State workers making more than $45,000 a year will get a 2 percent pay cut – except if they work for the state university system.

The salary reduction comes after three years of no raises but spares lower-paid employees. The House’s original proposal would have cut at least 4 percent across-the-board for state workers.

About 20 percent of Florida workers will get thinner paychecks, House and Senate budget leaders said at negotiations this afternoon.

The issue was one of the sticking points between the House and Senate, which originally planned on a 1 percent pay cut for state workers earning more than $100,000 a year.

Axing state aid to public libraries could cost the state $8 million in federal funds.

Budget negotiators swept all of the $13 million in state aid to public libraries late this week, raising alarms among librarians and county officials.

Florida could lose $8 million in federal aid for libraries if it doesn’t spend the $21 million it spent last year. Currently, the budget includes $8 million in library funding but that would go to the Department of State instead of local governments.

Under the current proposal, Palm Beach County libraries would lose about $1 million this year and other local libraries in the county would be out another $400,000, according to Todd Bonlarron, PBC legislative affairs director.

The cut would result in layoffs and fewer books and other materials, Bonlarron said.

“In these difficult economic times, our residents are turning even more to our libraries to assist in job searches, in looking for means of financial assistance, and in researching opportunities for personal growth and development. If there ever was a time to assist our state’s libraries, it would be now,” he said.

Lawmakers are trying to find a way to restore some of the funding, Senate budget chief J.D. Alexander said this morning during budget negotiations with the House.

“It’s one of those issues we’re working through and trying to figure out how it can be done,” Alexander, R-Lake Wales, said.

Gov. Charlie Crist dropped by to check on the talks.

“Well libraries are a great thing. I’m sympathetic to it and want to make sure that we do everything we can to maintain them. It’s important,” Crist said.

Lawmakers in both chambers unanimously gave state transportation officials the ability to pay losing bidders on big-ticket contracts.

The provision was included in a transportation package (HB 1021) similar to one Gov. Charlie Crist vetoed last year because of a different issue.

Department of Transportation officials have been paying the losing bidders “stipends” for years without the authority to do so. The change in law, if Crist approves it, would allow FDOT to keep up the practice on state road projects. The federal government also allows it.

Department officials say they need to pay the losers so they can use portions of their rejected plans in other projects.

The department has spent millions paying losing bidders over the past few years but has no record of how many of the rejected bids they’ve used or how much cash they’ve dropped on them.

The Senate unanimously signed off on a bill that was supposed to include a bail-out for South Florida’s TriRail commuter system.

But a controversial component that would have spent more than $500 million to create the controversial SunRail commuter rail system near Orlando ultimately threw TriRail under the bus.

A $2 rental car surcharge that would have gone to pay for TriRail was the carrot to lure opponents of the SunRail deal – where the state would pay transportation behemoth CSX more than $500 million to purchase track and make improvements on its rail lines – to support the measure (HB 1021).

But Sunrail backers did not have enough support and quietly withdrew amendments on a Department of Transportation package with no discussion this morning. Bye-bye, TriRail.

Watch for it to come up on other transportation bills. Backers have until the end of the day to push both or either rail deal through.

The package does include a provision allowing state transportation officials to pay losing bidders on high-dollar contracts, which they have been doing for years without the authority.

DOT says they need to pay the losers so they can use components of their plans in other projects.

Although they’ve spent millions of dollars paying losing bidders on “design/build” contracts, transportation officials have no record of how many of the “stipends” they’ve paid for have been actually used or for which projects.

“So as I understand the stipend is we pay the losing bidders?” Sen. Ronda Storms, R-Valrico asked the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Andy Gardiner.

“I think that’s subject to interpretation,” Gardiner, R-Orlando, replied.

The Senate made a slight change to the bill and it goes back to the House.

Senate Democratic Leader Al Lawson’s attempt at license tag brevity appears over.

Less than an hour after the Senate approved an amendment creating the “Can a Brotha Get a Break” license tag, they took it out.

But it’s unclear whether they’ll sign off on a Christian-themed license tag that a South Carolina court put the brakes on.

