Will Crist Veto Corrupt Bill?

Senate Bill 2080 has finally hit the desk of Governor Crist. Now, Crist has until June 30th to either sign the bill, veto it, or do nothing and allow the bill to become law.

As I mentioned in our last post, the Governor should veto this legislation. It includes a "poison pill" amendment that would give the executive directors of the 5 water management districts the power to decide the fate of water withdrawals from our rivers and aquifer.

Interestingly, Senator Carey Baker of Eustis, co-sponsor of the bill, has claimed that he was not aware that the amendment had been added when the bill passed. Senator J.D. Alexander of Winter Haven, sponsor of the amendment, apparently originally denied knowledge of the amendment and has since changed his story about his involvement.

Posted by H20_1 on June 12, 2009 at 12:57 p.m.

Senate Bill-2080 is a travesty of the public trust.

Sen. Baker has danced all over the page, claiming he didn't know anything about the amendment and that Sen. Alexander told him he didn't "know it was in there either." He also asserts that the bill "makes a bad situation worse," says he supports the boards, and wants to "fix" the problem he voted for next year.

The Senate record clearly shows that Alexander introduced the bad amendment on the floor of the senate. Alexander now admits this is true and says Rep. Denise Grimsley,(R) Lake Placid, asked him to "tack" on the amendment which had failed to be passed in the House.

This amendment, which abolishes public hearings and grants complete authority for all water withdrawals (consumptive use permits) to one man with no check-and-balance of the governing board, is a slap in the face to the American principles of fair and open government and the citizens of Florida.

SB-2080, as amended, is a bill created by and for developers - J. D. Alexander should know, because as a citrus grower, sod farmer, land Baron and developer planning to build a 125,000 person city south of Lake Placid, he'll need lots of water - millions of gallons and Rep. Denise Grimsley (R) Lake Placid,who represents his new city's district, brought him the amendment.

The appointed directors, the one man with the power to grant all withdrawal permits, must be confirmed by the Senate. Imagine the pressure of having a powerful state senator, like J.D. Alexander or his representative, strolling through the door with an application.

This arrangement is an open invitation to special interest lobbying, abuse, poor accountability and a corrupt process. As it is, citizens have a very limited opportunity to participate. If this bill is not stopped by the governor's veto, any meaningful participation will be lost; the citizens silenced, the governing boards without authority to review withdrawal applications or hold public hearings.

Please e-mail or call Governor Crist's office at Charlie.Crist@MyFlorida.com or 850-488-7146 and ask him to veto Senate Bill-2080.