Putnam on gift ban, term limits and Gov. Scott's re-election

Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam said Tuesday chances are "nil" that Gov. Rick Scott will face serious opposition within the Republican Party when he seeks a second term in 2014. Such a forecast means that Putnam has again ruled himself out as a candidate for governor in two years.

Putnam said Scott has kept his campaign promises, which the Republican Party base appreciates, and that he has improved relations with the media in Florida. And as he travels the state, Putnam said, he finds Floridians are increasingly optimistic about the economy. "There's a pretty positive buzz out there," he said. 

In an hour-long discussion with the Tampa Bay Times editorial board, Putnam said he would have gone along with Sen. JD Alexander in voting to spin off Florida Polytechnic in Lakeland as the state's 12th university, and that lawmakers have long tinkered with the higher ed system by creating law schools and medical schools. "This is not the first time politics have intervened," he said.

The redheaded Cabinet member saved his toughest criticism for the 2006 gift ban that prohibits lawmakers and state officials, including himself, from taking anything of value from lobbyists or their clients. His remarks came as Putnam was asked to describe how Tallahassee has changed since he left in the mid-1990s to go to Congress.

Calling the gift ban "dumb," he said: "A lot of the camaraderie that allowed solutions to take place ... has been removed from the process." He called the gift ban a "disincentive for fellowship" and said: "You're forbidden from hanging out unless somebody is giving you a check." He also criticized term limits -- which he said he voted against them in 1992 -- saying that an eight-year time frame deprives lawmakers from becoming subject matter experts. 

Putnam arrived by asking a Times reporter if he'd "booked his room at Innisbrook yet," referring to the swanky resort in Palm Harbor that will house the Florida GOP delegation at the party convention in August, 32 miles from the event itself. A proud resident of Bartow in Polk County, Putnam asked: "Who would have thought that Bartow's closer?" 

-- Steve Bousquet

Florida Bar launches voter education campaign on merit retention

When Florida voters go to the polls this November to pick a president, they’ll also be asked to decide on races that will get much less fanfare: whether to retain three Florida Supreme Court justices and 15 appellate court justices in various regions of the state.

Many voters will skip the judges elections – in which they are asked to vote "yes’’ or “no” to let them stay in the job another six years, election data shows. Many more will simply guess, willing to make an uninformed choice.

The Florida Bar, the statewide professional organization for lawyers, wants to change that.

Armed with data that shows that 9 out of 10 Florida voters are unaware of what it means to have a “merit retention” election for Florida judges, the Bar on Monday launched a statewide education campaign to spread the word about the process that allows the state’s appellate level judges to stay in office.

The program, called “The Vote’s in Your Court’’ will work to educate Floridians so they can make a better informed decision about the merit retention races on the ballot.

“Democracy works best when there’s good information,’’ said Scott Hawkins, president of the Florida Bar and a West Palm Beach lawyer. “This effort is not about supporting any particular court or any particular judge…we are endorsing a system which has operated uniformly for nearly 40 years.”

Florida Senate-race drama exposes GOP jitters

Jeff Atwater’s just-ended flirtation with a U.S. Senate bid speaks volumes about the nervousness of Florida Republicans these days.

The GOP’s best hope, Congressman Connie Mack, hasn’t been running the type of campaign many Republicans want to unseat a beatable Democratic incumbent, Bill Nelson. Some wanted Atwater, Florida’s Chief Financial Officer, to run. Others approached House Speaker Dean Cannon, who declined as did a wealthy no-name.

But the drama is about more than just Mack or the Senate race.

It’s about a Republican Party grappling with ebbing fortunes compared to the red-wave of an election year in 2010. It’s about a movement nagged by a sense of perpetual disappointment that stretches to the top of the ticket.

And it’s about the potentially colliding political agendas of Atwater, Gov. Rick Scott, Attorney General Pam Bondi and Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam.

Column here

Tea party groups want Rick Scott to veto conservative Legislature's "crony energy bill"

A coalition of tea party groups is urging Gov. Rick Scott to veto the conservative Legislature's energy proposal, calling its revival of expired renewable energy tax credits "crony capitalism."

Scott received HB 7117, pushed by Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam in effort to start diversifying the state's energy sources, on March 30. He has until Friday to decide if it becomes law.

The tax incentives, meant to inspire increased renewable energy production to reduce dependence on natural gas, total $100 million over the next five years, the groups say. Speaking at a Tallahassee news conference Tuesday, Americans for Prosperity state director Slade O'Brien said coal and natural gas remain the cheapest sources of energy, so why give goodies to sectors that aren't competitive and will lead to increased energy bills?

"Please do not continue down the failed policy path of former Gov. Crist and President Obama by allowing this bad bill to become law," reads an April 5 letter signed by Americans for Prosperity and about 100 other tea party and 912 Project groups from around the state.

