The Week Ahead in Florida Politics – January 9, 2017

BY THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, JANUARY 6, 2017....... With the 2017 legislative session approaching, House and Senate committees will work on high-profile issues during the coming week. That includes discussions of issues such as property insurance, Medicaid, the death penalty, workers' compensation insurance, medical marijuana, Lake Okeechobee, economic incentives and gambling.

MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 2017

VISIT FLORIDA COMMITTEES MEET: Committees of the Visit Florida Board of Directors will hold a series of meetings in advance of a full board meeting Tuesday. (Monday, committees start at 9:30 a.m., Disney's Contemporary Resort, 4600 North World Dr., Lake Buena Vista.)

UF GOVERNANCE AT ISSUE: At least four members of the University of Florida Board of Trustees are expected to meet to discuss university governance planning. (Monday, 9:30 a.m., Isleworth Country Club, 6100 Payne Stewart Dr., Windermere.)

TUESDAY, JANUARY 10, 2017

Legislature:

PROPERTY INSURANCE EYED: The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee will receive an overview of property-insurance issues, including a controversial issue known as "assignment of benefits." The assignment-of-benefits issue involves homeowners who need repairs and sign over insurance benefits to contractors. The contractors then pursue payments from insurers. Insurers contend the process can lead to fraud and litigation and has fueled an increase in costly water-damage claims. But plaintiffs' attorneys and contractors have countered that the practice helps homeowners hire contractors quickly to repair damage and forces insurers to properly pay claims. (Tuesday, 10 a.m., 110 Senate Office Building, the Capitol)

VETERANS ISSUES ON THE TABLE: The Senate Military and Veterans Affairs, Space and Domestic Security Committee will take up a series of issues, including a presentation about veterans' nursing homes. (Tuesday, 10 a.m., 37 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

COMMERCE COMMITTEE CONSIDERS PRIORITIES: The House Commerce Committee will receive a presentation about issues and priorities of the committee and subcommittees. (Tuesday, 10 a.m., 212 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

PANEL HOLDS INTRODUCTORY MEETING: The House Government Accountability Committee will receive an overview of the committee and its subcommittees. (Tuesday, 10 a.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

FINANCIAL OUTLOOK AT ISSUE: The House Appropriations Committee will receive an update about the state financial outlook. (Tuesday, 1 p.m., 212 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

TAXES AND FEES DETAILED: The House Ways & Means Committee will receive staff presentations about state and local tax and fee structures. (Tuesday, 1 p.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

WATER ISSUES DISCUSSED: The Senate Environmental Preservation and Conservation Committee will consider a number of issues, including an update about the Central Florida Water Initiative. (Tuesday, 2 p.m., 37 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

EDUCATION GAP DISCUSSED: The House Education Committee will receive presentations on issues such as "closing the opportunity gap." (Tuesday, 3:30 p.m., Reed Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

MEDICAID MANAGED CARE AT ISSUE: The House Health & Human Services Committee will receive an update about the Medicaid managed-care program. (Tuesday, 3:30 p.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

DEATH PENALTY, WORKERS' COMP WEIGHED: The House Judiciary Committee will discuss court rulings on a series of issues, including the death-penalty sentencing system and the workers' compensation insurance system. Capital punishment has been on hold for the past year in the state because of rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court and the Florida Supreme Court. Also during the past year, the Florida Supreme Court issued two rulings finding parts of the workers' compensation insurance system unconstitutional. Those rulings played a major role in a 14.5 percent insurance rate increase that started hitting businesses in December. (Tuesday, 3:30 p.m. 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

Also:

FLORIDA GULF COAST TRUSTEES MEET: The Florida Gulf Coast University Board of Trustees will take up a series of issues, including receiving an update about the school's presidential search. (Tuesday, 8:30 a.m., Florida Gulf Coast University, Cohen Center, 10501 FGCU Blvd. South, Fort Myers.)

VISIT FLORIDA BOARD MEETS: The Visit Florida Board of Directors will meet. (Tuesday, 9 a.m., Disney's Contemporary Resort, 4600 North World Dr., Lake Buena Vista.)

