That's probably as close as I'll ever get to commuter rail in Central Florida. It's my son's LEGO train set.

The defeat of the CSX incentive-laden bill has been hailed as a savings to taxpayers. Two quick questions though

1. When in the next few decades do you think building a commuter rail line will be cheaper?
2. How do you plan on building a rail line without some sort of involvement from CSX?

Here are a few quick answers:

1. Now or Never? If there is one certainty other than death and taxes, it's that major public-infrastructure projects don't get cheaper over time. So if you're complaining about the cost now, just wait a few years....especially when we don't have any Federal funds. Throw in a connection to Tampa and watch the cost get even higher. However land is a bit cheaper today than it was two years ago. Perhaps this recession is good for something :-)
2. Good Luck. They own the major rail lines in the area, so that leaves you with three options: a. build your own, sure....any estimate on what that right-of-way would be? b. deal with the devil, CSX that is....and I bet after this last go around they won't be lowering their price...or c. Use the center of I-4, after all that's what we widened it for right?

Once again regionalism has screwed over the area. Lakeland doesn't want more freight trains, Orlando is sick of them and wants commuter rail, Winter Haven doesn't seem to care as long as their is tax revenue to be gained. South Florida doesn't like funding an Orlando rail initiative with limited immunity, even though they benefit from a similar deal. The Four Corners is growing with residents that work and play in the Osceola/Orange area and we just killed their rail deal, that should go over well. The list can go on and on.

I hope that something good will come out of all this. Hopefully the entire region will begin to think about a good rail system, but it's going to be hard for any Orlando politician to deal with Lakeland for a bit. They'll get over it.....but when?

One day the planning will start and then the finger-pointing will resume all over. What's that...you want to build a high-speed rail connection between Orlando and Tampa but bypass downtown Lakeland and Winter Haven? No way!

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Will there ever be decent rail in Central Florida? In the past year I've seen a number of great commuter rail systems, but alas I don't think we'll ever get there.

I am often in San Francisco/San Jose/Palo Alto for business and I often use CalTrain when I'm there. I don't know the political/financial back-story on CalTrain, but I know it works for me and works well. If I'm at my Palo Alto office, I can get on CalTrain and be in the city within an hour and thanks to EVDO, I can work the entire way...or I can just relax. Something a car never allows. If only we had something like this in Florida.

I experienced something similar in the UK recently. Work had me staying in Windsor, but London was just a short/reliable train-ride away. The SouthWest Trains service was great and I ended up using it for three round-trips in 4 days. On two occasions I used it during rush hour. It's hard to imagine folks in Florida switching to a train-commute lifestyle, but I enjoyed it. Part of this is the make-up of our urban centers.......or perhaps more specifically our lack of urban centers. It would be nice to live in the English countryside and have work be a nice train commute.

Of course, once I arrive in San Francisco or London there is a good subway/transport system in place there to get me around the rest of the city. Something Orlando and Tampa are missing.

That's one of the often cited issues related to subways/rail systems. Cities like London/New York/Chicago had systems in place that allowed development around them. Trying to build after the fact is difficult and expensive, just ask MARTA about that.

When F O X, that's Florida Overland Express to you newbies, or whatever it was going to be called was a glimmer of hope I was just that, hopeful. I was traveling to Jacksonville quite a bit and the drive was killing me. I looked forward to sitting back, relaxing and doing some work while somebody else took care of the transit. Ah yes, dreams of the TGV and Thalys from my honeymoon in Europe.

So I'll repeat the question, will there ever be decent rail in Central Florida?

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So the CSX project is dead? The Ledger talks about the end of the CSX bill, while the News Chief talks about how the Integrated Logistics Center (ILC) is still on track (sorry for the bad pun):

Neither the intermodel center nor the ILC were dependent upon the commuter rail plan getting through the Legislature, said Sease, the CSX spokesman. If anything, it was the other way around, he said, adding that the commuter rail system will not work without the Winter Haven terminal.

That's the quote in the News Chief from CSX's Gary Sease. Is this true? Perhaps. If it is, things are about to get much more interesting, after all, we're just finishing season one.

Lakeland was upset with increased train traffic brought on by the ILC, or was it the commuter rail plan? Either way, they lobbied hard and won, at least they think they did. After all the CSX deal is dead. Well at least the commuter rail portion of it. But CSX says they're not related.

If the ILC goes through, then Lakeland will have their cake and eat it too, except the opposite...what's that? Losing your cake and paying for it too?

If the ILC is built, expect more freight traffic. What's stopping CSX from running more freight traffic through Lakeland/Polk County? After all, they own the tracks, can they do what they want? Actually that's a good question, Billy/Tom? Can they just do what they want, does it require any government approval to increase the number of trains, or can they just do it?

If so, then let's look at the recap: Lakeland helps defeat the commuter rail bill and manages to upset most of the Orlando area in the process. Then, at the end of the day it still might see more train traffic.

What's the next step?

What's that....the Van Fleet trail? Sure, that's easy for Lakeland....make it Polk City's problem, after all they're a bit below the lower-middle-class status and won't mind more trains.

What's the solution for commuter rail? Will we ever see a commuter line from Tampa to Orlando? And can that be done without involving CSX? Ask Dennis Ross (from The Ledger):

"They still hold all of the cards," Ross said, referring to the railroad corporation's ownership of the tracks.

In Part 2 I'll look at some recent commuter rail experiences I've had and in Part 3...well, we'll see.

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When The Ledger purchased the News Chief, one of the benefits I hoped for was improved reporting, specifically around the CSX story. The News Chief has long ignored the CSX story from an investigative standpoint. Looks like things haven't changed much. Great case-in-point this morning. Shown below are the front pages of the News Chief and The Ledger.

