FlaglerLive | May 19, 2013
The IRS division responsible for flagging Tea Party groups has long been an agency afterthought, beset by mismanagement, financial constraints and an unwillingness to spell out just what it expects from social welfare nonprofits, former officials and experts say.
FlaglerLive | May 17, 2013
The Benghazi story is a bogus scandal. IRS targeting of conservative groups and the Justice Department’s hacking of reporters’ phones is not. The Obama presidency is getting derailed, and that’s without going down the path of even more serious scandals Washington and the electorate are accepting as business as usual.
FlaglerLive | May 16, 2013
Palm Coast borrowed millions from its own utility fund to complete the Old Kings Road widening on the assumption that the economy would pick up and enable the city to re-finance with bonds. That never happened. Now the city is looking to recoup its money from property owners along the road, who’d agreed to a special taxing district but with optimistic assumptions of their own that never panned out.
FlaglerLive | April 24, 2013
The ethics bill approved by the Florida House dropped a two-year prohibition on legislators taking quasi-lobbying jobs with firms trying to influence the Legislature; it would increase the amount that each contributor can give to candidates during an election, and unlimited donations could go to political committees.
FlaglerLive | March 14, 2013
Ethics Commissioner Matt Carlucci says an ethics reform bill adds teeth to previously weak enforcement, but would also open a loophole that would give politicians greater immunity from prosecution while increasing the costs of ethics cases.
FlaglerLive | March 12, 2013
Think about the American Legislative Exchange Council’s secret lobbying in favor of “Stand Your Ground” legislation to at least 15 states. Lobbyists were backed by corporate special interests – a fact the public was left in the dark about. Additionally, there was little way to easily track how this law was passed in Florida. That’s just one example of the kind of copycat legislation peddled to state legislatures.
FlaglerLive | February 26, 2013
Allegations of “potential” fraud in Florida’s early learning programs have served as the basis for repeated attempts at a legislative cure – including this year – but are melting away under scrutiny by investigators.
FlaglerLive | February 18, 2013
Lobbyists collected at least $120 million to represent businesses and other clients before the Florida Legislature in 2012, with companies such as AT&T and the gambling industry spending heavily
FlaglerLive | February 13, 2013
Gov. Rick Scott’s aggressive economic development effort is getting more legislative pushback as budget committees in both chambers questioned the direction, expense and oversight of the governor’s “jobs, jobs, jobs” agenda.
FlaglerLive | February 11, 2013
The guilty plea set off a round of political finger-pointing in Tallahassee, with Republicans laying the blame for the debacle on Crist, a newly-minted Democrat who could challenge current GOP Gov. Rick Scott in 2014. Democrats, meanwhile, tried to tag the RPOF with Greer’s ethical baggage.
FlaglerLive | February 6, 2013
Questionable bonuses, conflicts of interest and a ‘pay to play’ mentality is hampering taxpayer driven economic development efforts, according to a study conducted by Integrity Florida and paid for by Americans for Prosperity/Florida, a conservative advocacy group funded in large part by the Koch brothers.
FlaglerLive | January 25, 2013
Elizabeth Cretella faces a third-degree felony charge that she leaked information of an active investigation of sex crime allegations to her son–Robert Allen–before he was to be questioned in connection with the allegations.
FlaglerLive | December 23, 2012
A million more Americans voted for Democrats seeking election to the U.S. House of Representatives than Republicans. That advantage did not result in control of the chamber. Redistricting and secret money were key to the disparity.
FlaglerLive | December 14, 2012
An internal investigation of Sgt. Jamie Roster, based on testimonies from men he supervised, had found him to have falsified time sheets for more than $8,000. The settlement between Fleming and the PBA means Roster will serve a one-day suspension without pay and be returned to full Sergeant duty in charge of the men who’d reported on him.
FlaglerLive | December 7, 2012
the Florida Commission on Ethics is expected to approve the settlement agreement at its meeting next month, two weeks after Fleming will have left office after eight years as Flagler County Sheriff.
FlaglerLive | August 13, 2012
As the primary campaign culminates with Tuesday’s vote, the races for Flagler County Court Judge and Flagler County Sheriff have overwhelmed all others in money raised and spent, but with notable exceptions, candidates’ own money talked loudest.
FlaglerLive | July 29, 2012
ALEC–the extreme right-wing American Legislative Exchange Council influencing many legislatures around the county–has an inordinate amount of influence on the Florida Legislature, according to a report by a coalition of liberal groups.
FlaglerLive | June 20, 2012
The Florida Ethics Commission said complaints against City Manager Jim Landon and Human Resources Director Wendy Cullen, didn’t involve corruption, but it has yet to rule on a complaint against Public Works Superintendent Tony Capela, in allegations of favoritism, bullying, intimidation and a hostile work environment.
FlaglerLive | June 18, 2012
An internal affairs investigation of Jamie Roster found he’d falsified time sheets by booking at least $8,406.26 he’d not worked for. The investigation was triggered by complaints from men under his supervision, and reveals strains and morale issues at the sheriff’s office. Roster, demoted to deputy, is appealing.
FlaglerLive | June 6, 2012
Based on U.S. Department of Justice data, Florida led the nation in the number of convictions between 2000 and 2010, according to data compiled by Integrity Florida, a non-profit research group founded earlier this year by former Florida Chamber spokesman Dan Krasner and former Common Cause Florida executive director Ben Wilcox.
FlaglerLive | May 31, 2012
The ethics case against Jimmy Flynt was filed by Bunnell City Commissioner Elbert Tucker when Flynt was still a commissioner, in late 2010. Flynt admitted to three violations of law and now looks forward to possibly running for the commission again.
FlaglerLive | May 30, 2012
In a victory for Frank Meeker, the city will pay job “recruiters” $1,000 for being instrumental in expanding or relocating out-of-county business to Palm Coast, but many of the defining criteria remain vague and fraught with what the city terms unintended consequences.
FlaglerLive | April 23, 2012
Many of the country’s biggest media companies, which own dozens of newspapers and TV news operations, are flexing their muscle in Washington in a fight against a government initiative to increase transparency of political spending.
FlaglerLive | February 24, 2012
John and Lisa Murray pleaded no contest to reduced charges stemming from their arrest and firing on felony counts in 2010. Neither can be a police officer again.
FlaglerLive | February 22, 2012
John Murray was fired in 2010 and faces four felony charges, including cocaine possession and tampering with evidence. The trial Flagler County Circuit Judge Raul Zambrano is expected to take all day.
Pierre Tristam | February 1, 2012
No wonder so many people don’t see the point in voting. While the rest of us play one man, one vote in democracy’s delusional sandbox, a bunch of donors who add up to a cocktail party’s guest list are sealing the campaign’s fate.
FlaglerLive | December 16, 2011
The method continues a pattern that’s been less than transparent since fall when the city manager recommended renewing the contract with Waste Pro and skipping the bidding process.
FlaglerLive | November 21, 2011
One of the most expensive nuclear accidents in United States history happened right here in Florida a little over two years ago, and now Progress Energy wants customers to pay for its mistake at the Crystal River nuclear plant.
FlaglerLive | November 8, 2011
Nearly two years after a U.S. Supreme Court decision struck down key restrictions in campaign finance law, the Fderal Elections Commission still hasn’t begun the process of changing its regulations to comply with the ruling.
FlaglerLive | October 31, 2011
Jason DeLorenzo defended the decision to take the money, one of two of his largest contributions, saying he hadn’t seen it as a conflict nor had he thought about it, but conceding in retrospect that it was “a bad decision.”
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