Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Locals want to make their feelings known. What are yours?
Pasco County’s “gun show loophole” is still open, and there are still people unhappy about that. A small group of folks bearing signs with messages like “Close the Gun Show Loophole” and “Country Commissioners—We want Background Checks” showed up outside the County Commission chambers in New Port Richey Tuesday, May 21. Florida law requires licensed gun dealers to conduct background checks, but counties are allowed to craft gun show regulations. Currently folks can purchase firearm at a gun show in Pasco without a background check. Commissioners were going to have a public hearing at which residents could weigh in on a proposal to tighten the regulation of gun show sales. But they chose in March not to do so after hearing the counsel of a…
The Pasco County School Board appointed Aimee Boltze to fill the post vacated by beleaguered Principal Anna Falcone.
Connerton Elementary students don’t have to end the school year wondering who will sit in the principal’s office in August. The Pasco County School Board acted on Superintendent Kurt Browning’s recommendation to appoint Aimee Boltze to serve in the post formerly held by Anna Falcone. Approval for the permanent appointment came during the board’s May 21 meeting. Boltze has served as the interim principal of Connerton since Browning recommended the termination of Falcone earlier this year. That recommendation came on the heels of allegations that Falcone had violated confidentiality and acted insubordinately. “It was brought to my attention that Mrs. Falcone persisted in seeking confidential information after repeatedly being denied the …
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Tuesday, May 21, 2013
A series of town hall meetings kicks off Wednesday, May 22. The in-person meeting in Land O’ Lakes has been replaced by a virtual session that takes place online May 29.
Pasco County School Board members want to hear from Land O’ Lakes residents as the clock ticks down for them to set a budget for the 2013-14 school year. To get input from parents, students and others in the community, the board is playing host to a series of town hall meetings. The meetings are designed to give residents a chance to ask questions and share their suggestions. This is the first year in recent budget cycles board members won’t host an in-person meeting in Land O’ Lakes. That meeting is being replaced by an online session that takes place at the end of the month. The district is once again facing a multimillion dollar budget shortfall as it heads into next year. Estimates put that shortfall at about $23 million. The number …
Much of the credit for the county’s $50 million gain goes to the Land ‘O Lakes and Wesley Chapel areas.
Pasco County officials are reporting some good news when it comes to the area’s tax rolls. The county saw its property tax base grow by about $50 million over last year. That’s according to the Tampa Bay Times, which says overall the county logged about a ¼ of a percent in overall tax roll growth this year. The county’s property values as a whole come in around $19.3 billion. "There's nothing to get excited about anywhere,” Property Appraiser Mike Wells told the Times. "But at least Wesley Chapel and Land O' Lakes are on the plus side." The Tampa Tribune says the growth in tax roll numbers is a first for Pasco in five years. Even so, those numbers fall far short of the 2 percent growth that had been hoped for. Cities such as New Port …
Friday, May 17, 2013
As news about possible abuses of power on the federal level continues to break, we’d like to get your take about what’s been going on Tampa Bay.
Tampa Bay residents who keep up with the headlines coming out of Washington, D.C., have likely found themselves scratching their heads more than a few times this past week. Allegations of wrongdoing seem to be coming at the speed of light as the Obama Administration fends off bad press about inappropriate targeting of Tea Party organizations by the Internal Revenue Service and possible wrongdoing in the handling of a national security leak. The IRS’ targeting of Tea Party groups centers around hassles these groups report experiencing while trying to apply for tax-exempt status prior to the 2012 election. The controversy even hit home as Bay area groups are now reporting that they were targeted, according to The Tampa Tribune. The kerfuffle…
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
The city of Sarasota just enacted a law aimed at getting motorists to turn down the volume. Now, other local governments are following suit. Should they?
Most of us have been in the car when a great tune comes on the radio. The urge to turn up that volume just a little bit is often too strong to resist. But, how loud is too loud? When is cranking it up going too far? When should authorities be able to step in and say enough is enough? Those are questions some local governments in the Tampa Bay area are now wrestling with. Since the Florida Legislature shot down a measure that would have regulated just how loud car stereos can be, some local authorities have decided to take matters into their own hands. The City of Sarasota just put its new ordinance into effect that makes it against the law for car stereos and portable electronic devices to emit sounds at a level that are considered “…
Monday, May 13, 2013
This interactive U.S. voting map shows who the Florida voters were in the 2012 presidential election. You may be surprised by the results.
A slightly greater percerntage of eligible Hispanic voters – 62.2 percent – turned out to cast ballots in the 2012 presidential election in Florida than white, non-Hispanic voters. And more eligible female voters went to the polls than men. The results are among several demographic mesaurements released by the U.S. Census showing the make-up of voters in Florida and across the United States. Just click on Florida on the map above to see the results. Darker green states had a higher percentage of turnout. If you click on an individual state, you will see percentages of eligible U.S. citizens who voted in that state broken down by gender, race and ethnic group. This information was released from from the US Census Bureau on Wednesday, May 8…
Friday, May 10, 2013
The Florida House and Senate recently approved a measure that would make driving slow in the fast lane punishable by a fine. Do you think this is a good idea?
Can’t handle traveling at the Interstate’s 70 mph pace or a local four-lane road’s legal top speed? You might want to get in the practice of moving over. The Florida House and Senate recently approved a measure that makes it illegal to drive more than 10 mph under the speed limit if your vehicle is riding in the fast lane. The proposal will become the law of the land in Florida if Gov. Rick Scott signs on the dotted line. Dubbed the “road rage” bill, according to ABC News, the measure would give law enforcement the right to fine drivers $60 for moving at a snail’s pace in the far left lane of any road that has two or more lanes. That means slow drivers who refuse to move over – often causing other motorists to lose their cool – would be …
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Drivers who want to appeal a ticket might have to pay up to $250 in additional fees if Gov. Rick Scott signs a new bill into law. Do you think that’s right?
Hate red light cameras? If so, you might hate them even more if Gov. Rick Scott signs a bill recently passed by the Florida Legislature into law. The bill sets a new process for appeals that enables local government bodies – cities and counties – to tack on an additional $250 in court fees for those who try to appeal tickets generated by red light cameras and fail. It also puts the new appeals process into the hands of those very same local governments that would benefit from the additional fees. That means motorists who appeal and lose will no longer be subject to just a $158 penalty – they might have to fork over $408. The new law, according to The Tampa Tribune, was designed to streamline the appeals process and put more control in the …
Monday, May 6, 2013
A law that would have ended permanent alimony in Florida didn’t get Gov. Rick Scott’s stamp of approval. Do you think he was right to nix the legislation?
Divorced men and women across Florida got good news – or bad, depending on perspective – late last week when Gov. Rick Scott shot down a law that would have put an end to permanent alimony in Florida. Scott vetoed the measure with only four hours left on the clock for it to automatically go into law, according to Fox News. Citing concerns about the financial impacts the bill would have on Florida families and a dislike for the fact the measure had a clause that would make it retroactive, Scott told lawmakers he could not support passage. "The retroactive adjustment of alimony could result in unfair, unanticipated results,” Fox quoted Scott as saying. Had the law gone into effect it would have limited the amount of alimony a person could …
David Hardingham
9:02 pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
If we wanted to get serious about heath care we take the 17.9 percent of GDP, on health care in 2011 which does not even cover how the hidden cost of how the uninsured get covered which possible drive the GDP cost closer to 20% or more compare that to Canada who run their heath care for a little more than half that and if we spend 15% we have one of the best single payer system in the world and … more ›