"How much in crony renewable handouts is enough?" said James Taylor, Heartland Institute senior fellow. "The stimulus has already provided $17 billion in taxpayer handouts to the renewable power industry."

Putnam responded to tea party criticism of his ideas last week, calling their concerns "rooted in a lack of good information."

Despite group's demand, Adam Putnam says he can't suspend concealed carry permit of Trayvon Martin's shooter

A civil rights group wants the state to suspend the concealed carry permit of George Zimmerman as investigators probe the shooting death of black teenager Trayvon Martin.

But Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, whose agency oversees concealed weapons permits, said he can't do anything without pending criminal charges or a felony conviction. In Florida, felons are not allowed to carry concealed weapons without restoration of their civil rights and firearm authority.

State law also prevents Putnam's agency from identifying people who have applied for or received a permit, so he can't specifically talk about Zimmerman as a permit holder.

"My office is legally bound to fiercely protect the privacy of concealed weapon permit holders," Putnam said Tuesday when asked about the group's demand. "There are specific legal triggers that result in suspension or revocation."

A Times investigation: State regulators failed to address onslaught of timeshare resale schemes

From Sunday's Tampa Bay Times investigation: Timeshare resale schemes have quietly become the most rampant form of consumer fraud in Florida, affecting people across the United States and in some foreign countries. The state Attorney General's Office received 964 complaints against Florida timeshare resale companies in 2008. Then 2,929 in 2009. Then 12,257 in 2010.

Last year, even with a dip in calls, Florida's fraud hotline fielded more complaints about timeshare resale companies than the next four categories of consumer complaints combined.

The Tampa Bay Times reviewed thousands of those complaints and spent six months investigating timeshare resale companies and the state's attempts to stop their abuses. Despite an avalanche of allegations, Florida regulators and law enforcement agencies at every level have failed to take basic steps to protect consumers and curb fraud:

Surplus lines insurance bill amended, now opt-in

Senator Garrett Richter, R-Naples, debates a proposal to shrink the size of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. by allowing unregulated surplus lines companies to take over policies. Richter said the amendment amounted to a ñstraight jacketî that would discourage private insurers from coming to Florida.   [Scott Keeler, Times]

A proposal to shrink the size of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. by allowing unregulated surplus lines companies to take over policies hit a speed bump Monday, with a Senate amendment intended to make the bill more consumer-friendly.

The amendment, filed by Sen. Thad Altman, R-Melbourne would change the program from an automatic takeover process to one that consumers have to proactively opt-in to coverage-switch.

The controversial bill comes in a year when property insurance reform has played a minor role despite insurance industry cries that a hurricane would cause the state financial chaos.

Bill sponsor Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples, said the amendment amounted to a “straight jacket” that would discourage private insurers from coming to Florida.

House votes for new high school sports rules

High school students from larger, private schools could participate in public school scholastic and athletic programs under a bill that sailed through a House panel today.

Currently, participation is limited to private school students who attend a non-Florida High School Athletic Association School that does not offer sports programs and has 125 students or fewer. The proposed changes would allow private schools with up to 250 students to participate in public programs.

Amendment could add $1 billion pricetag to energy bill

A week after the sponsor of the Senate energy bill, Sen. Andy Gardner, R-Winter Park, promised that this year's energy bill would not raise electric rates to customers, an amendment filed late Friday would change all that.

The potential pricetag: $1.1 billion for Florida Power & Light customers. The amendment, filed by Sen. Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee, moments before the amendment deadline, would allow utility companies to bypass the traditional rate case before the Public Service Commission for certain construction projects, and instead receive an "incremental adjustment to base rates."

Translation: the legislature would order the utilty regulators to impose the added cost to utility bills; the PSC would just decide how much. The bill before the Senate Agriculture Committee is designed to encourage renewable energy development in Florida and includes many provisions sought by Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam.

Florida joins multi-state mortgage settlement, grabs $8.4 billion for homeowners

The details of the $25 billion multi-state mortgage settlement have been released, and Florida is a top beneficiary of settlement money.

 Florida homeowners will receive an estimated $8.4 billion in relief in the form of principal reductions, mortgage refinancings, loan modifications and cash payments for those who lost their homes.

In exchange, the banks are released from prosecution for civil charges for robo-signing, a practice that was allegedly rampant in Florida. The settlement includes five major financial institutions: Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Ally Financial and Citigroup.

Attorney General Pam Bondi released details of the settlement’s impact in Florida this morning.

 “This agreement holds  banks  accountable  and puts in place new protections for homeowners in the form of strict mortgage servicing standards,” Bondi said in a statement.

 Details, from the Attorney General's office, are after the break: