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Tom Lee - page 22

Florida League of Women Voters blasts record budget that ‘ignores Constitution’

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Citing “blatant political maneuvering and a disregard for the wishes of voters,” few lawmakers can take pride in the 2015 legislative session, says Pamela Goodman, president of the Florida League of Women Voters. Her primary concerns in the recently ended special session were notable failures in accepting federal Medicaid expansion money to cover more than 800,000 of the state’s uninsured poor, as well as falling short on environmental funding passed overwhelmingly by Florida voters last November. “The 2015 Legislature kicked…

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Richard Corcoran to Rick Scott: ‘Go forth boldly and veto’

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House budget chief Richard Corcoran has a message for Gov. Rick Scott. “I would tell the governor to go forth boldly and veto,” Corcoran, said paraphrasing Martin Luther. Corcoran worked with Senate budget chief Tom Lee to hammer out a nearly $79 billion spending plan for fiscal year 2015-16. Addressing a group of reporters outside the House chambers minutes after the Legislature agreed to sine die, Corcoran said Florida governors have line-item veto authority.  Despite legislative attempts to protect portions…

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Lawmakers building a veto-proof healthcare budget

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Florida’s legislative leaders are trying to make the healthcare financing decisions they made during the June special session veto-proof. The Florida House and Senate were at odds throughout the 2015 regular legislative session on health care spending and policy. Indeed, the inability to agree on how much additional Medicaid funding to include the budget was the reason the chamber’s didn’t pass a budget on time. But that was then and this is now. House and Senate leaders not only agreed…

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Tampa Tribune applauds state for funding USF St. Pete and Tampa projects

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

The Tampa Tribune is paying homage to two state lawmakers in its Thursday editorial. State Sen. Tom Lee and state Rep. Rich Corcoran were instrumental in bringing key state funding to the University of South Florida in both Tampa and St. Pete during contentious budget negotiations. The Tribune lauds the $17 million secured to begin work on a downtown Tampa USF medical school at the heart of developer Jeff Vinik’s vision for the area and $12.3 million to complete a USF School of…

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The end for SaintPetersBlog

Ever since I acquired the rights to the perfect domain for my efforts — FloridaPolitics.com — I knew that one

Hearing in LIP lawsuit scratched; Rick Scott, Sylvia Burwell won’t have to appear in court

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A federal judge in Pensacola canceled an evidentiary hearing scheduled for Friday that could have required Gov. Rick Scott and Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Sylvia Burwell to appear in court. Judge M. Casey Rodgers issued a one-page ruling on Wednesday saying that lawyers for Scott had filed a notice with the federal court to withdraw their motion for a preliminary injunction. With no motion for preliminary injunction, the evidentiary hearing isn’t necessary. In her…

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Gov. Scott vetoes a trio of bills including one championed by Tom Lee

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Gov. Rick Scott on Tuesday vetoed a trio of bills, including one by Senate budget chief Sen. Tom Lee and another he said he didn’t even need to reject. Lee supported a rewrite of the Administrative Procedures Act, HB 435, and sponsored the Senate companion bill. The governor said the changes in the bill could result in prolonged litigation impending an agency’s ability to perform core functions like sanctioning bad actors and protecting public health and safety.” The bill, Scott…

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Tick Tock budget is on the desks

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

The Legislature can pass the budget at 5:37 p.m. Friday and call it quits. After meeting late into the night on Monday and adding $300 million more in spending, the General Appropriations Act was electronically furnished to the Legislature, governor and Cabinet at 5:37 Tuesday night. The Florida Constitution requires the Legislature to wait 72 hours before passing the General Appropriations Act and calling the session to an official end. The near $78.7 billion spending plan is nearly $29 billion…

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