The “I Believe” license tag with a Christian cross made it into a bill (SB 2326) creating half a dozen other tags, including the “Trinity” plate with the image of Jesus Christ on it.

The Senate stripped the plate of the image with an amendment stating that no religious images would be on it.

But they later approved another amendment that included both tags.

Sen. Ronda Storms, the sponsor of the “I Believe” plate, said that was a mistake and the “Trinity” plate should not be included. The money from the “I Believe” tag goes to pay for faith-based education programs.

Gov. Charlie Crist said he’d sign both plates into law if the bills pass.

The bill’s on hold while the politicians try to figure it out.

A $400 million cut to state colleges and universities and an $120 million difference in state workers pay cuts are holding up agreement on budget talks.

Senate budget chief J.D. Alexander said he and House leaders are narrowing in on their budget disagreements but the higher ed cuts appear to be a sticking point.

The Senate had spent the same amount for community colleges and universities this year as it did last although enrollment at community colleges has spiked and is expected to continue to climb.

But the House wants to slash about $400 million from higher ed.

Earlier in the day, Alexander told Senate Democrats that he doesn’t like the House’s higher ed proposal.

“I think that would be devastating to those institutions in these days,” Alexander, R-Lake Wales, said.

House leaders also want to cut state workers’ salaries by $140 million, between 4 and 5 percent depending on how much employees earn.

The Senate is willing to cut state workers who make at least $100,000 but wants to keep the lower-paid workers’ salaries off-limits.

Senate President Jeff Atwater yanked a controversial Central Florida commuter rail bill from its final committee stop and has sent the measure to the Senate floor for a full vote.

The move was done without the approval of Senate Rules and Calendar Committee Chairman Alex Villalobos, R-Miami, but Senate rules do not require that Atwater get the go-ahead from Villalobos.

Sen. Paula Dockery, a vehement opponent of the bill that would pay CSX transportation giant more than $600 million to purchase some of its freight line and make improvements on other lines, stopped by the Senate Democratic office to give them a heads-up on the maneuver and shore up opposition.

Yesterday, the measure (a priority of Gov. Charlie Crist and incoming House Speaker Dean Cannon) was amended to include a $2 rental-car surcharge to help pay for South Florida’s Tri-Rail commuter line.

Dockery, a Lakeland Republican, told Senate Democratic Leader Al Lawson and a handful of other Senate Dems that “the votes on the floor look pretty good” to kill the deal.

“They must be planning on twisting people’s arms to bring it straight to the floor,” Lawson, D-Tallahassee, responded during the informal chat.

Lawson received assurances from the few caucus members attending the meeting that they would vote against the measure (SB 1212).

“We don’t want no train tracks on our back,” Lawson said.

Attorney General Bill McCollum’s child cyber-crime unit will be featured on talk show giant Oprah Winfrey’s show this afternoon.

A television crew accompanied McCollum’s anti-child porn team on an arrest and will report on it today. Word is the confiscated material and discussion includes graphic information about the state’s porn industry.

The AG’s Child CyberCrime Unit Director Maureen Horkan and the Director of Law Enforcement will be interviewed on the show.

A Senate committee approved Public Service Commissioner Lisa Edgar over the objections of a powerful GOP senator whose constituents, he said, were adversely affected by her votes.

Edgar was appointed to the commission that regulates utilities by Gov. Jeb Bush, served as chairwoman of the panel and was reappointed by Gov. Charlie Crist. The Senate must sign off on her reappointment.

The Senate Communications, Energy and Public Utilities Committee postponed a vote on Edgar but approved her reappointment this morning by a 7-1 vote after an unusually lengthy hour-long Q and A session.

Anticipating committee member Mike Fasano’s opposition to Edgar, chairman Jim King advised the panel to be civil before the meeting began.

“This is not an inquisition. It is a confirmation,” King, R-Jacksonville, cautioned. King used a seldom-employed procedure requiring Edgar to be sworn in before she testified.

