• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
MENUMENU
MENUMENU
  • Home
  • About
    • Contact Us
    • FlaglerLive Board of Directors
    • Comment Policy
    • Mission Statement
    • Our Values
    • Privacy Policy
  • Live Calendar
  • Submit Obituary
  • Submit an Event
  • Support FlaglerLive
  • Advertise on FlaglerLive (386) 503-3808
  • Search Results

FlaglerLive

No Bull, no Fluff, No Smudges

MENUMENU
  • Flagler
    • Flagler County Commission
    • Beverly Beach
    • Economic Development Council
    • Flagler History
    • Mondex/Daytona North
    • The Hammock
    • Tourist Development Council
  • Palm Coast
    • Palm Coast City Council
    • Palm Coast Crime
  • Bunnell
    • Bunnell City Commission
    • Bunnell Crime
  • Flagler Beach
    • Flagler Beach City Commission
    • Flagler Beach Crime
  • Cops/Courts
    • Circuit & County Court
    • Florida Supreme Court
    • Federal Courts
    • Flagler 911
    • Fire House
    • Flagler County Sheriff
    • Flagler Jail Bookings
    • Traffic Accidents
  • Rights & Liberties
    • Fourth Amendment
    • First Amendment
    • Privacy
    • Second Amendment
    • Seventh Amendment
    • Sixth Amendment
    • Sunshine Law
    • Third Amendment
    • Religion & Beliefs
    • Human Rights
    • Immigration
    • Labor Rights
    • 14th Amendment
    • Civil Rights
  • Schools
    • Adult Education
    • Belle Terre Elementary
    • Buddy Taylor Middle
    • Bunnell Elementary
    • Charter Schools
    • Daytona State College
    • Flagler County School Board
    • Flagler Palm Coast High School
    • Higher Education
    • Imagine School
    • Indian Trails Middle
    • Matanzas High School
    • Old Kings Elementary
    • Rymfire Elementary
    • Stetson University
    • Wadsworth Elementary
    • University of Florida/Florida State
  • Economy
    • Jobs & Unemployment
    • Business & Economy
    • Development & Sprawl
    • Leisure & Tourism
    • Local Business
    • Local Media
    • Real Estate & Development
    • Taxes
  • Commentary
    • The Conversation
    • Pierre Tristam
    • Diane Roberts
    • Guest Columns
    • Byblos
    • Editor's Blog
  • Culture
    • African American Cultural Society
    • Arts in Palm Coast & Flagler
    • Books
    • City Repertory Theatre
    • Flagler Auditorium
    • Flagler Playhouse
    • Flagler Youth Orchestra
    • Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra
    • Palm Coast Arts Foundation
    • Special Events
  • Elections 2024
    • Amendments and Referendums
    • Presidential Election
    • Campaign Finance
    • City Elections
    • Congressional
    • Constitutionals
    • Courts
    • Governor
    • Polls
    • Voting Rights
  • Florida
    • Federal Politics
    • Florida History
    • Florida Legislature
    • Florida Legislature
    • Ron DeSantis
  • Health & Society
    • Flagler County Health Department
    • Ask the Doctor Column
    • Health Care
    • Health Care Business
    • Covid-19
    • Children and Families
    • Medicaid and Medicare
    • Mental Health
    • Poverty
    • Violence
  • All Else
    • Daily Briefing
    • Americana
    • Obituaries
    • News Briefs
    • Weather and Climate
    • Wildlife

2016: A Year of Political Games in the Making

January 1, 2016 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

Florida legislature
The Florida Capitol will be busy again wrangling over guns, gambling and its own dysfunctions. (Florida Memory)

After a strange and at times exhausting 2015, Florida’s government and political establishment is bracing for what could be another intriguing year. The legislative session that kicks off in January might not be as bizarre as last year’s gathering, but everyone will be watching body language to see if things will go smoothly in 2016. And another election is on tap in the biggest swing state in the nation.


Here’s a look at stories that will likely drive discussion in the Capitol, and perhaps a few other parts of the state, in the coming year:

FLORIDA, FLORIDA, FLORIDA. ONCE AGAIN: Whether or not the Republican presidential nomination is snagged by one of the state’s favorite sons — U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio or former Gov. Jeb Bush — Florida is likely to find itself in the center of the race for the White House. That’s a familiar place for the Sunshine State. It will be very difficult for the GOP to win the presidency without Florida, and nearly impossible if Democrats hold onto key states Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Expect the major party nominees to spend plenty of time on the Interstate 4 corridor, along with other key Florida media markets.