The Ledger has a 'Special Report' on the CSX deal. Big news, with an investigation into the secrecy surrounding the state's deal with CSX. Surely this story has impact on Winter Haven? After all we're the proposed location of the ILS.

Nope, the News Chief featured a story about CSX, but a bit more positive....construction could start soon.

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Author/Consultant/Marketing-Guru Seth Godin has a new book coming out at the end of the year called Meatball Sundae. You may know Seth from his books like Purple Cow and All Marketers Are Liars. What does this have to do with Polk County? Two things:

1. I'm mentioned in the book :-)
2. My mention is related to the Katherine Harris comment spam issue I dug up last year.

Two friends that received galley copies of the book shared the news with me, for the rest of us, we'll need to wait till the book is released on Dec 27th.

As a refresher, I along with a number of other bloggers were receiving comment spam related to Katherine's run for Senate. The strange thing was all the comments were coming from India.

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It seems like so far away, but this time last year we were right in the middle of election season for county commission. On Sept 18, 2006 I attended the Tiger Bay debate in Bartow, FL. It was there that Randy Wilkinson, Robert Connors, Jean Read and Bruce Parker squared off.

What else happened in September of 2006?

- Randy had his DUI/non-DUI in Lakeland
- Cypress Gardens Filed Chapter 11

I also asked, "How Divided is Polk County?" That post seems somewhat timely given the recent battles of the CSX project. Take a look at this quote:

In politics and local issues, folks in Lakeland just don't care/worry about what happens politically or growth-wise in Winter Haven and vice versa. In the mean time, nobody seems to pay too much attention to the Four Corners area, which just happens to be the fastest growing part of the county.

People care now :-)

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The big news is that Fred Thompson is visiting Lakeland this weekend. Great exposure for Lakeland and Polk County correct? Not so fast.

As the article states, I think some local folks hoped Fred would be doing something, err...more positive in the area.

It's not the big sit-down dinner and speech at the Yacht Club that local Republican Party planners had hoped for, but the former U.S. senator from Tennessee and now presidential candidate, Fred Thompson, will be in Lakeland at 11 a.m. Saturday to speak to those attending a gun show at The Lakeland Center.

I imagine that the national media will be covering Fred's Florida tour. What will be shown about Lakeland in the national spotlight? A gun show.

Why is it that each time our area makes the national news it's always 'interesting'. Hopefully Fred's handlers will keep him from nude-alligator wrestling.

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I decided to head down to the Supervisor of Elections office in Bartow to catch the live-election results. Years ago this used to be a major-all-night affair. Now-a-days with the ballot boxes dialing-in shortly after the polls close it's a quick event.

That's the canvassing board and some election officials shortly before 7pm this evening in Bartow, FL

Here are the FINAL results:

City Commission: Seat 1
38.6% - Robert "Bob" Jardine
61.4% - James "JP" Powell

City Commission: Seat 2
68.33% - Nathaniel Birdsong
31.67% - Macy Butler

City Commission: Seat 3
74.81% - Jeff Potter
25.19% - Don Drefke

6 of 6 of Precincts Reporting Plus Absentees

I guess you need a nickname to run for Seat 1.

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City elections are being held in Winter Haven today. City Commission seats 1, 2 and 3 are up for grabs. If you're a resident, go out there and vote.

I'm in one of those limbo positions. I live right outside the city limits, so I can't vote, but my life is impacted by the decisions made by the city commission.

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I know I've received e-mails from Adam Putnam's office before, but I guess they never really had a formal e-mail newsletter. Shown below is the first 'official' one. I'm amazed it's taken his office this long to develop this type of communication, who knows maybe we'll see a blog by 2010. Here's the sign-up for the e-newsletter.

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Tim Harris, Polk County School Board member from District 7 has a blog. There is only one post up right now. It's dated June 22nd, 2007 and discusses School Concurrency.

According to the PCSB web site, District 7 includes the following schools: Auburndale Senior, Caldwell Elementary, Combee Elementary, Doris A Sanders Learning Center, Lake Gibson Middle, Lake Gibson Senior, Lena Vista Elementary, Polk City Elementary, Stambaugh Middle and Wendell Watson Elementary.

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Over at the Polk Politics blog Bill Rufty reports that Don Gifford is considering running for county commission again.

Gifford said he will run for the seat in the 2008 election. English won the seat in the Republican primary in 2004, but Gifford believes that English is now vulnerable for supporting a tax increase for infrastructure.

Don is somewhat of an interesting figure.

A number of years ago a group from Lakeland met with Don and a few other commissioners for a short Q&A. I was part of that group.

To set the stage, this was during the time that some of the commissioners began lobbying to have a copy of the Ten Commandments placed in the County Administration Building. (As a side bar, the debate about the oversight/position of constitutional officer, i.e. Supervisor of Elections, Tax Collector, etc. was also brewing)

One of the audience members asked whether it was a waste of local tax payer money to mount a legal battle to get the 'monument' placed in the building. Don and Randy Wilkinson both noted that the law firm representing the county was doing the work pro-bono.

The follow-up question from the audience switched the tack from money to time. How much time was being spent by county staff to defend the position? Time of course being money. Don began a lengthy response to defend the position.

Don rambled on and lost much of the audience, till the very end. Don said (talking about the issue of placing the Commandments in the building):

"What we're dealing with is more than right versus wrong, we're dealing with a battle of good versus evil. It's a battle of Jesus versus Satan."

