T H E C A B I N E T
S T A T E O F F L O R I D A
Representing:
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000
VOTE ON TEMPORARY DUTY/FORMER PAROLE COMMISSIONERS
STATE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATION
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY SAFETY AND MOTOR VEHICLES
DEPARTMENT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE
INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT TRUST FUND
The above agencies came to be heard before
THE FLORIDA CABINET, Honorable Governor Bush
presiding, in the Cabinet Meeting Room, LL-03,
The Capitol, Tallahassee, Florida, on Tuesday,
June 8, 1999, commencing at approximately 9:15 a.m.
Reported by:
LAURIE L. GILBERT
Registered Professional Reporter
Certified Court Reporter
Certified Realtime Reporter
Registered Merit Reporter
Notary Public in and for
the State of Florida at Large
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
100 SALEM COURT
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA 32301
850/878-2221
2
APPEARANCES:
Representing the Florida Cabinet:
JEB BUSH
Governor
BOB CRAWFORD
Commissioner of Agriculture
KATHERINE HARRIS
Secretary of State
BOB BUTTERWORTH
Attorney General
BILL NELSON
Treasurer
TOM GALLAGHER
Commissioner of Education
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
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June 8, 1999
I N D E X
ITEM ACTION PAGE
STATUS UPDATE ON Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000:
(Presented by Scott McPherson)
Presentation 5
VOTE ON TEMPORARY DUTY FOR FORMER
PAROLE COMMISSIONERS:
Vote 18
STATE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATION:
(Presented by Tom Herndon,
Executive Director)
1 Approved 20
2 Approved 21
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY SAFETY AND MOTOR VEHICLES:
(Presented by Fred O. Dickinson, III,
Executive Director)
1 Approved 22
2 Approved 23
3 Withdrawn 23
DEPARTMENT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT:
(Presented by James T. Moore,
Executive Director)
1 Approved 25
2 Approved 25
3 Approved 26
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION:
(Presented by Wayne V. Pierson,
Deputy Commissioner)
1 Approved 27
2 Approved 27
3 Approved 27
4 Approved 28
5 Approved 28
6 Approved 28
7 Approved 29
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
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June 8, 1999
I N D E X
(Continued)
ITEM ACTION PAGE
BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE
INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT
TRUST FUND:
(Presented David B. Struhs,
Secretary)
1 Approved 32
2 Deferred 32
3 Approved 32
4 Approved 33
5 Approved 33
6 Approved 33
7 Approved 34
8 Approved 34
9 Approved 35
10 Approved 35
11 Approved 41
12 Approved 41
13 Approved 45
14 Approved 45
15 Approved 46
16 Approved 46
17 Approved 94
CERTIFICATE OF REPORTER 101
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 5
June 8, 1999
1 P R O C E E D I N G S
2 (The agenda items commenced at 9:41 a.m.)
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: Scott McPherson, would you
4 give us an update on the Y2K/Team Florida 2000
5 Project.
6 MR. McPHERSON: Thank you, Governor, and --
7 and members of the Cabinet. Good morning.
8 We just wanted to come before you very,
9 very briefly, and -- and give you all an update
10 on where we stand with our Year 2000 efforts,
11 both inside and -- inside State Government, and
12 in the state of Florida in general.
13 We have -- as you all know, we have met
14 either with you personally, or with members of
15 your staffs, some of your key lieutenants, and
16 ascertained the -- the status of your
17 particular Cabinet agencies. And we have met
18 with every agency of State Government.
19 Team Florida 2000, as you all know, was --
20 was prepared by Governor Bush in -- in March,
21 but our work actually began much sooner than
22 that, back in November of last year, when we
23 initiated hearings in both the Florida House
24 and the Florida Senate, trying to determine
25 exactly how well prepared the rest of the state
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 6
June 8, 1999
1 was for the Year 2000.
