Toxic bill surfaces in Tallahassee Here we go again. Just as river advocates were finding a toehold in Tallahassee, along comes another bad bill that aims to strip local governments of the ability to control what happens in their own backyards. We shouldn’t be surprised to learn who filed it. It’s state Rep. Jimmy Patronis, a Republican from Panama City who has assembled a motley “environmental regulation” bill every year. Patronis also is the guy who organizes the state Legislature’s annual Seersucker Day — when power brokers are invited to wear puckered-stripe suits as they do their business in the Capitol. That should tell us something about his priorities in Tallahassee. The bill he filed last week does, too. Patronis’ latest wish list, HB 703, is another bundle of requests that aim to erode regulations, including some that don’t yet exist. “It’s really frustrating when, all summer long, all your politicians all over the state are talking about how they’re going to help you save your river … then one of them suggests that the state should tell you ‘you can’t,’ ” said Maggy Hurchalla, the godmother of Martin County’s environmental movement. Here’s a taste of what the bill would do, if approved during the legislative session that starts March 4: See SAMPLES, 6A COLUMNIST EVE SAMPLES Article Continued Below See FROM 1A on Page A06 From 1a SAMPLES from 1A Give the state power to weaken federal rules governing greenhouse gas emissions from industrial properties (even though the Environmental Protection Agency has not yet ap proved such rules); Allow 50-year permits for surface water storage projects by private landowners; Force local governments to require a simplemajority vote to make changes to their growth rules (known as comprehensive plans). That last bit seems directly targeted at Martin County, where county commissioners recently approved changes that require a supermajority vote for anything that would increase negative impacts to the Loxahatchee and St. Lucie Estuary and would adversely affect the water supply. Patronis bill would effectively undo their work. His proposal comes three years after the Legislature shut down Floridas Department of Community Affairs, which was the states watchdog for growth (albeit a weakened one). When they killed the Department of Community Affairs, they said loud and clear, Were doing this because we believe in local government, Hurchalla said. I hope they meant that. And I hope Patronis bill wont get out of committee and that our legislative delegation will do everything that they can to see that it gets an early death. Too bad our local lawmakers have an uninspiring track record when it comes to Patronis bills. Last year, every Treasure Coast member of the state House voted in favor of his HB 999. Among other bad provisions, it protected the no-bid, 30-year leases granted to sugar companies on state-owned land in the Everglades. For the record, those yes votes came from Republicans Gayle Harrell, MaryLynn Magar and Debbie Mayfield, as well as Democrat Larry Lee. State Sen. Joe Negron, a Republican from Stuart, was the only local lawmaker to oppose the bill last year - but it didnt matter. HB 999 passed anyway and was signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott. For his work to strip environmental protections, Patronis has won awards from business groups - including the Associated Industries of Florida, which has contributed heavily to his campaigns. Patronis is the man who gives environmental activists nightmares - a charming and savvy lawmaker convinced that Florida would be better off if government would get out of the way and let businesses boost the economy, wrote Craig Pittman, environmental reporter for the Tampa Bay Times, in a story published last year. But, as the crippling pollution of the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon has shown, many of those businesses are dependent on our environmental resources. Over the long term, we cant boost the economy without protecting them. Eve Samples is a columnist for Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers. This column reflects her opinion. Contact her at 772-221-4217 or eve.samples@scripps.
Posted on: Sun, 26 Jan 2014 13:54:17 +0000