This could be the people’s year in Tallahassee, if you believe state lawmakers.
“There is a feeling out there that we in government aren’t listening, that in the sound and fury of partisan politics, the people’s voices are not being heard,” incoming Senate President Ken Pruitt, R-Port St. Lucie, said when he ascended to his new job earlier this year. “Floridians … want their elected leaders to come together to solve the problems they face every day.”
In recent years, legislative debate has been dominated by arguments over medical malpractice lawsuits, a tax on investment income paid by only a few residents, private school vouchers that fewer than 800 students around the state used, and the death penalty. All things that, while extremely important for some, don’t regularly touch most Floridians’ lives.
That can’t be said about this year’s agenda, which will be dominated by the two top issues facing most Florida property owners – taxes and insurance.
With property insurance, lawmakers didn’t even wait for the legislative session that starts March 6. They held a special session in January and passed a wide-ranging bill many say will lower rates.
“There’s never been a year that could have more of an effect on the masses,” said Ron Book, who has been lobbying at the Capitol for almost 40 years.
Like Pruitt, new House Speaker Marco Rubio came in preaching about how the political fights of recent years have been about issues that don’t affect many people.
“The biggest thing missing in politics is relevance,” said Rubio, R-Miami. “People want to make sure that what you talk about in the political process is relevant to their daily lives.”
The insurance bill passed in January won’t give rate relief to many for several months, and lawmakers are likely to continue working on the issue in the regular session.
The Senate has been holding hearings around the state to listen to people who need property tax relief. Among the ideas floated by lawmakers are increasing the homestead exemption to make less of a home’s value taxable, allowing people to keep a cap on their taxes when they move, limiting spending by local governments, rolling back property tax rates, and even eliminating property taxes and replacing the lost money with a higher sales tax.
Another issue that surveys show is always on ordinary people’s radar screens is education.
The backing by Gov. Charlie Crist of some populist education ideas will push them in to the legislative agenda. For one, Crist plans to follow through on cutting class sizes, something voters overwhelmingly supported when they put a cap on students per class in the state constitution in 2002.
Surveys have also shown support for higher teacher salaries – which Crist is pushing in his proposed budget through boosted merit pay.
Crist does have a priority he’s pushed for a few years – one he argues could affect any Floridian, albeit not most. It’s sending violent probation violators to jail more often, something lawmakers have balked on in past years because of the cost. While most people aren’t victims of violent crime, just about anyone could be and Crist says everyone would be made safer if his “anti-murder” bill is passed.
Rubio’s pet project has been to create a list of “100 ideas” that lawmakers will consider. He held town-hall style meetings around the state — he called them “idea-raisers” to contrast with the “fundraisers” many people associate with lawmakers traveling out of town.
“I really believe that one of the stories behind the session will be the taking of this agenda that was collected from real, everyday people and turning it into public policy,” Rubio said.
One thing on Floridians’ minds that lawmakers will address is disaster response. After tornadoes struck central Florida on Feb. 2, many have wondered whether a better warning system could be devised. While no new laws have been proposed, legislative committees are studying the subject.
And some people in southwest Florida may be concerned about whether their vote counts after another election in which some were left doubting. In the race to replace Katherine Harris in Congress, Republican Vern Buchanan was declared the winner by just 369 votes, but more than 18,000 ballots didn’t have a choice recorded in the race. Some said that was a peculiarly high number.
Crist is proposing that lawmakers spend about $32 million to convert all voting machines in Florida to ones that can produce paper trails, unlike the touchscreen machines currently used. Another proposal would give voters the option of choosing “none of the above,” instead of just skipping a race, making it clear if someone didn’t vote on purpose.
Topics Florida Legislation Property
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