I think the proposition of Jesus and Satan battling it out in Bartow woke much of the audience up. Most of us looked at each other to clarify if we did in fact hear what we just heard.

To break the silence in the room I jokingly asked if Jesus or Satan were constitutional officers?

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The big political news earlier this week was Adam Putnam announcing his support for Fred Thompson. Seth McKeel e-mailed to let us know he was joining Adam in his support of Fred's campaign:

Wanted to let you know that I have discussed the Thompson campaign at length with Congressman Putnam. He asked for my support and I'm excited to come on board the Florida team with the Congressman.

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This was Callie Neslund's first official week in our office and she has made the transition seamlessly. She is doing a phenomenal job minding our local office while the Legislative Session is wrapping up. We are happy to have her on board and I encourage everyone to contact both my local and Tallahassee office if there is ever anything that I can do to help you. As always, our Lakeland office can be contacted at 863-647-4896 and our Tallahassee office can be reached at 850-488-9890.

DOCTOR OF THE DAY

One Lakelander (and our son, Seth's pediatrician), Dr. Robert Eanett was my guest this past Friday. Dr. Eanett was the Florida House of Representatives' Doctor of the Day. He saw to it that everyone was in good health and well taken care of. In the photo, Dr. Eanett is discussing some points with Speaker of the House Marco Rubio and me. It was a pleasure to host Dr. Eanett here at the capitol and give him the chance to see government in action in Tallahassee.

SESSION

Well, we are in the home stretch of this year's Legislative Session and things have been busy. This week we have been tackling some of Florida's biggest issues in the House of Representatives. We've seen issues like Prostitution, Abortion, and health care for Florida's children discussed in their entirety. The House has truly devoted itself to taking the lead in crafting responsible legislation that deals with these pressing issues. Despite the House's focus on the BIG ISSUES this week, there have been a number of other important activities.

LOCAL NEWS

After working through the weekend, The Schools and Learning Council finished working on its appropriations budget this week. I am proud to announce that our final product included $500,000 for Florida Southern College's Masters Degree Nursing Program. This money will be added to private donations already collected to bring a dynamic opportunity to Polk County. In addition to providing support to FSC, Florida has also allocated $10,000,000 for the University of South Florida to improve its campuses and education programs.

MY LEGISLATION

It was my good fortune to have celebrated getting TWO bills voted out of the House this week. My bill regarding Energy and Water conservation (HB271) was voted out unanimously on Tuesday and my pro-business Auto Dealer Franchise bill (HB 815) also passed unanimously yesterday.

GO GATORS

Urban Meyer, Chris Leak, and members of the National Champion UF Football team visited the floor of the Florida House of the Representatives at the invitation of the House Gator Caucus. As you can imagine, I was a "Proud Gator" as the House rolled out the red carpet and gave a fitting honor to the National Champs! Rumor has it we'll honor the National Championship Men's Basketball team this coming week...more in next week's report!!

SUMMER

As I move into the last week of this legislative session I am looking forward to the sprint to the finish line. The past two months have gone by so quickly and With summer approaching I look forward to being back in the district and look forward to visiting community members and organizations as I join the delegation to formally review the session.

As always, it is truly an honor to represent you in Tallahassee and I look forward to seeing you at home very soon.

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With only two full weeks remaining in Session, it's easy to see that "crunch time" has arrived. The House and Senate began conferencing on the budget this week (which will keep us all in Tallahassee over the weekend) with the goal of reconciling some fairly large differences between the two budgets. I serve as a conferee on the Schools and Learning Budget and am working hard to continue the funding for the development of the USF-Lakeland Campus, the Florida Southern College nursing program, as well as many other priorities important to our community. As always, it is an honor to serve you in this process and I look forward to being home soon! Below are a few of this weeks' highlights.

HOUSE AND SENATE PROPOSE PROPERTY TAX RELIEF:

After enthusiastic debate this week, I am proud to say that the House of Representatives passed the largest tax cut package in Florida's history. The Senate also proposed a property tax plan this week and a conference will begin next week. As this is likely the most important legislation we will pass all year, I wanted to devote a few lines below to explain the House proposal:

A Cut: Requires all local governments except schools to set property tax rates to where they would have been if tax revenues had grown only in proportion to community growth and inflation since FY 2003-04. Also, the Legislature must exempt hospital districts, fiscally constrained counties and cities therein, independent special districts, and children’s services councils from the required rate roll back by general law. Revenues used for hospital and children’s services programs by counties that provide those services from their general fund are exempt from the cap.

A Cap: Limits future local government revenues to the rolled-back-rate (which allows revenue growth in proportion to community growth) plus changes in the Consumer Price Index.

A Swap: Establishes a formula that provides local control and flexibility to further reduce property taxes on homestead properties:

- Automatic: Abolishes the required local effort (RLE) school board tax on all homestead properties and replaces it with a one cent sales tax. The RLE tax comprises about of 25% of property taxes statewide.

- Optional: By local county referendum, voters may choose to further reduce homestead property taxes by replacing the discretionary millage for school boards with a ½ cent sales tax. The referendum must be held by 2010.

- Optional: By local county referendum, voters may adopt an additional reduction of homestead property taxes by replacing all remaining property tax levies (i.e., county/city, special districts, MSTUs, etc.) with a 1 cent sales tax. The referendum must be held by 2010.

If both referendums pass, all homestead properties in the jurisdiction will be exempt from ad valorem taxes. The new total sales tax will be 2.5%. County governments will distribute sales tax funds within their county based on the existing sales tax distribution model.

Creates a tangible personal property exemption of $25,000 for businesses. This would create $180 million in savings to Florida businesses at current tax rates.

