Legislators react to Carroll resignation, pitch Flores as replacement

Legislators reacted with sadness upon hearing the news Wednesday of the resignation of Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll but wasted no time considering replacements. 

"Jennifer Carroll is a very dear friend and anytime you see a friend go through something difficult, your heart goes out to them,” said Sen. Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando. "I think she did probably what was the right thing to keep the governor’s agenda moving forward. And so it won’t be a distraction. But it still hurts. It hurts for her, it hurts for her family.” 

Gardiner said he served in leadership in the Florida House with Carroll. “I just feel for her and her family,” he said.

Gardiner also said that he continues to believe Florida should “do away” with internet cafes. “I think they’re taking advantage of loophole in the law,” he said. “I’ve been pretty consistent. I don’t want to regulate them, I want to do away with them.”

Hours after Carroll's resignation, some South Florida political observers took to Twitter to recommend Sen. Anitere Flores, a Miami Republican, be tapped for the job. Their hashtag of choice: #Anitere4LT.

Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, endorsed that idea. Flores "has all the great qualities of leadership. She's got the background, the experience,'' Detert said. "Geographically she fits. Being Hispanic doesn't hurt in Florida. She's an attractive candidate, smart woman...I don't know if she's interested or where she stands."

House Democratic Leader Perry Thurston called Carroll a dedicated public servant. "I'm very saddened by it,'' he said. "I wish the best to her and her family."

Rep. Dana Young, R-Tampa, said she was fond of Carroll. "She's going to definitely be missed in the Tampa Bay community because of her strong advocacy on behalf of the military and MacDill Air Force Base. We will miss her."

Republican Party of Florida director Lenny Curry, who is from Carroll's hometown of Jacksonville, called Carroll a "great leader for our party and our state.

"She was a terrific advocate for Florida’s military and economic development efforts,'' Curry said in a statement. "Her resignation is disappointing, but she made the right decision to protect both her family and the work she has done to move our state forward over the
last few years.”

Former Rep. Scott Plakon, R-Longwood, who has sponsored a bill to last year to ban internet cafes,  continued his push to get the Florida Senate to agreed to the effort. 

"The Florida House voted to shut down these illicit gambling operations last year,'' he said in a statement. "The Florida Cabinet unanimously agreed. It's now time for the Florida Senate to act to end this scourge on our state."

His bill was written by the general counsel for the Seminole County sheriff, the office that first began the probe and helped to draw federal investigators into the search.

 -- Rochelle Koff, Kathleen McGrory, Toluse Olorunnipa contributed to this report

Update: Internet gambling probe of Allied Vets grows, arrests now in Florida

Update: Jacksonville television is reportiong that the sweep has reached Florida and the head of a local gambling non-profit was arrested there this morning. 

Jerry Bass is the National Commander of Allied Veterans of the World Inc. and Affiliates, Action News Jacksonville reported. He was arrested and booked into the Duval County Jail this morning. His arrest is the result of a six-year long investigation that spans throughout Florida and other parts of the country. Here's their report.

Meanwhile, the Oklahoman reported yesterday that one of Florida's largest operators of internet cafes, Chase Burns of Florida Gaming Promotions and the International Internet Technolgies, is under federal investigation for operating illegal gambling operations in Florida.

Here's the story by reporter Nolan Clay:

Federal investigators allege the owner of an Anadarko company is involved in an illegal gambling operation in Florida that made more than $290 million.

The owner, Chase Burns, 37, denies wrongdoing. “That’s not true,” he said Monday. “What we do is legal.”

His company, International Internet Technologies LLC, supplied gambling software to Internet casinos in Florida that posed as fundraising centers for veterans’ charities, authorities allege.

The company, also known as IIT, has been paid more than $63 million for its computer work for the illegal gambling operation, authorities reported.

An Oklahoma City federal magistrate judge Monday authorized a search of the IIT building in Anadarko for evidence of “conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, operating an illegal gambling business and money laundering.”

Florida House release new app, Weatherford brushes off 2014 rumors

The Florida House of Representatives released a new mobile app that House Speaker Will Weatherford said will “set a national standard.”

The app, reported by the Herald/Times yesterday, will allow users to track the legislative process on their mobile devices, with features like live streaming from the Capitol in Tallahassee and tracking of bills.

“This is the way that people are communicating with their government,” said Weatherford, a Wesley Chapel Republican.

The app is expected to be released next week, as the 60-day legislative session begins.

Read more about it here and see the House press release here.

