by Kathleen Haughney
The News Service of Florida
More than 50 new representatives and senators descended on Tallahassee last week for the first time, most with one thought in common.
Jobs. Jobs. Jobs.
As new lawmakers learned their way around the Capitol, there was little talk of plans for schools, criminal justice or social issues. Fights over school choice, abortion rights and environmental protections have taken up hours of debate in past legislative session, but those issues have faded into the background for the time being.
“Jobs. We’ve got to get the people back to work,” said freshman Rep. Kathleen Passidomo (R-Naples) when asked about the Legislature’s top issue for the spring 2011 session. Nearly every new lawmaker who was interviewed last week by the News Service echoed that refrain.
The state’s unemployment rate in October was 11.9 percent, according to the Agency for Workforce Innovation and both the new legislative leaders and Gov.-elect Rick Scott have promised to make the economy their top priority.
The House and Senate will likely combine on a jobs and economy package, but Passidomo, a real estate attorney, has some ideas herself. Her top individual legislative priority is the foreclosure crisis, which has dramatically affected the state’s economy for the past several years and clogged the state’s financially beleaguered court system with a backload of cases.
Passidomo said her real estate practice has significantly declined over the past few years because of the foreclosure crisis, but it has given her practical exposure to the issue.
“I have some thoughts on how we can address the issues of the backlog of cases in the courts that would not affect the borrowers’ due process rights,” she said.
Scott, who is transitioning to the governor’s office, has campaigned largely on getting Floridians back to work based on his business background. He unveiled a seven-part jobs plan during his campaign that includes cutting government spending and phasing out the business tax.
Democrats may object to Scott’s plan to cut some government spending, particularly if it’s going to mean cutting state jobs.
New state Sen. Bill Montford (D-Tallahassee) said one of his top priorities includes protecting state jobs, but he also said that the economy needs to be the Legislature’s biggest priority.
“We’ve got to advance the economy – jobs – because that drives everything else,” he said. “We’ve got to fund our state budget.”
Many new lawmakers are still meeting new colleagues, learning their way around the Legislature and consulting with leadership on their ideas for both economic growth and other legislation.
Rep. Irv Slosberg, who previously served in the Legislature from 2000 to 2006, said another priority is balancing the budget. Lawmakers begin the year looking at a deficit of more than $2 billion.
“I’m an entrepreneur, I know how to generate money and that’s what this state needs right now,” said Slosberg (D-Boca Raton).
With the focus on jobs and the economy, a question arises about how prominent social issues will be in the upcoming session. Both legislative leaders, Speaker Dean Cannon (R-Winter Park) and Senate President Mike Haridopolos (R-Merritt Island) are also more focused on fiscal issues than social ones.
Last spring, an abortion rights debate played a major role in the final days of the 2010 legislative session. A bill sponsored by state Sen. Andy Gardiner (R-Orlando) required more women seeking an abortion to first view an ultrasound. But so far, Cannon and Haridopolos have played down social issues.
The freshman lawmakers, so far, haven’t volunteered to talk about those issues either.
The Republicans have veto-proof majorities in both the House and Senate and can advance a socially conservative agenda should they choose to.
Freshman State Sen. Jim Norman (R-Tampa) noted there are “so many conservatives here” talking about his Senate colleagues, but he also chose to talk about budget issues. He said he is looking forward to the debate on revamping the state Medicaid program, which could cut down on the program’s more than $20 billion projected price tag.
“It’s one of our biggest budget items,” he said.