Creates more options for renters’ tax relief by granting the legislature broader authority to create statutory programs that target rental properties.

ENERGY/WATER CONSERVATION BILL CONSIDERED ON FLOOR

House Bill 271 which I have sponsored to encourage local and state government's water and energy conservation through performance contracting was heard on the House Floor this week and is expected to pass on third reading Monday. This is shaping up to be my first bill successfully passed through the process and it looks to be on a similar track in the Senate. This good bill expands an already existing energy efficiency program to include water and wastewater. The existing Guaranteed Energy performance Savings Contracting Act has been extremely successful in improving the efficiency of state, local and other governmental buildings. Rather than taxpayer dollars, retrofit and other conservation and efficiency measures are financed by a private sector contractor who performs the work, assumes all of the risk and who is compensated with a maximum twenty year payout only when actual efficiency savings result from the project.

UNIVERSITY NAMING BILL ADVANCES

Senator Paula Dockery and I are sponsoring House Bill 621 and Senate Bill 1160, which authorize the naming of university buildings and state facilities . SB1160 passed the Senate unanimously on Thursday. The legislation provides for the naming of buildings and facilities at UF, UCF, and USF, as well as the Dept. of Education building in Jacksonville, the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee, and the Fla Center for Nursing. Current law requires Legislative approval before naming a state building or other facility for a living person. This bill was originally filed to name the following buildings at the University of Florida:

- Mark Bostick Golf Course
- Katie Seashole Pressly Softball Stadium
- Bispham Turfgrass Support Building - IFAS
- L. Gale Lemerand Football Support Facility
- The bill will now be sent to the House for a vote

Again, it is an honor to serve in this process and I thank you for allowing me the opportunity.I look forward to seeing you when I return home in May.

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After a short break for Easter, the House was back in session this week. We are beyond the half-way mark and looking forward to the final few weeks, which are marked with fewer committee/council meetings and much more time on the House Floor. Rep. Altman (R-Melbourne) reflected this week on the imposing beauty of the House Chamber and how he never tires of walking onto the Floor. In the sometimes endless grind of floor debate (a combined 21 hours this week), Rep. Altman's reflection was a reminder to me of the privilege it is to serve here. I thank you for the that honor. Below are a few highlights of the week which I hope you find informative:

UF GATOR DAY and USF DAYS at the Capitol

The House was privileged to host dignitaries and honored guests from our own University of South Florida this week. I have joined the balance of the Polk Legislative delegation in support of the USF-Lakeland Campus. Both the House and Senate budgets currently contain important dollars aimed at making this campus' master plan a reality and I look forward to working to ensure that our efforts are enhanced as we move through the budget conference over the coming weeks (more on the budget below).

It was also an honor to host Albert, Alberta and Bob Villa as the House played host to the University of Florida for Gator Day! As a Gator Alum, I'm proud to be working with the University to accomplish some of their legislative priorities. Senator Dockery and I are sponsoring legislation to ensure that important donors to the University are appropriately honored through facility namings. Added attention was brought to our efforts in the House this week as Rep. Rivera sponsored an amendment to my bill to name the School of Education at the University of Florida after former Governor Jeb Bush whose lasting legacy will most certainly be education policy.

HOUSE PASSES BUDGET

The House yesterday passed the 2007-2008 Budget totaling $70.3 billion, which is $1 billion less than last year's budget. The state experienced less than estimated revenues which creates the need for the state to "tighten its belt" to ensure a sound fiscal position well into the future. Despite a tight budget cycle, the House plan includes a total education budget of $28.3 billion, which represents an increase of $395.6 million from last year. I am excited that we were able to put $3.4 million in for the USF Lakeland Campus and that is a number which we expect to increase during the conference with the Senate. The House budget proposes spending more than a billion dollars LESS than the Senate version so I expect a very interesting conference process as we move toward reconciling the differences. You can view the entire House Budget at (http://floridahousebudget.state.fl.us/) or you can view highlights of the budget here.

SENATE PROPOSES TAX REFORM

I was glad this week that the Senate unveiled its version of a comprehensive property tax reform package. There are very large differences between the House and Senate proposals. I am committed to real, meaningful, and comprehensive property tax reform and am looking forward to the conference process on reaching agreement with the Senate on this critical policy.

Again, I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to serve you in the Florida House. I look forward to hearing from you and especially to being back home in a few short weeks!

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We are wrapping up our fourth week of session...about half way through! Below are a few highlights of my week in the Capitol. Please feel free to contact my office at (863) 647-4896 or email me at seth@sethmckeel.com if we can be of any assistance to you.

MAP BILL SIGNING

The Governor yesterday signed the Merit Award Program legislation on which I have reported each week. It was a great day for Florida and an even better day for Florida's teachers. I could not have been more proud to be there or of the work the House and Senate did in passing this important bill.

PAGE SPOTLIGHT!

I was so honored to host Kyna Patel from Lakeland as House Page this past week. At a very young age of 11, she was a State Finalist in National Geographic Bee Challenge. She wants to be a Psychiatrist and, to that end, she is taking a course in Psychology in a summer program at Oxford University in England. Kyna is a dynamic young lady who reports that, while her feet are very tired, she benefited greatly from the experience! Kyna is in the eighth grade at Lawton Chiles Middle Academy and is the daughter of Piyush and Rupul Patel of Lakeland. Piyush is the owner of Kyra Infotech in Lakeland and has been recognized by the Governor as one of the state's outstanding minority businesses. Kyna and I were honored to grab a few seconds of Speaker Marco Rubio's time for this photo on the floor of the House on Thursday.

Again, I thank you for the honor you have given me and I sincerely appreciate all of the positive input, feedback and encouragement I have received from you any so many of our constituents during my first legislative session. I look forward to hearing from you and am thrilled to represent you.

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As Scott Maxwell puts it, the rest of the country is just now noticing Adam Putnam. The profile of Adam in today's New York Times will open a few eyes and put Bartow, FL on the map.

Over on the Polk County News Blog though, Billy has been doing an ongoing 'Adam Putnam Watch' which may have served as inspiration for the NYT piece :-)

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I'm writing to update you on the completion of the THIRD week of the 2007 Legislative Session. It has been a very exciting week to be in Tallahassee, and below are a few highlights from my week. I am thankful for the opportunity you have given me to represent you in the Florida House and have been humbled by the experience. If our office can be of any assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact us at (863) 647-4896 or email me at seth.mckeel@myfloridahouse.gov.

MERIT AWARD PROGRAM (MAP) UPDATE

As I have reported each week, significant progress has again been made on the revision to the former STAR program. As of yesterday, following a vote by the Senate, the full House of Representatives successfully passed the new Merit Award Program (MAP) and sent the legislation to the Governor for his signature. Click here for The Governor's statement on the bill.

The new MAP repeals the STAR Program and makes district participation in the Merit Based Pay Program voluntary. Unlike the STAR program, the Merit Based Pay Program would be administered locally according to teacher assessments based on student performance and professional practices. The bill allows teachers and administrators in participating districts to automatically qualify for the program, and stipulates that teacher bonuses be a minimum of 5% but no more than 10% of the average teacher’s salary in the participating district. I am extremely proud of this work product and proud also to have played a minor role in ensuring its passage in the House.

AGRICULTURE MATTERS!!

I was excited this week to host representatives of Hillsborough and Polk County's Phosphate and Agriculture Community such as members of CF Industries, the Polk and Hillsborough Farm Bureaus, and the Florida Strawberry Grower's Association including Megan Shelley, Miss Heart of Plant City pictured here. Florida's agriculture industry is strong and I believe this legislature is committed to protecting this leading economic engine in our state.

As I mentioned in an earlier Update, the legislature is poised to produce some very significant energy policy which will include renewable portfolio goals and which will align with the Commissioner of Agriculture's Farm to Fuel Initiative. The initiative will enhance the market for and promote the production and distribution of renewable energy from Florida-grown crops, agricultural wastes and residues, and other biomass and enhance the value of agriculture products in the State. I was privileged to work with Losonoco, Inc. who will be opening the State's first ethanol production facility in my district (Mulberry). Losonoco received a Renewable Energy Technology Grant from the state and I'm excited about the work they will be doing in my district! You can read more about their operation by clicking on the link below http://www.dep.state.fl.us/energy/energyact/files/grant/losonoco-mulberry.pdf

Again, it is truly an honor to represent you in your Florida Legislature and I thank you for the opportunity you have given me.

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I'm writing to update you on the conclusion of our second week of session. As always, I am honored to represent you and extremely thankful for the privilege you have given me. Below are a few highlights from this week in Tallahassee. I hope you find this information helpful and, if there are other issues on which you'd like to hear from us, or if we can be of any assistance to you, please call our office at (863) 647-4896 or email me at seth.mckeel@myfloridahouse.gov.

WATER CONSERVATION/EFFICIENCY LEGISLATION

Last week, I updated you on my first bill 's passage out of its first committee of reference. I am proud to let you know that this excellent legislation passed out of council successfully and is moving toward becoming law. House Bill 271 provides for the inclusion of water & wastewater efficiency & conservation measures in guaranteed performance savings contracts entered into by state agencies, municipalities, or political subdivisions, thereby encouraging these agencies to engage in major water and energy conservation retrofits by using guaranteed performance savings contracts which use private capital rather than risking public dollars.

PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY DATE

Florida is the largest and most diverse bellwether of national election results. However, nearly two dozen other states precede Florida on the primary calendar and preempt Florida's voice in the primary process. Under the current system, each party's nomination is basically a forgone conclusion by the time Florida's primary rolls around. House Bill 537 by Representative Rivera makes Florida more relevant in the process of selecting presidential candidates by moving up the date of Florida's presidential primary to more than a month earlier in the campaign season. We know that presidential candidates rely heavily on our state for campaign funds, and we believe they should also rely on Florida to become more familiar with issues that matter to our state and offer goals for their administration to address these concerns. If Florida is going to play such a key role in selecting our president, we should also play a part in determining the country's agenda. I look forward to House Bill 537's passage on the House Floor on Monday.

STAR (TEACHER MERIT PAY) UPDATE

The House Schools and Learning Council (on which I serve) successfully passed the STAR update package which I reported on last week. In a new development, the House reached agreement with the Senate on this issue, with some minor revisions, and the bill is ready for passage next week on the Floor of the House. I could not be more proud of the hard work our committee did in improving upon the original STAR plan. We gave districts more flexibility, empowered principals and school administrators and even garnered support from the teachers' union. And we balanced these changes with the legislature's strong desire for merit pay based on student learning gains. We listened to numerous merit pay models from around the country, took the best of the best and have come up with a plan that I believe will be a model for the nation. I am proud of our product and thank you all for your input and your concern for this important policy

Again, it is truly an honor to represent you in your Florida Legislature and I thank you for the opportunity you have given me.

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I'm writing to update you on the conclusion of our first, and VERY busy week of session. As always, I am honored to represent you in the Florida House of Representatives and I am sincerely grateful for the privilege you have given me.

