- This is a production of WEDU PBS, Tampa, St.

Petersburg, Sarasota.

[music] - Florida lawmakers finally pass a state budget.

Now, the real question: how much will the governor cut with his veto pen?

The Rays move closer to a new stadium, but a surprise complication may change the math for taxpayers.

Governor DeSantis has redrawn congressional map, survives its first court test.

What it means for Florida voters and the court challenges that are still pending.

And with hurricane season starting on June the 1st, are soaring insurance premiums driving a foreclosure crisis right here in the Tampa Bay area.

All that and more is next on Florida This Week.

[music] Welcome back, everybody.

I'm your moderator, Lissette Campos.

Joining us on the panel this week: We want to welcome Victor DiMaio.

He's president of DiMaio and Associates, and he's also the president of the Democratic Hispanic Caucus and a longtime lobbyist in Tallahassee.

John Ubaldi is a communications strategist with Bullhorn Communications, specializing in international and public policy.

And Dr.

Holly Tankersley; she is a political scientist and dean of the College of Social Sciences, Mathematics, and Education at the University of Tampa.

She focuses largely on public policy and political institutions.

We begin with the Florida Legislature.

It has finally passed the nearly $115 billion state budget today, for the second year in a row, forcing a special session to finish their one constitutional job.

The spending plan comes in about $500 million below the current year.

It includes $4.5 billion for school vouchers, despite a state audit citing mismanagement of the program.

That's just one of the highlights of the budget we'll be talking about.

The budget now heads to governor DeSantis, who holds broad line line-item veto power.

He has until June the 30th to sign it into law.

Victor, I'd like to start with you.

Two years in the running, we go into the special session.

What sticks out most to you in this budget process, and is this a structural problem in Tallahassee or basically divided priorities within the same party?

- Well, first off, they waste a lot of time in the 30 days they have.

They pull everything to the last minute and then make all the decisions.

Secondly, Speaker Perez in the House and governor DeSantis just do not like each other.

They are, they are you know, they may be frenemies at this point.

The Senate kind of has gone along with what the governor wants and kind of, you know, capitulates there.

Thirdly, I think the thing that people really have to understand, and we're going to get into that hopefully in a minute, is the fact that what's which is which is combined right now as we speak, and what's going to start early next week is the fact that the property tax exemption for homeowners is coming up and they've combined the two bills, the property tax bill and the budget at the same time.

So the governor has all the cards on his table when he's going to sign both bills.

And if they don't sign the property tax exemption bill, everything in the budget is going to go bye.

So he's really pulling a big hammer on the entire legislature, the whole state of Florida.

Ironically, the new budget is about 500, about $500 million short, which is the hole they expect to have if this property tax thing goes into effect or passes.

So there's a lot of stuff happening right now as we speak that's going on right now.

Everyone in Tallahassee is on edge.

Every city and county.

Hillsborough County I just left a Bob Henriquez, a property appraiser's office, on the way here.

They estimate that Hillsborough County alone could lose up to $800 million in revenue that they could use for parks, police, fire.

- For the viewer who may not have that information, the governor's office has just announced that they will ask for a special session on to take up the issue of eliminating Florida property taxes for homeowners.

Dr.

Tankersley, I'd like to ask you, from your vantage point, um, in higher education, what does the budget decision to basically make USF Sarasota- Manatee part of New college?

- Yeah.

So that decision really is an institutional warning sign, I think, for all public higher ed institutions.

If you think about taking what, by all measures, is a pretty successful regional college or university and merging it with new college, which itself has had a lot of instability and restructuring, pretty dramatic restructuring over the last few years.

It raises all kinds of serious questions about academic operations, finances, student success, partnerships that were built between industry and USF Sarasota-Manatee and what happens with all of those things.

So I think there are a lot of questions there.

Also, in order to get to this deal, the Senate and the House had to agree to transfer $53 million of debt from USF Sarasota-manatee to New College, which is already a little bit shaky on finances.

Right.

They're spending more than twice the amount of the next highest public university per student.

They have 33% overhead for administration.

You've given them that debt, but you haven't given them the recurring funds that it takes to support the students who are on the teach out plan at USF Sarasota-Manatee, so that money stays with USF once those students are filtered out.

I think there are real questions about the long term financial and fiscal sustainability of new college.

- And and something that a lot of people are talking about long term, right?

Is the legacy.

What kind of legacy this leaves.

Governor DeSantis has been in his office in term for eight years.

This is his final budget.

Um, you know, how does this reflect his eight years in office, in your view, John?

- It all depends how you look at it.

I like it the fact that we come up without a budget that's that's at least balanced.

We have the we have reserves.

I think Florida has like a $16 billion reserve with 5 billion on a constitutional thing that we have to have in case we come to emergencies.

And I look at we talk about Florida as it compares to, let's say, New York.

New York State has 18 million, excuse me, 18 to 20 million people.

Florida has 23, but they have twice the budget that we do.

New York City has $124 billion budget.

But we have 10 million more people.

I just want like going by what Victor said.

I just when it comes to the property taxes the only thing I agree that we need to reduce them.

But I just want to make sure it's done fiscally sound because I came from California when they deregulated the utility market and it had bipartisan support and it became a disaster.

And I understand the property owners are seeing money getting sent to their local communities, local governments.

And is it being spent the way it should be spent?

And I like oversight and I like accountability for the taxpayers money because it's not ours.

It's theirs.

And it should be spent in a wide in, a nice, prudent manner.

- And on that note, we're going to go on to our next topic.

A Leon County circuit judge is allowing governor DeSantis redrawn congressional map to remain in place while three legal challenges proceed.

The map drawn by governor's office would shift Florida's congressional delegation from 20 Republicans and seven Democrats to 24 Republicans and just four Democrats.

It faces a fundamental legal question.

In 2010, nearly 63% of Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment banning Partisan gerrymandering.

It's called the Florida Fair Districts Amendment.

The state now argues that standard no longer applies.

The case is expected to reach the Florida Supreme Court, where six of the seven justices have been appointed by governor DeSantis.

Victor, you were saying earlier that this court decision does not come as a surprise to you.

And you said that the real test will come in the higher courts.

Explain that to our viewers.

- Because you have because it's a state law that you're questioning your state constitution, and you don't necessarily take this to the federal court system, which I've done a lot of election law cases through the federal court system.

This is a state law, a state constitutional amendment, which I personally worked very closely with the late governor Bob Graham on passing, hoping for future generations that this would provide fairness in the redistricting process.

I never dreamed that the Republicans would figure out a way to get around it, but they did.

Thanks to the U.S.

Supreme Court who struck down the Voting Rights Act, part of not gerrymandering.

- Other states in the country have also done, uh, changes in their congressional maps to favor the Democratic Party.

So both parties have been doing this.

- Why are we here?

We're here because President Donald Trump said he realizes that, uh, the, the, the legislature in Washington, D.C., the House has, uh, they have like a three person majority out of 400 some voters.

So he went to Texas and say, hey, give me some more Republicans.

So they chopped up their district to make more Republican districts.

And then that started Armageddon all along the country.

So now everybody's talking about your former state.

California went and said, okay, you want to do in Texas, California, we're going to have more Democrats.

So we're just the latest.

We're.

Florida became the latest battleground to my marine friend here.

Um, and this war of who can have more Republicans or Democrats districts.

So in this case, I think some of these districts are going to backfire.

I looked at the Kathy Castor district here in Tampa, where she took her district and split it three ways.

I think she could win that district.

I live in West Tampa, just down the street, actually were in West Tampa.

And now, uh, Bilirakis from Tarpon Springs is now my new representative.

So, I mean, some of these districts are crazy and I think they're going to backfire in many respects.

Now, in a week or so, the first week of June is qualifying for every office in the state.

So there's no time.

And they do this on purpose to go to court.

You got to start at the district court level.

Then you go to the district appeals court, then you go to the Supreme Court.

There's no time between now.

Before then.

- I'd like to I'd like to turn to Dr.

Tankersley.

What does this tell us about how aggressive redistricting could impact voter trust or, you know, engagement.

Civic engagement?

- Yeah.

There's a lot of political science research in this area, and there is a definite feedback loop between redistricting and political structures and civic engagement.

Right.

So this becomes not just a legal issue.

It's a civic health issue.

And what we see is that when we have rapid changes or we have many changes over a short period of time, we see voter disengagement.

And that's logical because if you think about it, voting has a cost and some of it is intellectual and it's research, right?

So it's not a tangible cost, but it is a cost, right, imposed on the voter to make a decision.

In this case, what we're talking about are voters who they know what their district is.

They know their precinct, they know where to go vote.

They know the personalities who have been involved in local politics.

And all of a sudden that shifts and that changes.

And so now they have to learn new things.

They have to learn what is my district?

What precinct am I in?

Where do I go to vote?

And the cast of characters who are involved in elections may change, right?

So all of that is an intellectual and psychological cost on the voter.

And a lot of times when that happens, voters simply say, you know what, I'm going to sit this out until things stabilize, right?

So you have civic disengagement on the part of people not just in voting, but also in participating in other meaningful ways in the political process, from contacting representatives to going to community meetings.

And so, again, it really is a matter of civic health, not just a legal issue.

- And John, would you I'd like to ask you about the national implications of this.

Do you think that is maybe repeated nationally?

- I would agree with it, would repeat it nationally.

And a constitutional scholar, a guy named Jonathan Turley, mentioned this.

He's from George Washington University.

He's appalled by the partizanship when it comes to gerrymander.

Both parties do it.

I think Victor laid it out fairly well.

I think it could depends how this plays out.

It could benefit more Republicans because they had.

And the states they're from.

There were more give to gain more seats.

Democrats have done this for years.

You go to Illinois, the home state I came from in California before they did it with Gavin Newsom, has already been kind of redistricted out.

You look at Illinois, one of the things just kind of goes down to the state and it just doesn't make sense.

Massachusetts has no Republican representation.

- Well, I would disagree.

One part of that, and we just had a proof of what just happened here.

Just recently, we elected a Democratic senator in this area, right where we're sitting near the studio where the Republicans spent $3 million in to win a Senate seat, and the Democrat had $100,000 in the bank.

And who won the Democrat?

It just shows you how immensely popular Donald Trump is right now, polling below 30%.

So, look, the Democrats only need like 3 or 4 seats to take over the House.

We predict anywhere from 30 to 50 seats could flip in this election.

So it doesn't matter what redistricting happens.

The Democrats are definitely you could take it to the bank or to win the house back.

I don't know about the Senate yet, but I disagree with that point about the Republicans being very popular.

- We shall see where the numbers land.

We're going to turn now to Tampa Bay Rays, and they are inching closer to a new stadium, but a familiar roadblock remains.

We're talking about money.

Hillsborough County and the Tampa City Council have approved a non-binding agreement on a proposed $2.3 billion stadium on the Dale Mabry campus of Hillsborough College.

The state budget just passed includes $50 million for campus improvements, but it does come with strings.

Lawmakers say that money will not be released until local financing is finalized.

Now, a new complication.

The Buccaneers are seeking up to $1.3 billion to renovate Raymond James Stadium.

Both teams may be drawing from the same taxpayer fund, known as the CIT, or best known as Community Investment tax.

I'd like to start with you.

Victor, you are a huge baseball fan.

I know you've been following this.

Um, you know, how do you see this?

This is not looking good.

Race had a good week last week, but this week with the Tampa Sports Authority coming out and really saying specific dollar amounts that they might have to write a check for the bucks, right.

People are asking, does this make sense for us?

- Well, we knew it was coming.

I mean, the bucks that are at the end of their 30 year lease, uh, they want to just like everybody wants to freshen up their house after 30 years.

Uh, more than more than a paint job.

If this property tax thing goes into effect, you can mark my word again on this show.

Those bets are off, the Rays are going to be done, and the bucks are going to be done.

So I don't think that's going to the big.

- Hurdles are going to come.

- Well the money won't be there.

The city's economy depends on this budget.

This money is coming from.

Yes.

It's from the city tax which they which is only a 15 year-tax not a 30 year tax.

So they have to budget that way.

I just really feel like I the race deal and the bucks deal.

And even though the bucks won a billion and the race won 2.5 billion.

But the public part is about a billion.

So there's no $2 billion lying around.

- For the Tampa Sports Authority came out and said that they believe that the value of the land, that at Hillsborough College, that has been put up for the Rays baseball stadium, that should be counted in terms of the public fund.

How do you all see.

- That property right next to the airport on Dale Mabry, Tampa Bay?

That property is valued by professional realtors.

One on the board, Andy Scaglione, that property, they're getting 120 acres.

To my alma mater, they signed a lease for ten bucks a year.

Can you imagine getting 120 acres for ten bucks a year?

That property is worth $500 million, and they're not there.

And they're getting it for ten bucks.

I mean, it's ridiculous.

- There's another issue that needs to be addressed too: is how does the public see this?

I mean, you threw out these numbers a billion here, a billion there.

And the way the economy is rolling, the public is seeing this.

I'm giving $1 billion to a multi-billionaire or billionaire for the bucks, a billionaire for the Rays.

What does that do for me?

I mean, I love sports just like the next guy, but the public is going to be weighing in on this and they want to see is how do they see it?

Is education going to get $1 billion?

- And I think the bucks.

- Would like to hear Dr.

Tankersley talk about the really the political accountability on this.

- Yeah.

And I think you're absolutely right.

And what helps in those situations is if we can turn off the drip, drip, drip of information, right?

Because things change all the time and instead present a really clear picture transparently of what this deal looks like and what the benefits are for everyone, including people who are just average everyday taxpayers in the county.

- Yeah, and I agree it has to be transparent because the public isn't going to be in the NIT like you are Victor, in the weeds on this, but they just see money going, just throwing out and they're looking at their own lives and like, how does this benefit me?

- And I think the bumps are going to have more goodwill because let's face it, they brought us two Super Bowls and the Rays haven't even won the World Series yet.

Both the city, the county commission and the city had a very close vote on even passing this MoU.

So when the push comes to shove and the next vote, it's going to be a lot different.

- So we are going to be moving on to hurricane season just days away.

Tampa Bay homeowners are getting hit from two directions.

Florida now ranks third in the nation for foreclosures, behind only Delaware and South Carolina.

Here in Tampa Bay, one in every 737 homes faced a foreclosure filing in the first three months of this year.

That's up 50%, five zero 50% from last year.

Experts point to one culprit: insurance rates.

Florida homeowners now pay nearly double the national average.

Data shows that premiums are finally starting to level, but after three years of 30 to 40% increases in counties like Hillsborough and Pinellas.

Many families say that the damage has already been done.

I'd like to start with you, John.

Your reaction to these numbers.

- I mean, it's incredible.

I mean, people are concerned.

I got a brother who's moving from Hawaii to Sarasota, Venice area.

And I mentioned that some of the things you're going to have to deal with is insurance.

And this is something the legislature needs to tackle, but they need to do it correctly because like I said, I came from California and they failed in their insurance market, and they forced the insurance companies to flee.

And when they had the wildfires, a lot of people were underinsured or couldn't get insurance.

Now their community is a little different.

They were forcing people up into these fire prone areas because of cost of housing, but because they failed to provide proper insurance coverage throughout the state.

A lot of people can't get insurance.

- Victor, I'd like to ask you, based on your background, You've worked you worked in the insurance industry.

Um, is there a direct line between the foreclosures and the increase?

- Exactly.

I worked for the regulator when we had elected insurance Commissioner's office.

The problem we have here, if you have a mortgage, you want to buy a house, you have to have insurance.

Insurance companies have gotten everything they've ever dreamed of having in the regulation, which basically means there's no regulation.

- The lawmakers said during the legislative session in 2022 that they were making the changes so that they could reduce the number of lawsuits and really make it possible for more insurance companies to come in.

Dr.

Tankersley, I'd like to ask you, you know, this is an issue that crosses all party lines.

Yes.

This is an issue that voters want our lawmakers to tackle the issue of insurance reform.

And yet it did not come up and it did not come up even in the regular session.

Are there political consequences to a legislature that does not address some of these really sought after issues.

- The short answer is yes, but so what?

What Victor described is the political economy of the industry, of the insurance industry.

Right.

And so in political science and political science and public policy, what we call that is a is a diffuse cost, concentrated benefits problem.

Concentrated benefits go to the industry, right?

When political reform or insurance reform fails to happen, the costs are borne by a lot of people across the state, maybe here more than other places or in coastal areas, more than other places.

So it's a not as visible crisis.

It's a slow rolling crisis, this foreclosure crisis.

Right.

And so it's because it's not as visible to lawmakers.

They don't feel the pressure to address it.

Whereas the concentrated benefits to the insurance industry, which is highly visible to lawmakers, right, puts pressure on them not to address it.

The only thing that I think can change that is if this foreclosure crisis grows and it starts to affect not just individual families and households, but communities, right?

Because then you have people who are potentially moving out.

They can't afford other things.

You have broader follow on effects in the economy.

And that gets a little more attention from lawmakers.

But the political economy of the economy, of the insurance industry right now creates policy inertia where you just aren't going to see change.

- And we are certainly benefiting on this episode of your diverse backgrounds and your specialties.

You know, this is the time of the segment of the show where we always do our other big stories of the week, where we really take advantage of the expertise of our panelists.

I'd like to start with you, Holly.

Dr.

Tankersley.

What is the big story that you'd like to share with our viewers?

- Well, as we approach midterm elections, I really want to tell everyone about the great work our students are doing at the University of Tampa with you.

Tampa votes you.

Tampa Votes is a nonpartisan, student led organization that exists to help provide voter information to students.

Right.

Information about how to register, when to register, where do you go to find information about voting and issues and people who are running in your state or your district.

And so our students do a phenomenal job with that work, and they're gearing up to do a lot of special programing in the fall so that our students are ready to exercise their right to vote and to be really civically engaged.

- Wonderful.

John, you served three tours in the Middle East.

Thank you for your service to our country.

You have a master's degree in National Security studies with a concentration in Middle Eastern studies.

Correct.

When you look at the whole Iran US dynamic right now, you said that a lot of people do not focus on the filter that Iran is using when they're approaching the negotiating table.

Can you explain that to our viewers?

- What I like to explain to people, when you look at the Middle East, there's no it's not black or white.

Iran is a Persian country, but it's also a Shiite dominated country.

They look at things a little differently in their view.

They look at their waiting for the 12th imam to come back, and they wait for the 12th imam to come back.

There has to be chaos throughout the Middle East.

There has to be a destruction of Israel.

So by them getting a nuclear device or the potential to get a nuclear device, you have to think, are they going to use it to get that 12th imam back?

So it's not the same as like when North Korea got the nuclear device in the late 1990s was through negotiation.

All of a sudden they exploded it.

They look at that, keeps them in power, because we're not going to attack them because they have nuclear weapons.

Iran looks at it the same way, but they also look at it a different way.

They want that 12th imam to come back.

- Victor, I'd like to ask you what your other big story of the week is.

- I think the biggest story of the week that emerged in the last 24 hours is this property tax thing.

I think we all have to be very conscious of it because this could be a this could turn the entire state of Florida upside down when it comes to funding what we want, and that will kill the race deal and the bucks deal too.

- We will continue to follow it with the help of our wonderful panelists.

Thank you so much for coming.

As always, we thank our panelists, Dr.

Holly Tankersley, Victor DiMaio, and John Ubaldi.

We close with a Memorial Day story to remind all of us of the reason for the national holiday.

Sergeant Charles C. Palmer Jr.

was 19 years old when his B-24 Liberator was shot down over Germany during World War II.

For decades, Palmer, a top turret gunner, was listed missing in action.

His widow never remarried, and they had no children, and his remains were excavated in Germany back in 1951.

Well, earlier this year, they were finally identified through a DNA match provided by his only living relative, a 98-year-old cousin in Florida.

Sergeant Palmer comes home June the 8th.

He will be laid to rest at the Sarasota National Cemetery with full military honors 82 years after he gave everything for his country.

On behalf of the entire team here at WEDU.

Thank you so much for watching.

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