2 Specifically, those hearings were held in
3 the House by the House Community Affairs
4 Committee, under the Chairmanship of
5 Representative Greg Gay; and in the Senate, the
6 committee handled by Senator
7 George Kirkpatrick.
8 Immediately following the swearing in of
9 Governor Bush, and -- and the members of the
10 Cabinet, we began holding agency head
11 briefings, both with your people, and with all
12 of the agency heads that come under your
13 jurisdiction, in order to ascertain whether or
14 not your status had changed from that being
15 reported to the State's Year 2000 Task Force.
16 And I should pause at this moment and talk
17 a little bit about what a wonderful job they
18 have done. Under the directorship of
19 Glenn Mayne, the State's Year 2000 Task Force
20 has gotten the State's mission critical systems
21 at a readiness of 99.2 percent.
22 Recently, the National Association of State
23 Information Resource Executives saluted the
24 State of Florida as being one of the top ten
25 best prepared state governments for the
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 7
June 8, 1999
1 milleneum.
2 In fact, Florida is number two, with a
3 bullet. We are working hard to become the best
4 prepared State government in the Union.
5 And --
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: Who's number one?
7 MR. McPHERSON: Number one is Nebraska.
8 We think they're lying.
9 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: They only have one
10 comp-- they only have one computer.
11 No big deal.
12 MR. McPHERSON: And I would say that --
13 that that -- that that 99.2 percent puts us
14 ahead of other states, such as New York and
15 Texas.
16 The -- but what we did not know when we
17 first started this process was how well
18 prepared the rest of the state was. And that
19 became the chief mission of Team Florida 2000,
20 to try to determine just how well prepared
21 Florida's cities, counties, school districts,
22 and local governments were.
23 The first thing that we had to do though
24 was actually put the team together. And -- and
25 I won't take up much time on this. But in your
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 8
June 8, 1999
1 briefing packet is the Power Point presentation
2 that shows exactly how Team Florida 2000 was
3 organized, with four team leaders: Community
4 Affairs Secretary, Steven Seibert, to handle
5 the public sector oversight; Joe Lacher to head
6 the private sector awareness effort.
7 Mr. Lacher, of course, being the President
8 of BellSouth, Florida, and the Chairman of
9 Enterprise Florida, and member of the Board of
10 the Directors of the Florida Chamber of
11 Commerce.
12 Joe Myers, the head of the Division of
13 Emergency Management, to handle the critical
14 infrastructure monitoring.
15 And then the Lieutenant Governor himself,
16 Frank Brogan, to handle the citizen awareness
17 effort.
18 And in the month of April, we trained over
19 500 State employees on how to conduct Y2K
20 quality assurance audits of local governments.
21 And most of those audits have now been
22 concluded. We're still in the process of
23 surveying hospitals and special districts.
24 But the data is rolling in. And at a
25 meeting very soon, we plan on briefing the
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 9
June 8, 1999
1 Governor and Cabinet on what -- the statuses of
2 those local governments.
3 But to date, we have trained over
4 230 members of the Auditor General's Office,
5 over 80 OPPAGA policy analysts, over 40 DCA
6 urban planners, over 40 AHCA hospital
7 inspectors, over 35 tax auditors from the
8 Department of Revenue, a number of FDLE agents.
9 And -- and tasked them with the responsibility
10 of going out into local governments and
11 conducting these audits face-to-face.
12 And as I mentioned, all but the -- but the
13 hospital audits and -- and some of the special
14 district audits have been completed, and we're
15 in the process of rolling that data up and
16 analyzing it now.
17 As an example, the Department of Education
18 hired the firm, MGT of America, to survey all
19 67 school districts. And the -- and the
20 purpose of this is quite simple: We have to
21 know just how well prepared the rest of the
22 state is for the milleneum. We have to know if
23 there are any -- in our lexicon, if there are
24 any show-stoppers out there. And then we need
25 to be able to get in and work with these local
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 10
June 8, 1999
1 governments to try to provide solutions.
2 The Legislature unfortunately did not give
3 us the ability to actually go in and assist
4 financially in the remediation of those local
5 governments, so we have to be a little bit more
6 creative in terms of the ways that we're able
7 to help them.