FIRST BILL OUT OF COMMITTEE

On Wednesday, I successfully passed my first bill out of Chairman Ed Homan's Committee on Audit and Performance. House Bill 271 provides for the inclusion of water & wastewater efficiency & conservation measures in guaranteed performance savings contracts entered into by state agencies, municipalities, or political subdivisions, thereby encouraging these agencies to engage in major water and energy conservation retrofits by using guaranteed performance savings contracts which use private capital rather than risking public dollars.

COMPREHENSIVE ENERGY BILL

I am excited about the energy bill which was passed on Wednesday out of the House Committee on Energy (on which I serve). The bill proposes a comprehensive energy policy including support and funding for the Commissioner of Agriculture's "Farm to Fuel" initiative through which Florida will be a major player on the field of biofuel and ethanol production. In addition, the bill includes incentives for ethanol and biodiesel production, additional research and development for emerging technologies that reduce our dependence on foreign fuel sources as well as for technologies which reduce our over-reliance on natural gas as a feed stock for energy production. In addition, the bill establishes renewables goals for Florida and strong guidelines for the use of biodiesel in the state's vehicle fleet.

STAR (TEACHER MERIT PAY) REVISION

The House Committee on 21st Century Competitiveness (which I co-chair) heard the requests of MANY of our teachers and school personnel and I'm very proud of the reformed teacher performance pay bill passed out of our committee on Tuesday. This has been a widely publicized issue and I thought it appropriate to take a little "extra space" to give you some of details of this important legislation. Our proposal has eliminated the divisive 25% maximum, making ALL teachers eligible to receive a bonus. In addition, only a portion of teachers' eligibility will be based on student testing gains --not individual,one-time scores. FCAT data will be utilized or another objective measure to be determined by the school board in consultation with DOE for non FCAT subject areas. Teachers told us they didn't want to be subjected only to the results of one test and our committee concurred. Thus, a key point in this legislation is that in order to be considered, teachers will first qualify via a SUBJECTIVE criteria to be administered by the School Principal or administrator. Principals know their teachers best and they can and should play a key role in performance pay. Finally, under this proposal, tremendous flexibility is granted to the school districts and school-based personnel in developing the specifics for each district's individual plan. There isn't a cookie-cutter, state mandated plan, but each district will enjoy the flexibility to work with DOE to establish the merit pay plan which works best for them and which fits within the guidelines of the bill. In essence, I believe that through very hard work and some tough negotiation, we have met the legislature's objective of rewarding outstanding performance and balanced that with a plan that is fair, open to ALL instructional personnel and not based solely on one exam. I encourage you to follow this legislation and support its passage by the House and Senate so that fair, open and honest merit pay can finally be granted to our hard-working and much-deserving teachers.

Again, it is truly an honor to represent you in your Florida Legislature and I thank you for the opportunity you have given me.

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The Ledger has launched some blogs. (The Ledger is a client of mine, but I was not involved with the development/launch of these blogs) With that out of the way let's take a look under the hood.

Chuck over at Lakeland Local has some initial impressions. I especially agree with #3 on his list. Nowhere on the blog posts does it list the name of the author. That's one of the biggest tenants of blogging, taking ownership of your own words. It's kinda surprising from a journalism standpoint. I think however it's more a result of the platform they're using (iUpload) and not an omission on the part of the blog authors.

I'm looking forward to Lenore's blog, specifically since she said they (meaning the journalists at the paper) would never blog. Of course at the time I think she had the definition and purpose of a blog somewhat mixed up. Her first post sums up what we can expect.

The big issue with any newspaper blog is will the journalists adopt the methodology or just the tool? We'll check back in a few months from now and see.

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Here are a few quick thoughts after yesterday's election. I'll be posting more in the coming days.

1. A photo I took got picked up by Boing Boing and Wired, so traffic to my regular blog is quite high today.

2. We had no problems at all in our precinct (337) with the equipment or the process. I was lucky to have a great group of folks working with me. As far as I've read, there weren't any big problems anywhere else in Polk County either. Thanks to Lori, Christine, Judy, P.J., Terry, Chuck and the rest of the gang at the Polk Supervisor of Elections office.

3. Our precinct was one of only four from Florida (so far) to submit photos to the Polling Place Photo Project.

4. Ignorance is no excuse. An individual showed up at our polling location around 7:10 and was upset that they couldn't vote. I think the statement, "Well if I work late how am I supposed to get to the polls before 7?" was made. Luckily one of my poll workers gave them a good lecture, educating them on the finer points of absentee ballots and early voting. Folks you've had plenty of time to vote early, showing up at 7:10 and claiming you can't get there on time is no excuse.

5. Countering that, we had one young person dash in the door right before 7:00 p.m. He had gone to the wrong location first, but made the effort to get to the proper location right before closing time. He even jumped through the door and said, "I'm in the door before 7!".

6. Congrats to Jean Reed. I figured her race over Bruce Parker would be closer and could have gone the other way, but it's great to get somebody new into the system. Now let's see if a lone Democrat can achieve anything on the BOCC.

7. How did Randy win? The man has done it again. I thought for sure that Randy would be unseated this election, but all that developer money certainly helped him out. If you didn't notice Randy upgraded the design of his campaign signs right after the primary and put a ton of them out. The photo of Randy in the camo hat certainly paints a great picture of Polk County. He just needed to be eating a bag of Jelly Belly candy.

8. In contrast to Randy's win over Rober Connors, money isn't everything. Robert points out this fact about the Jean Reed/Bruce Parker race:

One note about Ms. Reed's campaign: She won with a very lean campaign budget. While Parker raised $103,700, Reed only raised $32,096

9. When does Katherine Harris publish her tell-all book?

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Hopefully you don't need a reminder that tomorrow is election day. But just in case you do....get out there and vote. If you're completely clueless you can visit the Polk Supervisor of Elections web site at PolkElections.com to get the details on your correct polling location.

EP will be dark for the next day and a half since I am working as a precinct clerk and can't really be browsing the net while the polls are open. If you vote in Precinct 337 be sure to look for me.

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You just have to love campaign finance reports. For those of you that don't know, campaigns are required to file extensive reporting on all their income (donations) and expenditures. The purpose is to keep the books open to expose any nefarious dealings. From a media (and public) standpoint it also provides a great deal of insight into some bizarre things.

Case in point, Wonkette reviewed the recent expenditures of Katherine Harris' Senate campaign and totaled up all the money that she has spent at Starbucks.

Katherine Harris has a very, very specific Starbucks order: “Triple Venti, no fat, no foam, extra hot, with pink sugar.” It is her fuel, it is what keeps her going. If she doesn’t get it, she gets angry. Which might be how her cash-strapped campaign ended up spending almost a thousand dollars at Starbucks this fall alone.

Total Starbucks runs, July-September: 133
Total cost to the campaign: $948.05

Wonkette also provides a handy link to the raw data for those with some time to spare.

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There is less than a week to go before the general election on Tuesday, Nov 7th. I am posting a few quick polls for readers to vote on:

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One of the closely watched local races in Polk County is the County Commission District 2 race between Randy Wilkinson (R) and Robert Connors (D). Of course the question is who will win, but how close will it be?

Have the anti-Randy forces secured enough support to elect Robert or will it be a close result with Randy winning again?

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I4Jamming is keeping a running tab on which newspaper endorsements the Florida candidates are picking up. Robert updates the list daily so keep the link handy.

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The second of the two debates this evening featured the candidates for the Florida State Legislature, District 63. Debating were James Davis (D) and Seth McKeel (R).

The debate was taped by PGTV and will be shown on Channel 19 (local cable) on Sunday, October 22nd at 1:30 pm.

All the following notes are done live and may contain some small typos or errors, you've been warned :-) I also recorded the session. You can click here to listen.

Opening Remarks:

SM: I want to use this time to introduce myself to the audience. I am a Polk County native, in fact a 5th generation Floridian. I served on the Lakeland City Commission for five years. He and his wife work together in real estate. He feels he's well suited to take on the role.

JD: Born and raised in Polk County, he considers himself a crusader for the people. We have a number of challenges that we face, he is the candidate to help face those issues and be a voice of the people. To include all the people, not just the privileged few.

First Question: If elected will you support a increase to funding for public libraries?

JD: We have a problem with focusing our efforts on education. Libraries are a part of the educational system. He'd support the increased funding for libraries. There needs to be more effort put forth towards the educational system.

SM: He has some experience with library system. As a Lakeland City Commissioner he helped fund the city library system. There are some exciting changes coming up within the library system and funding is important. Technology offers some opportunities as well. Libraries are an important part of workforce development and must be supported

Second Question: Today is a national day against poverty, what is your plan to help fight poverty in the county?

SM: He has had experience with poverty within the City of Lakeland. It's an issue in the county and the state. Ultimately it comes back to education. By providing a good educational based we can break the cycle of poverty.

JD: Working with the One-Stop Center for Workforce he has seen first-hand the isuses related to poverty. Florida is a service based state. There is a widening gap between the rich and the poor within the state. We should raise the minimum wage so that those working minimum wage jobs can support themselves.

Third Question: In light of the recent poplulation growth in Florida what are your thoughts about reviving the bullet train?

JD: I think that it should be done. We need to bring together the cities and counties within Florida. A transit system like the bullet train would perhaps bring jobs and other opportunities to the people of Florida.

SM: The transportation infrastructure deficit is growing and continues to grow. When he left the Lakeland City Commission there was a transportation deficit of $80-90 million in Lakeland alone. High speed rail does need to be considered, but it needs to be part of a comprehensive plan to improve all transportation in Florida.

Fourth Question: How does your business experience prepare you for service in the legislature?

SM: He is a small business owner and takes a focus on small businesses. His experience in real estate and local government gives him the ability to oversee cooperation between government and business as well as the interaction between state agencies.

JD: I too have a real estate background, he is a broker and he is an educator as well as coach. He is used to challenges. He is used to working for what he wants. He is a winner. He works with businesses to assist them with staffing and other issues.

Fifth Question: How would you improve education in Polk County?

JD: FCAT is a major issue, the teachers in Polk County are underpaid. The problem is not the FCAT though, we need to focus on the basics. We have been saddled with the No Child Left Behind act but no funding to support it.

SM: Polk County recently saw a large increase in educational funding, but it still has a long way to go. There should not be a one-size-fits-all model, it does not work to serve all the students. He would work to bring better cooperation between business and schools.

Sixth Question: How do you propose to continue Florida's strong economy?

SM: The Florida economy is in good shape. The tourism and agricultural industries have been great resources for the state, but we need to diversify. Hi-tech industry must be attracted, but that relies upon the educational system to provide the workforce.

JD: He feels that the Florida economy is not as bright as many think. We need to work to bring better jobs to the state, but once again it's the educational system that most provide the worforce.

Closing Statements:

JD: He was born and raised in Polk County. Rather than hearing the issues, he has lived them. Florida has a bright future and Polk County has the opportunity to lead the state. He will not be afraid to step forward and provide the leadership needed.