After the press conference, Weatherford took questions from reporters on a range of issues, including Medicaid, Citizens Insurance, the budget sequester and Internet cafes.

He brushed off questions about a potential run for governor against Rick Scott, while continuing to differ from Scott on the key issues of Medicaid expansion and across-the-board $2,500 pay raises for teachers. 

“I think people who are saying those things must not know me well,” he said about those who are whispering about a 2014 primary challenge. “I’m busy enough trying to be the Speaker of the House… I’m not thinking of any of that stuff right now.”

Weatherford did not specifically rule out the possibility, but said that he doesn’t “have any plans to do anything like that.”

House also creates gaming committee, puts Schenck in charge

House Speaker Will Weatherford on Monday followed the lead of the Senate and announced the creation of a Select Committee on Gaming to study the path of the state into the perilous territory of gambling reform.

Named to head the effort: Rep. Rob Schenck, R-Spring Hill, who also serves as Weatherford's powerful Rules Committee chair.

“The House Select Committee on Gaming will be charged with looking Florida’s gaming activity holistically to determine ways to improve the state’s oversight of the industry,” Weatherford said in a statement. “Under Representative Schenck’s leadership, I’m confident we can determine what changes – if any – are needed to develop a comprehensive policy for gaming in Florida.”

Senate President Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, has created a similar committee and assigned Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples, to head it. Richter, a newcomer to gambling regulation issues, has decided to move ahead by the end of February to hire an outside consultant to do a study of the impact of gaming in Florida and assess what economic and revenue impact any changes would have. 

Weatherford has agreed to split the cost of the study -- which Richter estimates could be as high as $400,000. His statement said the goal of the committee will be to establish a "unified, long-term policy for the future of gaming in Florida that serves the best interest of all Floridians" by the 2014 session.

Gambling issues have traditionallly been one of the most perilous hot potato issues for lawmakers to handle.

Legislators in both urban and rural areas of the state represent legacy parimutuel industries of horse and dog racing whose owners perenially ask the state to expand their gaming options to include the now-popular slot machines in order to preserve the jobs and revenue from their declining industries.

But legislative leaders and Gov. Rick Scott have also acknowledged the appeal of the resort-gaming industry, led by the Las Vegas Sands and Genting, which promise handsome tax revenues and swanky resorts if the state allows them to bring full casinos to South Florida. 

Finding the balance between the two arguments -- as well as deciding what to do with the exploding growth of Internet cafes and online poker -- has been stumped lawmakers in the last three legislative sessions.

Adding urgency to this issue now is the state's gambling compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, which expires in 2015. Gaetz and Weatherford have acknowledged that they plan to renew or alter that before their terms end in 2014. 

“Gaming is an issue that requires a careful consideration of existing law before any decisions are made regarding the industry’s future in Florida,” Schenck said in the statement.  “I look forward to conducting a comprehensive review to set a long term vision for the future of gaming in Florida.”

 

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Weatherford and Gaetz expect gambling bill focused on compact on agenda

Genting announces it will back off of a casino amendment

Senate and House agree to one more study to determine fate of treacherous gaming policy

The Florida Senate Committee on Gaming continued to do what its chairman said was to “creating the foundation of understanding” for a sweeping rewrite of the state’s gambling laws, which is expected to come next year.

In an unusual move, Senate Committee Chairman Garrett Richter, R-Naples, has reached an agreement with House leaders to pay for an independent company to conduct a study about the economic and social impact of the state’s existing gambling laws on the state economy and what impact of expansion or changes might have.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do,’’ Richter told the committee at a hearing on Wednesday. He said the committee may not meet during the upcoming session as they await the results of the study and he expects  legislation to wait until next session.

The request for proposal will come sometime before lawmakers convene in regular session on March 5, he said. But the breadth and scope of the study, as well as who will conduct it, is still undetermined.

“A study can sometimes get you where you want to go,’’ said Sen. Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, who asked what the RFP will look like. 

“It’s a work in process,” Richter responded.

Genting's political check writers have had a busy few weeks

Genting's political check writers, who had taken a bit of a break since the legislative session ended without passing their casino resort legislation, have been busy. The Malaysian-based casino giant has written a whopping $431,000 in campaign contributions since July 16, during the run-up to the primary.

The largest chunk of money -- $189,000 -- went to the company's newly formed political committee as it prepares to put a constitutional amendment on the November 2014 ballot. (Presumably they are polling ballot language to give to petition gatherers on election day.) The rest of it went to mega contributions to the political committees of some key legislative players such as Sens. Jack Latvala and Joe Negron. Who is the Republican to watch in the casino-resistant House? Jason Brodeur of Sanford.

