Speaker Rubio Announces 2008 Legislative Priorities

Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio today, February 26, 2008, sent Florida House members a summary of 2008 legislative priorities. These priorities focus on limiting government spending and regulations, property insurance, health insurance, and economic prosperity—including education.

Speaker Rubio’s letter to the members is attached for your review.

An outline of the his 2008 legislative priorities follows:

1. Restart our Economy by Limiting Taxes, Government Spending, Burdensome and Needless Regulations

Meaningful Revenue Caps: Implementing long-term, meaningful revenue caps on state and local governments will prevent Florida taxpayers from experiencing the sticker shock we are working through.

Transparency in Government Spending: As with any reform effort, accountability is essential to improvement. Bringing more transparency to government spending and putting it online for every Floridian to see will not only help hold Florida government leaders more accountable but will also help build confidence in governments at all levels.

Continue Property tax relief: Amendment One passed on the promise that we would do more. We must keep our word. Over a 10 week period this winter, grassroots activists in this state collected over 150,000 signatures for an initiative that would limit all property taxes to no more than 1.35% of the taxable value of a parcel. This idea deserves serious consideration from us. The House will also examine ways to help deal with some of the inherent unfairness in our property tax system- items such as the presumption of correctness and homestead loopholes.

Cut Red-Tape: The House is working on ways to cut red tape and streamline the growth management and permitting processes so we can put Floridians back to work.

2. Bring Relief and Reforms to our Unaffordable and Unsustainable Insurance System

CAT Fund Risk Reduction Plan: Last week, the House Jobs and Entrepreneurship Council unanimously passed CFO Sink’s CAT Fund Risk Reduction Plan. By bring this package to the floor early in session and passing it, we can give the reinsurance market the opportunity write this coverage with private dollars, reducing the threat of financial catastrophe to Floridians.

Capital Incentive Build-up Program: Florida should also continue to invest in what we know works in insurance reform. One of the most successful innovations in last year’s insurance legislation was the Capital Incentive Build-up Program, which encouraged the growth of private insurance companies instead of the continued growth of Citizens.

Mitigation: The House hopes to expand the MySafeFloridaHome program and look for ways to partner with the private sector while making it easier to begin home mitigation through a Zero-Interest Loan Program.

3. Improve Access to Affordable Health Care Solutions

Mandate-free Health Care Marketplace: The House is considering innovative proposals for a mandate-free health care marketplace. By creating more opportunities for lower cost coverage in the health care insurance arena, we can start to see the price reductions and consumer choices that drive a private marketplace as well as the expansion of coverage.

Electronic Medical Records: Health care lags behind almost every other industry in the adoption of information technology. The House is working on legislation to encourage the development and use of electronic medical records among health care providers in order to facilitate the coordination of care and promote higher levels of patient safety and quality of care.
Medicaid: Our current Medicaid system is unsustainable. In order to save the Medicaid system, continuing reform is vital. Expanding Medicaid Reform into Miami-Dade County is an important step in beginning to create a system that can survive and one that should be enacted this session.

4. Build a Vibrant and Diverse Economy for the 21st Century

World-class Curriculum: The House is committed to creating a world-class curriculum to improve the rigor and relevance of our schools. We also recognize the key role our universities play in global competitiveness, and within the constraints of this year’s very challenging budget, we support our universities and the vision the university presidents offer.

Make Florida Attractive to Existing and New Businesses: The House is working on a New Markets Tax Credit to help bring new jobs and industries to Florida’s rural and distressed areas. Our members are working on assembling a legislative package to help secure Florida’s future as a leader in the space industry. Making Florida more attractive for investment and growth of the aerospace industry is crucial for not just protecting the jobs we already have, but also for growing our economy in the years ahead.
Expanding the Number of Enterprise Zones, Tax Credits for Research and Development and Matching Grants for Research Commercialization: One of the best things we can do to build a strong economy is keep and strengthen the businesses we already in Florida. Referred to as Economic Gardening in economic development circles, these efforts to help small businesses grow and succeed will pay long-term dividends if enacted.

Energy Alternatives: The Florida House has spent months working on a responsible approach to climate change. We are focusing on the private sector and innovation to help us improve Florida’s air quality and conserve the natural environment that makes Florida so attractive.

House Democratic Leader Dan Gelber (D-Miami Beach) issued the following statement regarding Speaker Rubio’s legislative priorities:

“While I appreciate Speaker Rubio’s desire to build a vibrant economy, we will never achieve this goal with continued budget cuts outlined by the Republican leadership.

“Florida’s great challenges begin and end with public education and by cutting over $300 million from our education system we are denying ourselves the opportunity of securing a strong workforce.

“In times of economic downturn, Floridians turn to our higher education system to boost their knowledge base. We have our institutions of higher education bursting at their seams to enroll new students. However, the Republican leadership in the legislature will be washing away the dreams of thousands of our high school students by cutting millions of dollars from universities and community colleges.

“I plan to work with Speaker Rubio and all my colleagues in the legislature on meaningful solutions that empower our working middle-class families, stimulate our economy and restores hope for a better tomorrow.”

 

 

Should you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact this office.

 

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