ST. JOHNS WATER BOARD MEETS: The St. Johns River Water Management District Governing Board will meet after holding committee meetings. (Tuesday, committees start at 9 a.m., followed by board meeting, district headquarters, 4049 Reid St., Palatka.)

SUWANNEE WATER BOARD MEETS: The Suwannee River Water Management District Governing Board will meet. (Tuesday, 9 a.m., district headquarters, 9225 County Road 49, Live Oak.)

WATER, SEWER RATES ON THE AGENDA: The Florida Public Service Commission will hold customer-service hearings about a proposal by Utilities Inc. of Florida to increase water and wastewater rates. (Tuesday, 9:30 a.m., Summertree Recreation Facility, 12005 Paradise Point Way, New Port Richey. Also, 6 p.m., Alice Hall Community Center, 38116 Fifth Ave., Zephyrhills.)

UNF STRATEGIC PLANNING AT ISSUE: The University of North Florida Board of Trustees will receive an update about strategic planning. (Tuesday, 11 a.m., University of North Florida, University Center, Jacksonville.)

CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS DUE: Political committees, parties and candidates for state offices in 2018 and 2020 face a Tuesday deadline for filing finance reports showing activity through Dec. 31.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

Legislature:

PANEL DELVES INTO DEATH PENALTY: The House Criminal Justice Subcommittee will take up a series of issues, including recent legal decisions about the state's death-penalty sentencing system. (Wednesday, 9 a.m., 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

NATURAL RESOURCES BUDGET DISCUSSED: The House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an overview of its base budget. (Wednesday, 9 a.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

ELECTRIC RATES EYED: The House Energy & Utilities Subcommittee will host a discussion about ratemaking for electric utilities. (Wednesday, 9 a.m., 212 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISCUSSED: The House Health Quality Subcommittee will hear presentations about medical marijuana. (Wednesday, 9 a.m., Mashburn Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

NATIONAL GUARD LEADER AT HOUSE MEETING: Michael Calhoun, adjutant general of the Florida National Guard, is slated to speak to the House Local, Federal & Veterans Affairs Subcommittee. (Wednesday, 9 a.m., 12 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

TRANSPORTATION AND TOURISM ON TABLE: The House Transportation & Tourism Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an overview of its base budget. (Wednesday, 9 a.m., Reed Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

SCHOOL ASSESSMENTS AT ISSUE: The Senate Pre-K-12 Education Appropriations Subcommittee will hold a workshop on assessments policy and funding. (Wednesday, 10 a.m., 412 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

PANEL EYES LAKE OKEECHOBEE: The Senate Environment and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee will receive a series of presentations about polluted water discharges from Lake Okeechobee and efforts to restore the Everglades. The state and residents have repeatedly grappled with polluted discharges from Lake Okeechobee into waterways on the Treasure Coast and in Southwest Florida. Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart, has made a priority of addressing the issue and has proposed a plan to use conservation money to buy farmland south of the lake for water storage. (Wednesday, 10 am., 301 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

TRANSPORTATION FUNDING ON THE TABLE: The Senate Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development Appropriations Subcommittee will discuss future transportation funding trends. (Wednesday, 10 a.m., 110 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

CITRUS GREENING EXAMINED: The House Agriculture & Property Rights Subcommittee will host a discussion about citrus greening, a disease plaguing the citrus industry. (Wednesday, 1 p.m., 12 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

ECONOMIC INCENTIVES AT ISSUE: The House Careers & Competition Subcommittee will look at the "return on investment" of economic-incentives programs and discuss economic-development policy. (Wednesday, 1 p.m., 212 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

PANEL GETS BUDGET OVERVIEW: The House Government Operations & Technology Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an overview of its base budget. (Wednesday, 1 p.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

MEDICAID RATES DISCUSSED: The House Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an overview of rate-setting for Medicaid managed care and Medicaid long-term care. (Wednesday, 1 p.m., 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

SCHOOL CHOICE CONSIDERED: The House PreK-12 Innovation Subcommittee will receive presentations on school-choice programs. (Wednesday, 1 p.m., Mashburn Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

RED LIGHT CAMERAS AT ISSUE: The House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee will receive an overview of a report on red-light cameras. (Wednesday, 1 p.m., Reed Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

MEDICAID MANAGED CARE DISCUSSED: The Senate Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee is slated to receive an update on part of the Medicaid program that requires most beneficiaries to enroll in HMOs or other types of managed-care plans. (Wednesday, 2 p.m., 401 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

SENATORS BEGIN LOOKING AT GAMBLING ISSUES: The Senate Regulated Industries Committee will discuss gambling issues. Lawmakers are expected to grapple with issues such as trying to reach a new gambling deal with the Seminole Tribe of Florida. (Wednesday, 2 p.m., 301 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

HOUSE CONSIDERS CERTIFICATES OF NEED: The House Health Innovation Subcommittee will host a panel discussion about the certificate of need program, which helps determine whether facilities such as hospitals can be built. (Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., Mashburn Hall, the Capitol.)

HIGHER ED BUDGET DISCUSSED: The House Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an overview of its base budget. (Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., 212 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

ASSIGNMENT OF BENEFITS AT ISSUE: The House Insurance & Banking Subcommittee will host a panel discussion about a controversial practice known as "assignment of benefits" for property-insurance claims. (Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

JUSTICE BUDGET DISCUSSED: The House Justice Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an overview of its base budget. (Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION EYED: The House Natural Resources & Public Lands Subcommittee will receive an overview of the role of the federal government and the state in environmental regulation. (Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., 12 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

EFFECTIVE TEACHERS AT ISSUE: The House PreK-12 Quality Subcommittee will consider issues related to effective teachers. (Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., Reed Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

Also:

PAROLE ISSUES DISCUSSED: The Florida Commission on Offender Review is scheduled to meet and discuss numerous parole cases related to crimes committed in the 1970s and 1980s. (Wednesday, 9 a.m., Betty Easley Conference Center, 4075 Esplanade Way, Tallahassee.)

WATER, SEWER RATES ON THE AGENDA: The Florida Public Service Commission will hold customer-service hearings about a proposal by Utilities Inc. of Florida to increase water and wastewater rates. (Wednesday, 9:30 a.m., Charlotte Harbor Event Center, 75 Taylor St., Punta Gorda. Also, 6 p.m., Deeann Lakefront Estates Clubhouse, 409 Stephen Dr., Lake Placid.)

DEMOCRATIC CHAIR CANDIDATES AT FORUM: Candidates to replace outgoing Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Allison Tant are expected to take part in a forum in Broward County. (Wednesday, 6 p.m., Communications Workers of America Local 3104, 3121 S.W. 15th St., Pompano Beach.)

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2017

Legislature:

PUBLIC ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS DISCUSSED: The House Children, Families & Seniors Subcommittee will receive overviews of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. (Thursday, 9 a.m., 12 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

JUDICIAL TERM LIMITS ON THE TABLE: The House Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee will hear a presentation about judicial term limits, a concept backed by House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O' Lakes. (Thursday, 9 a.m., 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION DISCUSSED: The House Post-Secondary Education Subcommittee will receive a presentation about postsecondary "attainment." (Thursday, 9 a.m., Mashburn Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

PANEL DELVES INTO EDUCATION BUDGET: The House PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee will receive an overview of its base budget and a review of major programs. (Thursday, 9 a.m., Reed Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

STATE CONTRACTING DETAILED: The House Oversight, Transparency & Administration Subcommittee will take up issues related to state agency procurement and contracting. (Thursday, 9 a.m., Morris Hall, House Office Building, the Capitol.)

SEMINOLE COMPACT DISCUSSED: The House Tourism & Gaming Control Subcommittee will host a panel discussion on issues related to a gambling "compact" between the state and the Seminole Tribe of Florida. (Thursday, 9 a.m., 212 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

POWELL ELECTION AT ISSUE: The Senate Credentials Committee will consider a challenge to the seating of Sen. Bobby Powell, a West Palm Beach Democrat elected in November in Senate District 30. The committee will review a notice of contest filed by Republican candidate Ron Berman, who lost to Powell. (Thursday, 10 a.m., 110 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

PANEL WEIGHS ETHICS CHANGES: The House Public Integrity & Ethics Committee will hold a workshop on three draft bills (PCB PIEC 17-01, PCB PIEC 17-02 and PCB PIEC 17-03) that deal with prohibitions on lobbying by former state officials and local-government ethics changes. (Thursday, noon, 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