Here's our list from both Genting's coffers and Bayfront Development LLC, Genting's Miami-based development company:

Weatherford and Gaetz agenda will include gambling bill focused on compact

With Florida emerging as one of the largest gambling states in the nation, legislative leaders are prepared to put gaming regulation on center stage in the next two years and renegotiate the revenue-sharing compact with the Seminole Tribe at least a year early.

House Speaker Will Weatherford and incoming Senate President Don Gaetz are vocal opponents of expanding gambling, but both told the Herald/Times that they believe it’s time to take a comprehensive look at all gambling in the state and include the tribal compact, which now brings the state $233 million a year.

“We currently have a lot of gambling in the state of Florida, but we have to take a very holistic view,” said Weatherford, a Wesley Chapel Republican. “There needs to be clarity and direction as to where the state is going,” he added, and the tribal compact will “very likely” be part of that.

The Broward-based tribe is the owner of the Hard Rock Casinos in Hollywood and Tampa and five other casinos in Florida. Its agreement with the state gives the Seminoles the exclusive right to offer blackjack and other table games in Miami Dade and Broward counties through 2015 in exchange for annual payments to state and local governments.

Legislators imposed the expiration date when they ratified the compact in 2010 to give the state time to take a comprehensive look at Florida’s gambling laws. Renewing it would allow the tribe to take up the issue before voters would take up a proposed constitutional amendment sought by the Malaysian-based casino giant, Genting, in 2014, and before political winds in the Legislature change in 2015. More here.

Genting's election year strategy: big checks and many bets

Genting Group, the Malaysian casino giant, is seeding its bets across Florida’s political spectrum this election year as it continues to secure the foothold it needs to build a Miami casino empire.

The company, which bought the Miami Herald building in downtown Miami with $236 million in cash in 2011 and tried unsuccessfully to get destination resort casinos approved by lawmakers this year, has spent $1.3 million so far in the 2012 election cycle and has embarked on a two-pronged political strategy.

Half of its money has been steered into a petition drive for a pro-casino amendment to the state Constitution that would bypass the Legislature to bring casinos to Florida. The other half of its cash so far — $486,000 to the Republican Party of Florida and $111,000 to the Florida Democratic Party — was primarily given before the legislative session and is being used to back incumbents or political committees, according to a Herald/Times analysis of campaign reports.

The company said it has no direct involvement in any local or legislative races, countering rumors that it has recruited and screened candidates, and says that the cash it has sent to the parties is being steered to the campaigns of casino supporters and opponents alike. Story here.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/21/2905553/casino-giant-gentings-political.html#storylink=cpy

Genting money funds apparent push for gambling ballot initiative

Genting Group appears to be intensifying its push to allow voters to make the final decision on whether Las-Vegas style gambling comes to South Florida.

Recently released financing reports show a political action group linked to the Malaysia-based conglomerate is spending big on an apparent campaign to get voters to approve a constitutional amendment in favor of resort-style casinos.

The gaming giant failed to win legislative approval from lawmakers earlier this year, despite spending millions of dollars on lobbying and campaign contributions. Now a Genting-linked political committee — New Jobs and Revenue For Florida — is directing funds towards a potential 2014 voter petition drive, which could offer an alternative path to accomplishing the goal of building multi-billion-dollar casino resorts in South Florida.

"New Jobs and Revenue for Florida is an exploratory effort to consider whether or not there are ways to have more entertainment options in Florida,” said committee spokesperson Brian Hughes.

Campaign finance records show the political action committee spent nearly $600,000 in the last three months on voter-petition consultants, constitutional scholars and pollsters who have worked for Gov. Rick Scott.

The spending included $50,000 to Nation Voter Outreach, a Nevada-based political consulting firm that, according to its website, specializes in “organizing signature drives to qualify issues and candidates for the ballot.”

Read more here.

--@ToluseO

 

New poll reveals Florida is still very divided over casino gambling

A new survey by Tampa pollster Paul Fallon shows that Floridians haven't budged too much from previous polls on their views about casino gambling: they're still deeply divided with 50 percent in support and 43 percent opposed. The percentage of people in support has grown, however, compared to a Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times poll in January which found that 44 percent of likely voters in Florida opposed casino gambling while 42 percent were opposed, with a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.

Here's Fallon's assessment: