Articles in Category: 'Don Gaetz'
Negotiators Fail to Resolve Nursing Home Funding Cut
Lawmakers continued hammering out a Health and Human Services budget Wednesday, but Senate and House negotiators failed to agree on how to resolve a funding cut that removes nearly $200 million in Medicaid funding to nursing homes.
Negotiators agreed to bump discussions of the funding cut for now, along with discussions of whether to overhaul the state Medicaid program, to conclude this round of conferencing of the Health and Human Services budget. The issues will be taken up again later in the process.
Mike Haridopolos Vows to Fix 'Broken Medicaid System'
An exasperated incoming Senate President Mike Haridopolos, concluding a three-day tour of medical facilities across the state, vowed to do everything in his power to improve a “broken Medicaid system.”
Political Bits and Pieces
With a little over two weeks until the primary elections, politicians are scrambling across the state to stump as much as possible and trying to find ways to earn as much attention as possible.
SD 4: Handily, Four More Years for Don Gaetz
Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, represents parts of Bay, Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties in Northwest Florida. Gaetz, who has been in the Senate since 2006, will represent that area for four more years because he faces no opposition for a second term.
Senate Adjourns Without Passing Oil Ban
Senate backers of a motion that would have let voters decide whether to put an oil ban in the Florida Constitution said they were ready to go, primed for Tuesday's special session -- only to have the Senate follow the House's lead and adjourn without a fight.
House Looks Set to Pull Plug Quickly on Session
Even as Florida Democrats pushed Monday for wide-ranging action, House Republicans continued to signal that this week’s special session could end with a thud – and within minutes of its opening.Senate President Jeff Atwater Calls for Second Special Session
With the Legislature going into special session next week to consider backing a constitutional amendment to ban oil drilling in state waters, Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, is now ready for a second oil-related session to be held at the end of summer -- and he has the backing of the House speaker.
Senate Looking to Expand Special Session
A week before the Legislature goes into special session, there was little agreement on just what oil-related items it plans to take up, though it became clear Monday that the Senate, at least, wants to go beyond the governor’s call and provide economic relief to the spill-weary Panhandle.
The Senate’s Select Committee on the Economy on Monday discussed a list of economic issues lawmakers should address when the Legislature convenes a special session ordered by Gov. Charlie Crist to vote on a proposed state constitutional amendment to ban offshore oil drilling in Florida.
State Capitol Briefs
GAETZ COMMITTEE TO LOOK AT SPILL LEGISLATION
A Senate committee will consider tax relief for property owners affected by the oil spill later this month, along with other possible legislative changes reacting to the crisis.
Governor Candidates United on Class-Size Change
All of the major candidates for governor are pushing for the change in the state Constitution that dictates how large school classrooms can be, which could let some classes increase slightly in size.
Supporters of a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow for a more lenient way of counting students to give schools flexibility on meeting class-size requirements touted the positions of the gubernatorial candidates in a release Wednesday, saying the candidates were putting policy over politics by unanimously supporting the proposed change in the law.