SM: He has laid out the challenges we face but also he has provided solutions for those issues. He looks forward to serving the residents of the county.

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This evening the League of Women Voters of Polk County and the Lakeland Chapter, Florida Bipartisan Civic Affairs Group held a debate between the three candidates for the 12th Congressional District of Florida. Debating were Ed Bowlin (I), Adam Putnam (R) and Joe Viscusi (I).

The debate was taped by PGTV and will be shown on Channel 19 (local cable) on Sunday, October 22nd at 1:30 pm.

All the following notes are done live and may contain some small typos or errors, you've been warned :-) I also recorded the session, you can click here to listen.

Opening Remarks:

JV: Thanked the League for sponsoring the event and appreciated the folks that turned up in person. Joe feels that any election is about accountability. He wants to separate himself from Adam on the major issues. If you are against the war in Iraq then vote for Joe, if you are for the war then vote for Adam. Offshore drilling, Joe is against it while Adam is for it.

AP: Thanked the League and looked forward to getting into the issues. He has had the honor of representing the 12th District for the past six years. He feels that this district needs somebody that can be a leader in Washington. They need to move beyond sound-bite politics and do the work. Adam is proud to be from the area and that's one of the reasons he has never moved to Washington. Adam then went on to note some of the recent positive economic indicators.

EB: Congressional approval rate is under 20%, that's why we need change. His campaign is about the issues, he is not about attacking other candidates. He disagrees with Adam's positive economic outlook. We have to have people that are willing to fight for the people. The majority of American people want us out of the war, that's the type of change we need.

First Question: How does your background, education and life experience qualify you to represent the 12th District?

AP: Native of Polk County, 5th generation Floridian. There needs to be a balance between growth and the environment. The agricultural industry within the county provides a good base, but we are bleeding jobs because of our lack of an energy policy. Immigration is also a major issue.

EB: Wide range of life experiences. Raised in a single-parent family, served his country, he is a third-generation Marine. He has sent his children off to war, his son has served two tours in Iraq. He has run a business for 12 years.

JV: I've lived in Polk County for over 30 years and has done so by choice. We don't choose how we're born. Unlike Adam, he was not born into a family of wealth. He has worked to earn his place.

Second Question: What would you do with the thousands of unexploded cluster bombs and mines in Lebanon?

EB: It should be Israel's responsibility to handle looking through the bombs/mines. We can't continue to look in to all these foreign issues. We have too many issues at home to worry about all the foreign disputes.

JV: We're talking about violence, death. Hundreds of thousands of people dying because people aren't willing to talk things over. There needs to be a change in how things are dealt with.

AP: Israel is the only active democracy in the Middle East and we need to support them. We did not provoke the attacks on 9/11. We need to work with our allies in the Middle East and continue to fight those that wish to do us harm.

Third: What are your thoughts on Social Security?

JV: He doesn't think that the Social Security system is in as much trouble as the administration would like us to believe. He promises to research the issue and not just vote along party lines.

AP: It's one of the fundamental generational issues we face. Anybody under 35 will not have funds available to them if no changes are not made. We are unable to solve the issues since there has not be cooperation between the parties. There is no question that social security will be bankrupt 2040 if nothing is done.

EB: He agrees with Adam. He has worked up a solution with his economics professor. Do not privative the system, personalize it. The money that is put in should be loaned to state and local municipalities and then that will generate interest. The system needs to be self-supporting.

Fourth Question: Would you allow a citizen's committee to investigate ethics issues?

AP: Recently there has been work to bring in outside investigators to look into some of the recent issues in Congress, unfortunately the minority leader has blocked some of this.

EB: His degree is in political science. Nobody wants to be part of ethics committee, they don't want to dime each other out. That's part of the problem with the current system.

JV: There is need for outside oversight. The Republicans control almost all levels or government. Loads of Adam's money is from lobbyists.

Fifth Quesitions: Please comment on the military services act, can US citizens and not only immigrants be labeled enemy combatants?

EB: No, he does not like what the current adminsitration is doing with the interrogation of prisoners, we're opening ourselves up to be a target.

JV: It's all part of this administrations policy to violate our privacy. We need to treat all people equally.

AP: We will not turn over American serivce-men to an international body for interrogation.

Closing Statements:

JV: Once again we have an incumbent in office. This should be his job assessment. If you're satisfied with what's going on in Iraq then vote for Adam. If you are for offshore drilling vote for Adam, if not vote for me. If you are for cutting student aid then vote for Adam, if not vote for me.

AP: We have global challenges and generational challenges. Social security, health care, you can't do it with sound bites, you can't do it with puppets or pirates. People want somebody in Washington that can get things done.

EB: The major issue is the war. Unlike most members of Congress he has family that has been there. His son doesn't know what their job is in Iraq anymore. Our job should be to bring them back. This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed, and needs to be addressed now.

The second debate will feature the candidates for State Legislature District 63.

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Ze Frank does a great job comparing voting to going on a date:

the show with zefrank

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If you follow Orlando politics/issues/news then you know what's been going on recently with Doug Guetzloe. If you don't, you can check out the recent Orlando Sentinel articles:

- Gaylord Palms paid Guetzloe during fight over center
- Guetzloe got toll-agency money
- Top law firm paid Guetzloe $470,000

Update: The Orlando Magic now admit they paid Guetzloe $200,000 for 'consulting'.

Doug heads up the Ax the Tax group that fights for taxpayer rights by rooting out overspending by local governments and in his view unnecessary taxes. It's ironic then that the type of contract he received ($107,500) from the Orlando-O