Fasano questioned Edgar about going against a staff recommendation allowing a 10.75 rate increase for TECO. Fasano said Edgar instead led the charge to hike the recommendation to 11.25 percent, costing Tampa utility consumers about $14.5 million a year. The commission approved that rate by a 4-1 vote.

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JPMorgan Chase officials announced Friday they will stop using Indian call centers to answer customer service questions from Floridians on food stamps.

The announcement was made the same day the state’s unemployment rate climbed to 9.7 percent, the highest since 1975.

“No future calls will go to India,” Department of Children and Families Secretary George Sheldon said. “This is permanent.”

The Palm Beach Post published a story Thursday about the frustration of a Jupiter woman who reached a customer service call center in India while trying to obtain state assistance. The state contracts with JPMorgan Chase to run parts of the Florida food stamp program and uses two customer service centers in India. The company will instead route calls to its centers in Ohio and Illinois.

“The state has indicated to us they want to bring these calls to the U.S.,” said JPMorgan spokesman John Murray. “We’re working with them to do so.”

More here.

Sen. Ronda Storms is demanding an investigation into a contract in which the state has spent more than $50 million over the past three years to a private vendor to provide food stamp services.

The Palm Beach Post reported today that Department of Children and Families vendor JPMorgan Chase is using customer service call centers in India even as the state’s unemployment rate is 9.4 percent and climbing.

Storms brought up the outsourcing during budget discussions on the Senate floor this morning.

“I have requested an investigation into that. As soon as we get the results of that investigation then I’ll bring it before the body and then we’ll deal with it perhaps in budget,” Storms, R-Valrico, said.

It’s not the first time lawmakers opposed offshoring state contracts, but it is unusual that it’s a Republican questioning the practice this time.

Five years ago, Senate Democrats demanded that Gov. Jeb Bush – the “father” of privatization – audit whether private vendors had outsourced state contracts to offshore locations, including India, but that went nowhere.

View DCF customer service centers in a larger map
After selling real estate for two decades in Palm Beach County, Michelle Brown picked up a baby-sitting job when the housing market tanked. Then the children’s parents had their hours cut at work, so she turned to the state for help in buying food.

When Brown called the customer service line for the state’s food stamp program, a phone rang in India.

“It’s like a slap in the face,” said Brown, 52, of Jupiter. “That’s a job I’d be qualified for.”

With unemployment at 9.4 percent in Florida and nearly 50,000 new applications for food stamps each month, the state has paid JPMorgan Chase nearly $50 million over the past three years to provide food stamp program services, which include customer service call centers in Bangalore and Gurgaon, India.

Read the rest here.

Tax-hating Sen. Mike Haridopolos took part in a Tally “tea party” this afternoon where several hundred protesters gathered outside the Old Capitol.

Earlier in the day, Governor Charlie Crist touted April 15th – tax day – as an opportunity for Floridians to take advantage of the new federal tax break crediting first-time homebuyers with $8,000 towards the purchase of a new home.

Hours later, Haridopolos dumped on the president’s stimulus plan at the protest – one of multiple events throughout the nation – even though more than $2 billion of his chamber’s budget depends on the stimulus funds.

Earlier this week, Haridopolos released a video blasting the federal stimulus package, calling it “something we simply can’t afford.”

Haridopolos, who signed a pledge not to raise taxes when he took office, addressed the crowd briefly.

The Melbourne Republican was accompanied by Senate Majority Office staff, who brought their own tea.

The aides didn’t dump their tea bags, however.

They brought them back to the office for consumption later. After all, it is a tough budget year, even for Republicans.

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A state official seeking free air time could no longer award no-bid contracts thanks to an amendment sponsored by Greenacres Democrat Dave Aronberg today.

The “artistic services amendment,” tacked onto a state contracting bill (SB 2666) during the Senate General Government Appropriations Committee meeting, would require promotional-type contracts such as public service announcements, to go out for bid. State law now includes a rarely-used “artistic services” exemption that came under fire recently.

Attorney General Bill McCollum used the loophole to direct two no-bid contracts totaling $1.4 million to his former campaign ad producer. The TV spots starring McCollum promoted awareness of online child predators.

