A heated exchange took place in the Senate Democratic Caucus meeting this afternoon over the sweeping rail proposal that is the topic of the special session now underway.

Conspicuously absent from the meeting were representatives of the state Department of Transportation, responsible for a controversial $641 million deal with transportation giant CSX Inc.

A provision included in the bill that would allow state transportation officials to unlink union jobs from railroads has put the measure in jeopardy in the Senate.

A frustrated Sen. Tony Hill, a former longshoreman and union organizer, demanded that fellow Democrat Jeremy Ring, the bill’s Senate sponsor, fix the measure to ensure that union workers won’t lose their jobs.

“Get it right. Get it right. It’s your bill. Get it right,” Hill, D-Jacksonville, told Ring.

The bill is either all about jobs or has nothing to do with jobs, depending on who is talking and what day of the week it is.

About 138 Tri-Rail workers would get pink slips if the bill passes, union representatives say.

That’s not true, countered South Florida Regional Transportation Authority Chairman Jeff Koons, also a Palm Beach County Commissioner.

He claimed the only way Tri-Rail workers will be out of a job is if the controversial bill does not pass because the commuter rail system won’t get the extra $15 million a year included in the measure. Without that, he said, Tri-Rail won’t be able to run its full schedule.

“We are holding our nose. We are supporting this agreement,” Koons told the packed conference room.

(more…)

Senate President Jeff Atwater and his GOP lieutenants insist that the rail proposal now being considered in a special session that opened today has nothing to do with a controversial Central Florida commuter line known as “SunRail.”

That’s probably a wise maneuver since Senators twice failed to pass measures that would have allowed the state Department of Transportation to move forward with a deal paying CSX Inc. $641 million for 61 miles of track to start the commuter line and allow CSX to continue to run freight on the line for $1 a year.

Yet the first committee to take up the 49-page bill in a workshop this morning spent nearly the entire three hours discussing the SunRail project that the measure is supposedly not about.

And Tri-Rail got a fair amount of attention, too.

Sen. Paula Dockery, who’s hoping to ride a victory in the death of the SunRail deal earlier this year to the governor’s mansion, led the charge against SunRail with some simple questions about Tri-Rail.

The proposal will give up to a $15 million helping hand to Tri-Rail that, like every other public transit system in the country, loses money every year.

And it will bring thousands of jobs, said Sen. Jeremy Ring, the bill’s sponsor.

“How many jobs were created when Tri-Rail went into existence 20 years ago,” Dockery asked Ring.

Ring said that the 20-year-old commuter line has 330 employees.
(more…)

Ring

“I gave this really serious consideration and I enjoy my life as it is,” said Ring, who said serving in Congress would disrupt his family life.

The Broward County resident also noted that 71 percent of congressional District 19 voters live in Palm Beach County.

“Not that it’s not winnable, but it’s primarily a Palm Beach seat,” Ring said.

Ring, a wealthy former Yahoo executive, was considered a potentially formidable candidate because of his ability to pour personal money into an expected short campaign.

State Sen. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, former Broward County Mayor Ben Graber and Jose Ruiz, all Democrats, have announced their intentions to run. Wexler is stepping down in January to head a Middle East-focused think tank.

Now the Wexler proteges could battle each other for their mentor’s congressional seat.

Boca Raton Sen. Deutch and Coral Springs Sen. Ring are among the half dozen or more Democrats who might enter a special election for Wexler’s Palm Beach-Broward congressional seat when Wexler steps down in January to head a Middle East think tank.

Wexler remains close to Deutch and Ring, but a Democratic insider said Wexler is likely to endorse Deutch as his replacement.

Other prominent Democrats eyeing the race include West Palm Beach Mayor Lois Frankel, Broward County Mayor Stacy Ritter, former Broward Mayor Ben Graber and former Boca Raton state Rep. Irving Slosberg.

The winner of the Democratic primary will likely claim the seat in a district where Democrats hold more than a 2-to-1 registration edge over Republicans and no GOP candidate has received more than 34.4 percent since 1996.

Primary and general election dates will be set after Gov. Charlie Crist receives a resignation letter from Wexler.

