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 August 24, 2005
 

 Palm Beach Post...Special session to override veto unlikely after lawmaker's ploy

TALLAHASSEE — A surprise move by House Democrats has weakened a behind-the-scenes deal establishing bipartisan support for an override of Gov. Jeb Bush's veto of a bill that would have given lawmakers budgetary authority over state contracts.

Secretary of State Glenda Hood will begin polling state lawmakers to determine whether they should convene in a special session to the bill in response to petitions by House Democrats, drawing the wrath of their Republican counterparts and taking Senate Democrats by surprise.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Nancy Argenziano, said late Tuesday that House Minority Leader Chris Smith's efforts effectively sabotaged her attempt to rally lawmakers of both parties to add consideration of the bill to a special session on the Broward County slot machine referendum expected in October or November.

"Do I think the governor was wrong vetoing that bill? Hell yes," Argenziano, R-Dunnellon, said.

But, Argenziano added, Smith's actions' have "probably thwarted efforts by some Republicans in the Senate to override" the veto.

"So Chris Smith screwed up," the obviously frustrated senator said.

Senate Minority Leader Les Miller was unaware Tuesday of the House Democrats' maneuver, saying he advised Smith, D-Fort Lauderdale, last month not to pursue the special session.

Miller said he did not even bother to poll Senate Democrats on the endeavor.

The Democrats' ploy also drew the ire of House Majority Leader Andy Gardiner, who sent a memo to his GOP colleagues urging them to vote against the special session when polled.

"As this polling effort by the House Democrats is nothing more than a PR ploy and procurement is hardly an emergency issue, I strongly urge each of you to reject this effort," wrote Gardiner, R-Orlando.

Smith confirmed that his scheme was in fact an attempt to shed light on the issue.

"We're trying to bring attention to something that is terribly wrong," Smith said Tuesday evening. "We are pushing the envelope to try to get something done."

But without GOP support, a special session to override the veto is impossible.

A special session requires approval from a three-fifths majority of the legislature. Democrats make up less than one-third of both chambers combined.

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 St. Pete Times...Backers of remap refuse to give up: They're gambling that the state Supreme Court won't disqualify their ballot measure because of six extra words.

TALLAHASSEE - A group trying to strip Florida lawmakers of the power to draw political districts said Tuesday it will continue collecting signatures for a ballot measure that is longer than state law allows.

The Committee for Fair Elections is gambling that the Florida Supreme Court will not use the mistake to disqualify the measure from the November 2006 ballot.

The measure, one of three proposed constitutional amendments dealing with redistricting, is six words over the 75 allowed by state law.

"We're going to let the court decide whether six words is really a reason to disqualify," said Ben Wilcox, chairman of the initiative campaign and executive director for Florida Common Cause. "We're hoping the court will side with 200,000 people who have already signed this petition."

The Secretary of State's Office approved the wording in March and is investigating how the error slipped through.

Gov. Jeb Bush, who appoints the secretary of state, said the office should have caught the mistake. But he and other opponents reveled in the mistake and suggested organizers should have caught it.

"There is this thing in Microsoft Word that's called "word count,' " Bush said with a grin.

Wilcox said the committee decided to forge ahead with the measure, fearing there would not be time to gather enough signatures for a new petition. The committee needs to collect 611,009 signatures by Feb. 1 to qualify for the November 2006 ballot.

It was an inadvertent mistake, Wilcox said.

The measure seeks to set new standards in the state Constitution by requiring compact and competitive districts that favor no one party or politician.

That would be a sharp contrast to the way the Legislature draws districts. To help individual politicians, legislative and congressional districts can stretch the width of the state or shadow a single road for dozens of miles.

Two other measures the group is backing appear to conform with state law.

One would create a commission of 15 citizens appointed by legislative leaders and the state Supreme Court chief justice to draw the districts. The other would require that the commission convene in time to draw boundaries for the 2008 elections.

Kelly Link: http://www.sptimes.com/2005/08/24/State/Backers_of_remap_refu.shtml

 

 

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