Aronberg is considering a run for Attorney General in 2010.

FWC workers plucked one man from a tree and scooped up another from his water-surrounded porch in Katrina-style rescues this week.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers in a helicopter spotted a Madison County man waving a white handkerchief. The man, identified only as “Mr. Lee,” had refused to leave his flooded home because he didn’t want to leave his three dogs behind, according to a FWC press release. The flooded Withlacoochee River spurred the rescues.

Click the box below to watch the dramatic rescue video.

“Mr. Lee had two shih tzus and a rottweiler. I didn’t mind the small dogs, but I was a little concerned about the rottweiler,” FWC Lt. Bruce Cooper said in the release. “As we were talking with Mr. Lee about getting him and his dogs out of there, we heard another man yelling for help about a quarter of a mile away from our location.”

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Privatization of a state hospital for the criminally insane is off the table for now after being quietly removed from the Senate budget during the Ways and Means Committee meeting today.

Sen. Durell Peaden made the move to quash the effort that could have saved the state about $6 million a year but opposed by Northeast Florida State Hospital employees and local officials who say the area’s economy is dependent on the facility and that a private company won’t pay as well.

About 200 workers and others from Baker County and the small town of Macclenny where the hospital is located came to the Capitol to plead with lawmakers to keep it in the state’s hands.

Dozens of them sat patiently through four hours of the committee meeting before Peaden introduced his amendment in his understated Panhandle style.

“This little simple amendment eliminates the privatization of Northeast Florida State Hospital,” Peaden, R-Crestview, said.

Without debating or closing on the bill, the amendment was adopted, drawing applause from the audience.

The House proposal still includes the outsourcing of the hospital.

Sen. Charlie Dean says he should quit his post as Majority Whip if lawmakers move forward with a push to privatize a state-run mental hospital for the criminally insane in his district.

Dean said that’s not merely a threat.

“If I can’t be a team player and jump in with what everybody wants then maybe I ought not to be the whip,” Dean, R-Inverness, said. “If you’re the whip you’re supposed to be the team player and I just think this is wrong.

Both the House and the Senate have included privatization of the Northeast Florida State Hospital in Macclenny in their budget proposals. Staff estimate a savings of about $6 million per year, or a 9 percent annual drop, in spending if the Department of Children and Families no longer runs the facility, which employees about 1,100 state workers.

DCF officials say it will cost about $4 million to buy out the workers, but Senate budget chief J.D. Alexander said the move will result in savings in the long run.
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Gov. Charlie Crist earlier today urged lawmakers to consider expanding the types of workers eligible for unemployment compensation so the state can draw down $444 million in federal stimulus aid to pay for the benefits.

He said that House Republican concerns that taking the money would hike businesses’ taxes long after the stimulus money dries up could be resolved by passing a bill that agrees to undo the expanded benefits after a certain length of time.

But within hours, staff at the Agency for Workforce Innovation, which handles unemployment claims, released requested information cautioning against taking the money.

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Gov. Charlie Crist encouraged House Republicans to take $444 million in federal stimulus money that would give 40,000 more jobless workers unemployment benefits.

House Majority Leader Adam Hasner is balking at taking the money because he believes that it would cause businesses’ unemployment taxes to go up after the stimulus money dries up.

But a national employment group found that businesses’ taxes would go up anyway and taking the money would actually be a saving for them in the long run.

Crist said he’s sympathetic to the House’s worries about the impact on businesses.

But, he went on: “They’re lawmakers though. Maybe they could come up with a law that would say we’ll take the stimulus…for x amount of years and not have to continue and then keep the rates down.”

Legislation that would make it easier for foster kids to get access to their records passed unanimously out of a Senate committee today.

The bill (SB 126) lays out a process for current and foster kids to follow when denied access to their records.

The bill, approved unanimously by the Senate Children, Families and Elder Affairs Committee, also would give potential foster and adoptive parents more access to records about children they are considering taking into their care.

Foster kids who have aged out of the system have run into trouble getting a range of public records, including photographs of their biological parents and even addresses of where they have lived.

Read more about the problems here.