MEDICAID, PROPERTY INSURANCE DISCUSSED: The Senate Appropriations Committee will take up a series of issues, including an update on expenditures in the Medicaid managed-care system and an update on the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. (Thursday, 1:30 p.m., 412 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

DEEPWATER HORIZON MONEY AT ISSUE: The House Select Committee on Triumph Gulf Coast will discuss issues related to money coming to Florida as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. (Thursday, 4 p.m., 404 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

COMMITTEE HOLDS INTRODUCTORY MEETING: The Joint Administrative Procedures Committee will take up issues such as proposed committee rules. (Thursday, 4 p.m., 12 House Office Building, the Capitol.)

AUDITOR GENERAL, OPPAGA ON THE AGENDA: The Joint Legislative Auditing Committee will receive overviews of the Office of the Auditor General and the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability, better known as OPPAGA. (Thursday, 4 p.m., 301 Senate Office Building, the Capitol.)

Also:

SOUTH FLORIDA WATER BOARD MEETS: The South Florida Water Management District Governing Board will meet. (Thursday, 9 a.m., district headquarters, 3301 Gun Club Road, West Palm Beach.)

DRUG POLICY DISCUSSED: The Drug Policy Advisory Council, which makes recommendations about state drug-control strategy, will meet. (Thursday, 9 a.m., Betty Easley Conference Center, 4075 Esplanade Way, Tallahassee.)

SUPREME COURT RELEASES OPINIONS: The Florida Supreme Court is expected to release its weekly opinions. (Thursday, 11 a.m.)

HOSPITAL PAYMENTS AT ISSUE: The Agency for Health Care Administration is scheduled to hold a hearing about a proposed rule dealing with hospital outpatient payments in the Medicaid program. (Thursday, 11 a.m., Agency for Health Care Administration, 2727 Mahan Dr., Tallahassee.)

NORTHWEST FLORIDA WATER BOARD MEETS: The Northwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board will meet after holding a Lands Committee meeting. (Thursday, committee meeting starts at noon, followed by full board, district headquarters, 81 Water Management Dr., Havana.)

MEDICAID PHARMACEUTICALS DISCUSSED: The Medicaid Drug Utilization Review Board will meet. (Thursday, 2 p.m., Holiday Inn Tampa Westshore/Airport, 700 North Westshore Blvd., Tampa.)

FRIDAY, JANUARY 13, 2017

STATE COLLEGES DISCUSSED: The Florida College System Council of Presidents will meet. (Friday, 8:30 a.m., Tallahassee Community College Capitol Center, 300 West Pensacola St., Tallahassee.)

GOP STARTS ANNUAL MEETING: The Republican Party of Florida will start a two-day annual meeting that is expected to include electing a chairman. (Friday, 9 a.m., Rosen Centre, 9840 International Dr., Orlando.)

UCF TRUSTEES MEET: The University of Central Florida Board of Trustees will meet after holding committee meetings. (Friday, committee meetings start at 10 a.m., with full board at 1 p.m., University of Central Florida, Fairwinds Alumni Center, Orlando.)

FOREIGN POLICY AT ISSUE: Jonathan Altman, a senior analyst and assistant program manager at Systems Planning and Analysis, Inc., will discuss foreign-policy issues during a meeting of the Economic Club of Florida. (Friday, noon, FSU Alumni Center, 1030 West Tennessee St., Tallahassee.)

REVENUE ESTIMATING PANEL MEETS: The state Revenue Estimating Conference will hold what is known as an "impact" conference. (Friday, 1:30 p.m., 117 Knott Building, the Capitol.)

FAMU FINANCES, INFRASTRUCTURE AT ISSUE: The Florida A&M University Board of Trustees' Budget, Finance and Facilities Committee will hold a conference call and is scheduled to discuss issues such as the school's athletics budget. (Friday, 3 p.m., Florida A&M University, Lee Hall, Tallahassee. http://www.famu.edu/famcast  --- click WANM 90.5 to listen.)

SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 2017

DEMOCRATS CHOOSE NEW LEADER: The Florida Democratic Party will hold an election to replace outgoing Chairwoman Allison Tant. (Saturday, 10 a.m., Rosen Shingle Creek, 9939 Universal Blvd., Orlando.)