Florida State University Law School, said there are limits on a court’s interpretation of the law.
“The way I approach statutory construction issues and constitutional issues matches closely with Justice Canady,” Lawson said.
But in a development that could serve as a prelude to a fight near the end of his term, Scott made it clear Friday that he believes he has the right to appoint the next three Supreme Court justices, with the vacancies expected to occur on the day Scott leaves office in January 2019. Those vacancies would involve the retirements of Pariente, Lewis and Quince.
“I will appoint three more justices on the morning I finish my term,” Scott said.
That drew a quick response from Florida House Minority Leader Janet Cruz, D-Tampa.
“The Supreme Court is no place for political gamesmanship,” Cruz said. “If Gov. Scott follows through on this assertion, he risks setting off a contentious legal battle with his successor that would mar the transition process and throw our state’s highest court into uncertainty.”
SHUTTING IT DOWN
Had someone sat down in 2010 to craft a list of likely controversies that would face a state agency under Scott, “a contract with a Cuban-American rapper over a music video produced to promote Florida’s beaches” probably would have landed near the bottom.
Welcome to 2016.
With Scott already facing a battle in the penny-pinching House to get funding for business incentives and programs like Visit Florida, a controversy about the release of a $1 million contract with the rapper Pitbull didn’t help.
The controversy grew after House attorneys filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking a ruling on a claim by PDR Production that the contract from the 2015-2016 fiscal year included trade secrets that kept terms of the deal with Visit Florida out of the public. The lawsuit, filed in Leon County circuit court, also sought immunity from civil action for House members and staff if they potentially disclosed terms of the contract.
On Thursday, Pitbull — a.k.a. Armando Christian Perez — released the contract. Via Twitter. Again, 2016.
“FULL DISCLOSURE — FLORIDA,” Perez tweeted. The caps were his.
“It is unfortunate that it took litigation to lift the veil of secrecy on this particular contract,” House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, said in a prepared statement. “This was a long, unnecessary journey through claims of trade secrets, threats of prosecution, and corporate welfare paid for by taxpayers.”
Scott on Tuesday questioned the lack of transparency about the rapper’s contract, calling it “ridiculous.” But he retained support for Visit Florida’s efforts to attract increased numbers of tourists to the state each year.
The “Sexy Beaches” video, which has drawn 10.67 million views, accounted for $250,000 of the deal. Corcoran on WFTL radio in West Palm Beach said he’s heard from people expressing disappointment in the video “or even in harsher terms, it’s an objectification of women.”
Asked if Pitbull’s sexually suggestive song linked with the Visit Florida hashtag “LoveFL” reflected Florida values, Senate Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development Appropriations Chairman Jeff Brandes responded, “I don’t know that that reflected Miami values.”
It was not clear whether Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, has ever been to South Beach.
Senate Appropriations Chairman Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, disdained the contract but backed Visit Florida.
“It’s really easy to look at things other people do and say, ‘Oh, you made a mistake,’ ” Latvala said Thursday. “These are the people on the front lines that have to make decisions, and I think it’s important to look at the overall performance.”
Still, one of the people on the front lines stepped aside under pressure from Scott. Visit Florida President and CEO Will Seccombe said Friday he would resign, after Scott requested he do so.
In a letter to Visit Florida Chairman William Talbert, Scott backed the need for the tourism-marketing agency while outlining reforms he’d like to see. The letter also included the call for Seccombe’s departure.
“I believe it would be best for the future efforts of Visit Florida for Will to step down and allow new leadership to come in at this critical time,” Scott wrote.
The request came after the positions of two agency officials, Chief Financial and Operating Officer Vangie McCorvey and Chief Marketing Officer Paul Phipps, were eliminated without any public explanation earlier in the day.
Even as he requested changes at Visit Florida on Friday, Scott praised Pitbull.
“His willingness to help promote tourism in Florida is a great example for other entertainers to follow,” Scott wrote in the letter to Talbert.
GETTING IT STARTED
While the Supreme Court and Pitbull stories consumed much of the chatter, senators spent the week laying the groundwork for the legislative session that begins in March. Kicking things off, Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart, tried to dispel the notion that the upper chamber would be the graveyard for conservative legislation that emerges from the House.
“The next two sessions will not be the conservative House versus the moderate Senate,” Negron said. “Instead, I expect the House and Senate will present competing conservative visions on the many issues that our constituents care about.”
Among the potentially contentious issues: what to do about the workers’ compensation insurance system after a pair of Supreme Court decisions sparked rate hikes for businesses.
The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee began plunging into the issue Tuesday, a little more than two months after state regulators approved a 14.5 percent increase in workers’ compensation insurance rates.
“There’s obviously a lot of interest on this issue, not just in this room but across the state — many different interests and opinions on what it is that the state can be doing to try and bring some sort of balance to the workers’ compensation market and insurance rates,” Senate Banking and Insurance Chairwoman Anitere Flores, R-Miami, said as the committee took up the issue.
