Recent editorials from Florida newspapers:
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March 28
Naples Daily News on greyhound racing:
Florida finally got out of the starting gate this year in beginning to reform the greyhound racing industry, but only stumbled to the first turn and is nowhere near the desired finish line.
At least it’s a start. A measure to require the reporting of injured racing greyhounds, which appeared headed to defeat again this year as a separate bill, was tacked on to another measure approved as the session wrapped up in mid-March.
According to an advocacy organization tracking the welfare of racing greyhounds, Florida’s Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering will have to create rules requiring the reporting of any injuries. Several lawmakers who support injury reporting wisely incorporated their amendment into the budget process to get it through.
Florida is shamefully behind other states. According to the animal advocacy group Grey2K USA, commercial dog racing is illegal in 39 states. In five others, all tracks have closed though laws haven’t been passed banning the races. Florida, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Iowa and West Virginia are the six states with active dog racing tracks. Among those, Florida and Alabama were the final two states not requiring the reporting of injured greyhounds.
More than 13,000 greyhound injuries occurred at tracks nationwide from 2008 through 2015, with the most common injury a broken leg, according to animal welfare groups. Although Florida hadn’t required documentation of injuries until this year’s measure passed, based on what records were available advocacy groups said they identified about 200 injuries in the state from 2008 to 2015, including at least 137 dogs that died or were euthanized.
Another concern was ambiguity based on where the racing greyhound was at the time of injury - at the track, off site in kennels or during transport, for example. The amendment specifies reporting an injury that “occurs while the greyhound is located in this state.”
So while greyhound injury reporting is thankfully a first step for Florida, the Legislature fell short of the trifecta we see as the answer.
Second is decoupling. To have card rooms that are profitable, track operators by state law must run a specific minimum number of races, money-losing propositions that create a risk of dog injuries. At Florida’s 12 licensed tracks, including one in Bonita Springs, at least 100 live racing performances must be offered each year, according to Grey2K USA calculations. The requirement should be modified or eliminated.
And thirdly, the Legislature failed in 2014 to pass comprehensive gambling reforms after an extensive effort led by state Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples. Last year, a state gambling compact with the Seminole Tribe expired. Gov. Rick Scott negotiated a new one with the tribe, but the Legislature didn’t pass it, even though it would have added $3 billion to state coffers from the tribe over seven years.
So while greyhound injury reporting moves Florida in the right direction, the state has gone around in circles on the overall gambling debate long enough. It’s past time to cross the finish line.
Online: https://www.naplesnews.com/
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March 29
The South Florida Sun Sentinel on Visit Florida’s spending:
How’s this for ironic? Florida’s lead agency for promoting travel to the Sunshine State insists on conducting business in the shadows.
As reporter Gray Rohrer recently reported, Visit Florida operates with minimal state oversight and hides crucial contract details from the public, even though it receives substantial public funding along with private contributions from the tourism industry.
This arrangement is an affront to taxpayers, who have a right - spelled out in state law and the Florida Constitution - to know how their hard-earned dollars are being spent.
State lawmakers allocated $75 million to Visit Florida in the current budget year, and the agency is in line to receive another $78 million in the budget year that begins July 1.
That’s more than the $75 million lawmakers budgeted for maintenance and repairs at public schools. Yet no one would reasonably argue that the details of school construction funds be hidden from the public.
While state law requires private contributors to at least match the public’s investment in Visit Florida’s budget, most of the private funding comes in the form of advertising and promotional “value” from the industry, not cash. More than 90 percent of its operating budget comes from taxpayers.
Visit Florida’s secretive ways came into the spotlight last year when the agency refused to reveal the details of its contract with rapper Pitbull to promote the state through his concerts and social media accounts. Agency leaders said the contract barred any disclosure, and cited an overly broad exemption under the state’s open-records law for “proprietary information.”
Visit Florida uses the same excuse to withhold details on contracts with other travel “ambassadors,” including an English soccer club and a race car team. The public has no way of knowing whether these dollars are well spent or wasted.
Visit Florida is not subject to the government audits given other agencies that spend public money. Neither are the salaries of its employees publicly disclosed online as they are at government agencies.
Visit Florida used to receive some measure of oversight on its board of directors from two state legislators - a Senate and House member. But the board was downsized from 53 to 31 members in 2011, and two slots for legislators were eliminated. The current board is made up of tourism industry executives appointed by another public-private agency, Enterprise Florida.
Defenders of the status quo cite the state’s prowess in attracting tourists. A record 105 million people visited Florida last year. Lawmakers in both parties seem reluctant to mess with success. Yet as impressive as the numbers are, they shouldn’t be a license for Visit Florida to escape scrutiny in spending so many public dollars.
Consider that there are many factors, beyond promotional efforts, that play into how many people visit the Sunshine State, including the health of the economy in the U.S. and other countries, currency values and the opening of new tourist attractions in Florida.
And when the number of Brazilians visiting Florida last year dropped 10 percent, analysts didn’t blame Visit Florida. They attributed the decrease to political and economic turmoil in Brazil.
Public scrutiny builds public confidence in government agencies. It invites outside input that leads to wiser spending and better decisions. It discourages corruption.
Lawmakers need to make sure that Visit Florida, and the taxpayers who support it, realize these benefits - and enjoy more sunshine.
Online: https://www.sun-sentinel.com/
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March 29
The Tampa Tribune on ethics in the Florida legislature:
There is no disputing the influence of moneyed interests in Tallahassee, but Florida lawmakers do deserve credit for adopting legislation strengthening ethics laws.
Gov. Rick Scott recently signed the measure sponsored by Sen. Don Gaetz of Niceville and Rep. Ritch Workman of Melbourne.
The reforms are badly needed in a state that ranked No. 1 in the nation in public corruption convictions a few years ago and still ranks No. 3.
The legislation was based upon recommendations made by a 2010 statewide grand jury that found unethical government dealings impose a “corruption tax” on citizens through waste and fraud.
A key provision removes the requirement that prosecutors must prove public officials or those who bribe them acted with corrupt intent. This, obviously, is difficult to prove. As one prosecutor told The Associated Press, “It requires you to go into the mind of that defendant to prove their motivation.”
The legislation signed into law by Scott requires the state to prove the accused acted “knowingly and intentionally,” a more reasonable standard.
The legislation also expands the definition of “public servant” to include anyone who contracts with the government to perform a public function. This is another logical change. Obviously, an individual conducting a public function is serving the public, which would be betrayed by bribes, bid rigging or other unethical behavior affecting that function.
This progress on ethics reforms follows past worthy measures championed by Pinellas Sen. Jack Latvala that require constitutional officers to complete four hours of ethics training a year; prohibit legislators from lobbying the executive branch for two years after leaving office; and prevent public officials from voting on matters that could result in private gain.
As the good government group Integrity Florida points out, much more needs to be done, including empowering the Florida Commission on Ethics to initiate investigations without having to receive citizens’ complaints. The panel cannot even look into newspaper reports of dubious actions by public officials.
But as Integrity Florida Director Ben Wilcox acknowledges, at least the state is moving in the “right direction.”
Online: https://www.tbo.com/
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