Notes For Tuesday, April 01, 2003

NEWS FLASH - BUSH PUTS ASIDE PARTISANSHIP AND RIGHT WING IDEOLOGY TO CRAFT RESPONSIBLE BUDGET - April fools!

"Jeb!" Says Jump!, the Florida Times Union Asks How High? Is this high enough? No . . . how about this?

A Sad Tale - It's a sad tale, and it starts with "one Baxter Troutman. Though his name sounds like it belongs in a Kurt Vonnegut novel, Troutman is a freshman Republican legislator from Winter Park." Read on: "Swept away by a lobbyist's wave of influence" (Via FlaBlog).

It's A Cheap Shot, But You Gotta Love It - "Florida legislators don't like it when critics suggest that Tallahassee lawmakers subject themselves to the same Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) that students must take. So how about giving legislators the LCAT? That's short for "Legislative Comprehension and Accountability of Taxes." Specifically, it's a little written exam that asks one question: 'There are some 300 exemptions in the Florida Tax Handbook for sales taxes. Briefly explain why they are there. If you believe they are justified, state in 10 words or fewer why each should remain.'" See "A legislative test".

Here A Voucher, There A Voucher, Everywhere A Voucher . . . - "A House panel approved a bill Monday to reduce the size of classes in public schools by letting districts give vouchers and give students diplomas after three years in high school." See "Panel puts vouchers in class-cap bill".

Workers' Comp Disaster - "Florida is mired in a workers' compensation crisis that requires the undivided attention of its lawmakers. The best way for the Legislature to deal with the complex issues involved is to call a special session to address and adopt meaningful remedies." There likely will be a special session, but we doubt it will be over workers' comp.

It's All The Trial Lawyers' Fault - "In a campaign-like swing, Bush and Lt. Gov. Toni Jennings held round-table discussions at hospitals across Florida to rally support for caps on medical malpractice lawsuits and other medical reforms." See "Governor promotes ceiling on malpractice damages".

Sweet Irony - "It is ironic that while doctors lobby the Legislature for a cap on malpractice awards, one of their own has filed a bill in the Florida Senate to keep secret any adverse reports of a physician's performance." "Doctors' performance should not be kept secret from public", in the Sun Herald.

You Got A Problem With That? "Florida's sugar industry is hiring high-powered lobbyists and preparing to push legislation that environmentalists charge would severely set back a yearslong effort to restore the Everglades." See "Environmentalists leery of lobbyists recently hired by state's sugar industry".

"This Puts [Bush's] Whining About School Spending In Perspective" - "[W]e recently learned that Florida has dropped from 35th to 41st in the nation in per-student funding, with most of that decline coming under Jeb's reign. We now are 17 percent below the national average. But it is even worse than that.When you consider school funding vs. average income, we are last in the nation in how much we contribute toward schools. We are the worst Scrooges in the United States when it comes to educating our kids. This puts Jeb's whining about school spending in perspective." This is Mike Thomas' column yesterday (sorry we missed it, But Thomas is always a bit slow to things as well).

With All Due Respect, We Doubt It - ''I would probably be a target ['of 'al Qaeda or some other nemesis'], being a Cabinet member,'' said Charlie Bronson as he explained why he wants to pack heat in Tallahassee while in government meetings. See "Agriculture chief locked and loaded". 6:00 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]