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Headlines : Florida
House passes $69.2 billion budget, over complaints about charters, foster kids and colleges
With a month left in the lawmaking session, the House budget that passed largely along party lines remains out of sync with the Senate's spending priorities on a few major issues - such as health-care and environmental spending.
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Headlines : Florida
Senate budget calls for more local funding, less state money for hospitals
As chairman of the Senate's Budget Subcommittee on Health and Human Services Appropriations, Sen. Joe Negron unveiled his $7.5 billion general fund spending proposal.
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Headlines : Florida
Gov. Scott will reject tuition increase
Gov. Rick Scott and his fellow Republican lawmakers are poised for a budget battle over raising college tuition by 8 percent. Scott opposes the move.
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Headlines : Florida
Fla. House rolls out nearly $69.2 billion budget
The House version of the budget is nearly $3 billion more than the one recommended by the governor last month.
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Headlines : Florida
Private-prisons bill advances in Florida Senate
Lawmakers in committee voted 13-5 to put the privatization of 30 lockups across the southern end of the state on the fast track despite concerns of unions and lobbyists. For-profit prison vendors would be required to run prisons at a cost of at least 7 percent less than what state-run prisons cost taxpayers.
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Gov. Rick Scott
The Capitol
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001
Phone: (850) 488-2272
Fax: (850) 922-4292
http://www.flgov.com/
Tracey Fannon, Budget Chief
Office of Policy and Budget
1702 The Capitol, Executive Office of the Governor
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001
Phone (850) 487-1880
Fax: (850) 488-9005
2012 Legislative Calendar: Regular Session convenes January 10, adjourns March 9.
Legislative Budget Leaders:
Rep. Denise Grimsley (R), Chair, House Appropriations Committee; Vice-Chair, Joint Legislative Budget Commission, (850) 488-3457
Rep. Chris Dorworth (R), Vice-Chair, House Appropriations Committee, (850) 488-5843
Rep. Stephen L. Precourt (R), Chair, House Finance & Tax Committee, (850) 488-0256
Rep. Lake Ray (R), Vice-Chair, House Finance & Tax Committee, (850) 488-4388
Sen. JD Alexander (R), Chair, Senate Budget Committee; Chair, Joint Legislative Budget Commission, alexander.jd.web@flsenate.gov (863) 679-4847
Sen. Joe Negron (R), Vice-Chair, Senate Budget Committee, negron.joe.web@flsenate.gov (772) 219-1665
The current state budget can be found here.
Florida is required to pass a "balanced budget." Sections 216.165 and 216.221 of the state law require the governor to recommend revenues sufficient to fund appropriations. Florida law forbids the carrying over of a deficit from one year to the next. Florida's governor is required to monitor revenues to ensure that all the necessary revenues are being raised. If a deficit is developing, then the governor, house speaker, senate president and chief justice are to reduce costs to eliminate the deficit. Florida has one of the most aggressive policies for maintaining a balanced budget in the country, requiring that when the budget isn't balanced, it is to be made balanced. In spite of these laws and policies, Florida reported budget deficits (negative net transactions) for the three years studied.
The State maintains four individual governmental funds: the General Fund, the Environment, Recreation & Conservation Fund, the Health & Family Services Fund, and the Transportation Fund. The State budgets its financial activities on a cash basis of accounting and budgets three major funds: the General fund, the major special revenue fund (comprised of 3 lesser funds), and special revenue fund (comprised of about 19 to 20 lesser funds). On the Budgetary Comparison Schedule neither one of these budget categories include a "Total" column for the lesser funds, which is inefficient for budgetary analysis.
Florida has a dedicated website to the budget, www.peoplesbudget.state.fl.us, which shows the funding for all agencies and the funding source. [from the Institute for Truth in Accounting]
Find the state's bond ratings here.
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Pensions :
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HEADLINES: Florida
Scott calls for $1 billion boost in education spending in proposed budget
Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who was criticized for pushing school funding cuts a few months ago, is asking for a billion dollars more for education to come during an election year.
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SOLUTIONS: Florida
Pension Reform Now
The long-term problem can be addressed by encouraging local governments to place all new employees in 401(k)-style "defined contribution" plans rather than General Motors-style "defined benefit" plans, and to encourage current employees to convert to defined contribution plans as well. This would help ensure that the present costs of government are funded in present budgets.
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Solutions: Florida
Pension Reform Now
The long-term problem can be addressed by encouraging local governments to place all new employees in 401(k)-style "defined contribution" plans rather than General Motors-style "defined benefit" plans, and to encourage current employees to convert to defined contribution plans as well. This would help ensure that the present costs of government are funded in present budgets.
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Solutions: Florida
Transparency in Government Spending: Next Steps for Florida
While several improvements have been made to bring Florida's tradition of "Government in the Sunshine" into the 21st Century, it seems appropriate that the year that marked the anniversary of the beginning of Florida's tradition of "government in the sunshine" also became the year in which
Florida took an important leap towards living up to its nickname of the "Sunshine State," particularly in the area of government finance. -
Solutions: Florida
Education Savings Accounts
Children with disabilities are often poorly served by public schools. In 1999, Florida created a school voucher for children with disabilities called the McKay Scholarship Program. This program allows children with disabilities to take a portion of the funding the state would spend on their education and use it at any school they choose - whether that's a traditional public school, a charter school, an online program, or a private school.
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Solutions: Florida
Protecting Florida's Cities Through Pension Reform
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Florida
Scott calls for $1 billion boost in education spending in proposed budget
Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who was criticized for pushing school funding cuts a few months ago, is asking for a billion dollars more for education to come during an election year.
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Florida
Pension Reform Now
The long-term problem can be addressed by encouraging local governments to place all new employees in 401(k)-style "defined contribution" plans rather than General Motors-style "defined benefit" plans, and to encourage current employees to convert to defined contribution plans as well. This would help ensure that the present costs of government are funded in present budgets.
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BLOG : Florida, New Jersey, Rhode Island, New Hampshire
Weekly Pension Update
Bob Williams' review of developments in pension legislation and law suits from around the country.
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BLOG : Massachusetts , New York, Florida
Pension Reform Update: Progress for some, relapse for others
While some states are attempting to reform lavish pension plans, others are still playing games with state finances.
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Florida, Michigan, Utah
States Mull Shift in Worker Pensions
Policy makers across the country are considering scrapping guaranteed retirement benefits for public workers in favor of 401(k)-like plans.
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