CLOSER TO HOME: Not that the state will lack its own eye-catching political races. The race for Rubio’s Senate seat could feature fiery primaries on both sides. Democrats will pick between hard-charging liberal Congressman Alan Grayson and the more-moderate Congressman Patrick Murphy. The GOP primary pits Congressman Ron DeSantis, Congressman David Jolly, Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera and businessman Todd Wilcox. Meanwhile, former Gov. Charlie Crist will take another shot at a political comeback, this time running as a Democrat in a Pinellas County congressional district.

REDISTRICTING FALLOUT CONTINUES: As the state nears the five-year anniversary of public hearings that kicked off the once-a-decade redistricting process, the end of the long slog might finally be in sight. A new version of a congressional map — adopted by state courts after the Legislature’s first efforts were found to violate a voter-approved ban on political gerrymandering — might be set. But that plan is now the subject of a federal lawsuit brought by Democratic Congresswoman Corrine Brown, who argues that the map hurts African-American voters. Meanwhile, a Leon County circuit judge has chosen a state Senate redistricting plan crafted by voting-rights groups, though legislative leaders still could appeal his decision. Even if the legal disputes end, though, politicians will be scrambling to learn new districts — and perhaps even change addresses — ahead of the November elections.

PUTTING THE LEGISLATURE BACK TOGETHER AGAIN: After four regular and special sessions filled with grinding conflict between House and Senate leaders in 2015, the Legislature will return early to try to get back on track. Lawmakers are scheduled to begin work in Tallahassee on Jan. 12, instead of the usual March date for the opening of the 60-day session. (The Legislature agreed to try out the earlier time frame long before anyone knew about the budget and redistricting fights that dominated 2015.) At the top of the agenda might be simply showing voters that Republicans can govern again, after three of the four gatherings in 2015 ended in failure. One thing that might help is the resolution of a years-long leadership fight between Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, and Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater. A deal between the two men will allow Negron to become Senate president in November in exchange for Latvala heading the chamber’s powerful budget-writing committee.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS: The collapse of last year’s regular session, meanwhile, leaves lawmakers with some mop-up work to do. A water policy bill that was supposed to be one of the marquee measures of the 2015 session never made it over the finish line, meaning lawmakers will take another crack at the proposal. Legislators will also look to extend some education programs, such as teacher bonuses for good scores on college admissions tests, that were put in place on a one-year basis as part of a final budget agreement. And the Legislature is expected to continue with efforts by Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, to help Floridians with disabilities.

HIGH STAKES SESSION FOR GAMBLING: Could this be the year that an extension of the Seminole gaming compact finally gets done? Maybe. Gov. Rick Scott announced in December that his administration had struck a deal with the tribe that would lead to the Seminoles paying the state $3.1 billion over seven years in exchange for adding craps and roulette to its current casino operations. But gambling bills are always difficult to get through the Legislature, and the agreement will almost certainly need to be modified to get the necessary approval from the House and the Senate. And every Texas Hold ‘Em player knows that no hand is over until you see the river card.

JOBS, JOBS, JOBS AND TAX CUTS, TAX CUTS, TAX CUTS: Scott has made bringing new jobs to Florida central to his political identity, and might be pinning his hopes of higher office on continuing to bring down the state’s unemployment rate. A plan for $1 billion in tax cuts and a $250 million revamp of the state’s efforts to recruit economic development projects are at the heart of his 2016 legislative agenda. But lawmakers are already skittish about some of Scott’s ideas, particularly when it comes to pouring so much revenue into tax cuts when there are still questions about how much the state will have to spend in later years. With an election looming in November and the GOP firmly in control of state government, Scott will be able to sign a tax-cut bill at the end of the session, but the size is still to be determined.

HIGH NOON FOR GUN BILLS: After a new round of mass shootings across the nation in 2015, lawmakers are set to take up bills that supporters say would help Floridians protect themselves and opponents say will only make the problem worse. The battles are likely to focus on two key gun-rights bills: one that would allow the 1.45 million people in Florida with concealed-weapons licenses to openly carry firearms, and another that would allow them to hold onto their handguns while on state university and college campuses. The campus-carry bill could face the stiffest opposition, because higher education leaders strongly oppose it. Critics include former Republican Sen. John Thrasher, who is now president of Florida State University. At least one law-enforcement group, meanwhile, has already signaled it could support the open-carry bill under certain conditions.

THIRD YEAR’S A CHARM? The Department of Health is still working on implementing a bill lawmakers passed in 2014 to allow limited forms of medical marijuana for patients who suffer from severe spasms or cancer. The process of making rules for the new market and picking who can distribute the non-euphoric types of pot has been drowned in a sea of administrative challenges and bureaucratic wrangling. Meanwhile, some lawmakers are working on legislation that could broaden the types of marijuana that are available to at least some patients. Also, supporters of much-broader legalization of medical marijuana are gearing up to try to pass a ballot initiative in November, after barely falling short in 2014.

–Brandon Larrabee, News Service of Florida

Support FlaglerLive's End of Year Fundraiser
Thank you readers for getting us to--and past--our year-end fund-raising goal yet again. It’s a bracing way to mark our 15th year at FlaglerLive. Our donors are just a fraction of the 25,000 readers who seek us out for the best-reported, most timely, trustworthy, and independent local news site anywhere, without paywall. FlaglerLive is free. Fighting misinformation and keeping democracy in the sunshine 365/7/24 isn’t free. Take a brief moment, become a champion of fearless, enlightening journalism. Any amount helps. We’re a 501(c)(3) non-profit news organization. Donations are tax deductible.  
You may donate openly or anonymously.
We like Zeffy (no fees), but if you prefer to use PayPal, click here.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. BeachcomberT says

    January 1, 2016 at 1:33 pm

    Unless there’s a move to jack up Volusia or Flagler’s sales tax another half-penny or penny, I doubt local citizens will care much what goes on in Tallahassee this year. People’s focus is really on the presidential primary and the general election. Chatted about this at a weekly breakfast of church buddies this morning. We remarked on the great abundance of Trump signs sprouting in the rich neighborhoods, compared to the relatively small number of signs for Jeb! or Rubio. Amazing how Trump has harnessed TV and the Internet to out-muscle Florida’s GOP establishment.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Conner Bosch law attorneys lawyers offices palm coast flagler county
  • grand living realty
  • politis matovina attorneys for justice personal injury law auto truck accidents

Primary Sidebar

  • grand living realty
  • politis matovina attorneys for justice personal injury law auto truck accidents

Recent Comments

  • celia pugliese on Pam Richardson and Kim Carney Are Killing Flagler County’s Beaches
  • Eighty six forty seven on Moral Collapse: Florida Thinks Letting Prisoners Live in 100-Degree Heat with No Air Flow Isn’t Cruel Enough
  • Dusty on Moral Collapse: Florida Thinks Letting Prisoners Live in 100-Degree Heat with No Air Flow Isn’t Cruel Enough
  • See no evil? on Moral Collapse: Florida Thinks Letting Prisoners Live in 100-Degree Heat with No Air Flow Isn’t Cruel Enough
  • Ray W, on The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, June 7, 2025
  • Me on Pam Richardson and Kim Carney Are Killing Flagler County’s Beaches
  • Dusty on 8,000 Homes, 800 RV Sites: Biggest Development Since Palm Coast Seeks Bunnell Commission Approval
  • Joe D on Pam Richardson and Kim Carney Are Killing Flagler County’s Beaches
  • The dude on The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, June 7, 2025
  • Palm Coast on 8,000 Homes, 800 RV Sites: Biggest Development Since Palm Coast Seeks Bunnell Commission Approval
  • Laurel on 8,000 Homes, 800 RV Sites: Biggest Development Since Palm Coast Seeks Bunnell Commission Approval
  • Laurel on The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, June 7, 2025
  • Tired of it on Pam Richardson and Kim Carney Are Killing Flagler County’s Beaches
  • Laurel on The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, June 7, 2025
  • Laurel on Pam Richardson and Kim Carney Are Killing Flagler County’s Beaches
  • Judy M on Pam Richardson and Kim Carney Are Killing Flagler County’s Beaches

Log in