Graber, who got 6.6 percent against Wexler last year as a no-party candidate, announced today he will run as a Democrat in the special election.

Other potential candidates said they were in soul-searching mode.

“I have to talk to my friends and family and see what’s in my heart,” said Frankel.

“I am talking to community members, I am talking to leaders all across my district and most importantly I am talking to my family,” said Deutch, who expects to make an announcement Thursday.

Ring said he is “absolutely investigating it, considering it. I should have a decision this weekend.”

Ritter said she’ll make a decision next week.

With about 71 percent of District 19 voters in Palm Beach County, Broward candidates Ring and Ritter both said they would have to analyze whether multiple Broward candidates would hurt each other and maximize Palm Beach County’s advantage.

Deutch

Wexler himself wasn’t ready to make any endorsements today as he confirmed he’s leaving Congress in the middle of his seventh term to become president of the nonprofit Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation.

Wexler has a long history of getting involved in Democratic primaries and other local races. His most memorable activity was probably his successful 2004 effort to topple former elections chief Theresa LePore and install Arthur Anderson. Wexler later cooled on Anderson and was neutral when Anderson lost his reelection bid last year to Susan Bucher.

In 2006, Wexler backed Deutch in a Democratic state Senate primary and helped him defeat better-known, better-financed state Rep. Irving Slosberg. At the same time, Wexler was instrumental in Jeremy Ring’s victory over Ben Graber in a Democratic state Senate primary in Broward County. Now Deutch and Ring are among the candidates considering running for Wexler’s congressional seat.

Wexler hinted he’ll make an endorsement soon.

“I have been known to get involved in primaries before, both to people’s happiness and chagrin…I’ve done it before. I care deeply about the person who will replace me and lead this community in Congress, so we’ll leave that for another day,” Wexler said.

Wexler

Wexler, 48, is to discuss his timetable for leaving office and other details publicly Wednesday morning after speaking to several Democrats individually this week and in a conference call tonight.

Wexler’s departure is likely to set off a scramble among Democrats to replace him in a special election in an overwhelmingly Democratic Palm Beach-Broward congressional district with a large population of Jewish and senior voters.

Among the potential candidates: state Sens. Ted Deutch of Boca Raton and Jeremy Ring of Coral Springs, West Palm Beach Mayor Lois Frankel, former Boca Raton state Rep. Irving Slosberg, Broward County Mayor Stacy Ritter and former Broward Mayor Ben Graber.

Ring, who said Wexler told him Monday he will be “moving on,” confirmed his interest in running for the congressional seat. Slosberg, who once toyed with the idea of challenging Wexler in a Democratic primary, said he’s “leaving his options open.”

Frankel and Deutch said they’d wait for Wexler to go public before discussing their plans.

(more…)

In addition to the more newsworthy veto of a State Farm-related bill, Gov. Charlie Crist on Wednesday vetoed two other bills that would have hidden information from the public.

The bills included SB 166, which would have protected the names of people donating anonymously for public buildings such as dorms or art centers.

The measure said that donors may fear identity theft.

“It’s unfortunate,” said the sponsor, Sen. Jeremy Ring, D-Margate. “The reason for doing (the bill) was a sound reason: You’ve got these public-private cultural centers, and what’s happening is people can’t contribute anonymously. It hurts the arts.”

Ring said he was told Crist thought the bill was “too broad.” Ring said he would attempt a similar bill next year.

The second bill (HB 7093) would have exempted some business information that telecommunications companies submit to the state. The public records exemption was tied to a proposed law (HB 7091) that died in the Senate.

In other action, Crist signed HB 7051, which makes it easier for the news media to obtain Social Security numbers for identity verification, and HB 949, which allows Florida courts to ignore defamation suits filed in countries that lack freespeech protections.

Florida labor leaders said at a press conference today that a constitutional amendment (HJR 1013) from House Majority Leader Adam Hasner, R-Boca Raton, “targets working people.”

“The proposed constitutional amendment is not about the protection of secret ballot. It’s all about political gamesmanship in an effort to launch an anti-worker campaign in Florida, a campaign being disguised as a pro-worker effort,” said Mike Williams, president of the Florida Building & Construction Trades Council.

(more…)