The Supreme Court this year ruled that strict limits on attorneys’ fees were unconstitutional and also tossed out a restriction on benefits in the case of a St. Petersburg firefighter injured on the job. Along with helping lead to the 14.5 percent rate increase, those decisions have refueled debate about key issues in a major 2003 law.
Lawmakers also began to consider how to implement a constitutional amendment legalizing full-strength medical marijuana and what to do about a tight state budget next year. Latvala said the Legislature would likely have to allow property owners’ taxes to go up in order to fund an increase in spending on public schools.
“I think it’s clear to me that if we don’t capture the new property values, there will be very slim if any increases for K-12,” he said. “So if we want to provide any local school district increases, I think we’re going to have to allow them to take the additional property value.”
But that could set up a clash with the House, where Corcoran has seemed to dismiss the possibility of allowing what he has labeled a tax increase.
STORY OF THE WEEK: A contract between Visit Florida and Pitbull set off a wide-ranging controversy that helped lead to the resignation of the agency’s president and CEO and raised new questions about state funding for tourism promotion.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Lastly, I appreciate Pitbull and his devotion to our great state.”—Gov. Rick Scott, in a letter detailing proposed reforms to Visit Florida.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Suspect Takes His Own Life After Cantonment SWAT Standoff
December 17, 2016
A suspect took his own life after a several hour standoff with SWAT in Cantonment this morning.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to the 100 block of Vaughn Avenue in reference to a suspect that had multiple felony warrants. Family members told deputies the man was armed with a handgun and making multiple statements about not going back to jail, according Major Andrew Hobbs, spokesperson for the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
The man left the scene and returned some time later, running back toward his house. SWAT and hostage negotiators were called in, believing the man was barricaded inside the home.
About four hours later, deputies were conducting a perimeter check when they found the man hiding underneath a neighboring home.
The man took his own life, according to Hobbs. No shots were fired by deputies.
The investigation is continuing. Further details, including the man’s name, have not yet been released.
Reader submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Area Unemployment Rate Steady
December 17, 2016
The latest job numbers released Friday show the employment rate steady in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties in Florida, while falling in Escambia County in Alabama.
Escambia County’s seasonably adjusted unemployment rate held steady at 5.1 percent from October to November. There were 7,164 people reported unemployed during the period. One year ago, unemployment in Escambia County was 5.2 percent.
“Pensacola businesses are working hard to create opportunities for area families, adding more than 3,000 new jobs in the last year. We will continue working to diversify our economy and create an environment for economic growth in Pensacola and across our entire state,” Gov. Rick Scott said.
Santa Rosa County unemployment rate remained steady at 4.6 percent from October to November. Santa Rosa County had a total of 3,475 persons still unemployed. The year-ago unemployment rate in Santa Rosa County was 4.5 percent.
In Escambia County, Alabama, unemployment dropped from 6.6 percent in October to 6.2 percent in November. That represented 923 people unemployed in the county during the month. One year ago, the unemployment rate in Escambia County, Alabama, was 6.5 percent.
Florida’s jobless rate increased slightly for the second consecutive month, according to numbers released Friday by the state Department of Economic Opportunity. The state posted a November unemployment rate of 4.9 percent, with the number going up by 0.1 percentage point in each of the past two months. The latest figure represented an estimated 482,000 Floridians out of work from a workforce of 9.88 million. The number of unemployed people grew by 10,000 from October to November, while the workforce increased by 64,000 in the same time, according to the state figures.
Alabama’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, at 5.9 percent in November, was up from October’s rate of 5.7 percent and was below the year-ago rate of 6.2 percent.
The jobless numbers released by Florida and Alabama do not include persons that have given up on finding a job and are no longer reported as unemployed.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.
Shop With A Cop: Deputies Take Needy Kids Shopping
December 17, 2016
Dozens of Escambia County children had the chance to “Shop With a Cop” Friday afternoon at Walmart on Highway 29.
Each of the 63 children received $200 to shop with a deputy from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. They were able to gift shop for family members and themselves.
The children were selected with the help of the Escambia County School District, and the shopping trips were make possible thanks to donors.
NorthEscambia.com photo by Gary Amerson and others, click to enlarge.
Central Takes Jay Tourney; Northview Tops Jay In OT Thriller
December 17, 2016
The Central Jaguar boys and girls won the Jay Christmas Tournament Friday night at Jay High School.
Boys Championship:
Central 62, PCA 61
Boys Consolation:
Northview 63, Jay 61
In the consolation boys game, the Northview Chiefs beat the Jay Royals 64-63 in an overtime thriller.
The game was tied 50-50 at the end of regulation. The Chiefs were down 61-58 with 16.2 seconds in the overtime period and were down 62-61 with 7.3 seconds remaining. After gaining a point on a free throw, the Royals were up 63-61. The Chiefs took the win on a buzzer-beating three pointer to take the tournament’s third place spot.
For a Northview over Jay photo gallery, click here.
Article continues below photo.
Girls Championship:
Central 42, Jay 27
Girls Consolation:
Milton 39, Northview 35
Milton dominated the first period to take a 15-5 lead over Northview, but the Chiefs answered with a strong second period to make it 19-18 at the half. The Panthers went on to take the win 39-34 Friday afternoon at Jay High School.
For a Milton vs. Northview photo gallery, click here.
FRIDAY results:
Girls
Central 51 Milton 29
Jay 57 Northview 19
Boys
Central 91 Northview 52
PCA 71 Jay 47
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Ernest Ward Middle School Presents Christmas Program
December 17, 2016
Ernest Ward Middle School presented their annual Christmas program Friday morning.
For a photo gallery, click here.
On Christmas weekend, NorthEscambia.com will bring you a video from the program.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
East Tops West In OT At All Star Football Game
December 17, 2016
For the first time in five years, the East beat the West in the Pensacola Sports Association Subway All-Star football game Friday night.
The East, comprised of seniors from Santa Rosa and Okaloosa counties, beat Escambia County’s West team 10-7 in overtime at the Blue Wahoos Stadium.
The first score came for the West on a 15-yard touchdown pass from Z’Khari Blocker (Escambia) to AJ Yates (Catholic).
The game was tied 7-7 headed into overturn when the West’s Jake Henry (Tate) threw an interception. That allowed the East’s Colton Norris (Rocky Bayou) to kick a field goal that made it through the upright’s despite a hands on touch from Antonio Moultrie (West Florida).
Martin McGhee (Escambia) was named West Offensive MVP, while Robert Reeves (PHS) was named West Defensive MVP). Offensive MVP for the East was Jordan Tinder (Niceville) and Braijon Carr (Niceville) to East Defensive MVP.
At a Thursday night banquet, Tate’s Raymond Freeman was awarded the Senior Scholar Athlete Award for the West.
Pictured top: Tate’s Jake Henry (#17) with pass for the West. Pictured inset: Northview’s Luke Ward reaches for a catch for the West. Pictured below: Northview’s Ohijie Elliot in pursuit for the West. Photos by Andrew Garner/Atmore Advance for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Get Help Wrapping Your Gifts From The Tate Band
December 17, 2016
The Tate High School band will provide gift wrapping services at the Walmart on Highway 29 in Ensley today from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. ; Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, December 20, 22, 23, 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.; and Saturday, December 24 from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Pictured: Tate Band volunteers wrapping gifts last Christmas. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Shortage Of Reddi-wip, Other Whipped Creams Due To Cantonment Explosion
December 16, 2016
A nationwide shortage of canned whipped cream is being attributed to a fatal explosion in Cantonment in late August.
A local man was killed in the explosion of several nitrous oxide tanks in a loading bay at the Airgas plant near Ascend Performance Materials on Old Chemstrand Road.
The chemical is used as a medical anesthetic and as a propellant in foods like Reddi-wip and other canned whipped creams. There’s a priority for medical uses among the remaining nitrous oxide supply.
“Due to an industry-wide supply issue, there is currently a shortage of some whipped toppings, including Reddi-wip. We are proactively managing the production of Reddi-wip, and are doing the best we can to make it available to as many consumers as possible,” Reddi-whip spokesperson Lanie Friedman said. “To clarify, this is impacting any company that uses nitrous oxide in food, so not just our brand. Obviously, medical usage of nitrous oxide takes priority at this point.”
“In late August, an incident occurred at a production facility in Cantonment, Florida operated by Nitrous Oxide Corp, an Airgas company (“Airgas Nitrous Oxide”), that impacted production at the facility indefinitely as well as Airgas Nitrous Oxide’s supply of nitrous oxide in the short-term. Airgas Nitrous Oxide is making all possible efforts to remedy the situation as quickly as possible. Impacted customers, including those who manufacture whipped cream, have been notified directly,” said Sarah Boxley, a spokesperson for Airgas.
The canned whipped cream shortage should be short lived, at least for the Reddi-wip brand.
“We should have our full supply up and running by February. Again, we encourage shoppers to stock up early on Reddi-wip during our peak holiday season,” Friedman said.
Century Chamber Elects Outgoing Mayor McCall As New President
December 16, 2016
Thursday, outgoing Century Mayor Freddie McCall was elected president of the Century Chamber of Commerce, where he plans to continue to champion the best Century has to offer.
“I intend to visit all the businesses in Century, hit the pavement and see that they are on board with what we are trying to do,” McCall said. “A big purpose of the chamber of commerce is work for new business and help our existing businesses try to be the best that they can be. We will work together with our businesses for a better community.”
McCall said he will also work to bring new businesses and industries to Century. He pushed for economic development while serving the past nine years as mayor, but he expects to be more productive with “more time on his hands”.
McCall’s second term as mayor comes to an end on January 1 as his new volunteer position as chamber president begins. He currently serves as chamber vice president.
Also Thursday, the Century Chamber Board of Directors elected Mary Hudson Bourgeois, owner of Hudson’s Grocery, as vice president; re-elected Kim Godwin, Town of Century, as secretary and re-elected Angie Kelley, Penair Century branch manager, as treasurer.
Pictured top: The Century Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors held a special meeting Thursday afternoon at Nadine McCaw Park to elect new officers. The short meeting was held in the park because the chamber’s board room was being prepped for a Christmas open house. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.