8 But we -- we have formed partnerships with
9 so many different organizations. And those
10 spec-- those partnerships are specifically
11 designed to help facilitate a transfer of
12 knowledge from the districts, and from the
13 cities and counties that have been able to
14 successfully conquer this program, to those
15 districts and cities and counties that are
16 still having problems.
17 And one thing that we try to do in our
18 surveys, and our audits of local governments is
19 to find best practices, and then turn around
20 and utilize those best practices in those
21 districts and -- and governmental units that
22 are -- that are not as fortunate.
23 In your packet, and -- and we have included
24 this only as a -- as an example of how this
25 process is going to work. MGT, working under
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 11
June 8, 1999
1 the direction of the Task Force and
2 Team Florida 2000, did identify 15 school
3 districts that we're concerned about.
4 And so we -- the process now is that we
5 take our best practices, take Department of
6 Education personnel, representatives of the
7 best practices school districts around the
8 state, members of the Task Force, and members
9 of the Team, and we will go back into those
10 15 districts in an effort to ascertain exactly
11 what we can expect from those districts come
12 the milleneum.
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: Have you asked the
14 Commissioner of Education to use his bully
15 pulpit to --
16 MR. McPHERSON: Yes.
17 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
18 MR. McPHERSON: Yes.
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: We're there.
20 MR. McPHERSON: And -- and there's
21 another -- I will -- I will let the Governor
22 and Cabinet know that there's another option,
23 which is available, recognizing that these
24 individuals are constitutional officers, and --
25 and our jurisdiction over them is somewhat
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 12
June 8, 1999
1 limited.
2 In anticipation of that, back in November,
3 we did set up a method to use a legislative
4 subpoena, if necessary. And we don't -- we
5 have not had to do that up to this point, we
6 don't expect that we'll have to do that in the
7 future.
8 But in anticipation that occasionally we're
9 going to run into a handful of jurisdictions
10 that don't want to cooperate with us, then the
11 legislative subpoena is an additional option,
12 which we have at our disposal, thanks to the
13 Speaker of the House.
14 We've been getting some very good
15 cooperation from those 15 districts that we had
16 mentioned earlier. And -- and we expect to be
17 able to go public with some results on those
18 school districts, and on cities and counties in
19 very, very short order.
20 Finally, we are holding a series of
21 symposiums around the state of Florida in
22 conjunction with the White House's Community
23 Conversations Program, which is being put
24 together by Mr. John Koskinen, who is
25 President Clinton's Y2K czar.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 13
June 8, 1999
1 And toward that end, we have 16 symposiums
2 set up in -- in large markets, and some small
3 markets, all over the state of Florida, which
4 are going to commence at the end of this month.
5 And that is -- that is an effort to bring
6 the shareholders in a community, the
7 stakeholders together, and have them talk about
8 their level of preparedness.
9 So the utilities and the telecommunications
10 companies, and some of the larger
11 infrastructure providers will have an
12 opportunity to -- to talk to some of the
13 stakeholders in the community about exactly
14 what steps they are taking to prepare for the
15 milleneum.
16 And we see, by in large, courtesy of our
17 Public Service Commission and the excellent job
18 that they've been doing in monitoring the
19 telecommunications companies and the electric
20 power utilities, we think that Florida probably
21 has the best prepared critical infrastructure
22 of any state in the union.
23 And part of that is due to the fact, we
24 have so much practice at this, with hurricanes,
25 and floods, and fires, and so on.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 14
June 8, 1999
1 But because our electric utilities are by
2 in large very, very good at what they do, and
3 they have invested a considerable amount of
4 money, in the aggregate, hundreds of millions
5 of dollars, to get themselves ready for the
6 milleneum, as have the telecommunications
7 companies.
8 So we think we've got a very good story to
9 tell as part of the public awareness campaign
10 which will start in the second half of this
11 year under the direction of the
12 Lieutenant Governor.
13 There -- there are some things which are a
14 little disconcerting to us though, and --
15 and -- and they -- they are being detected by
16 our polling. And one of them is that we still
17 have a lot of indifference among the general
18 public, but we still have some elevated
19 apprehension and concern among certain sections
20 of the public.
21 As an example, Associated Industries of
22 Florida has been polling on Y2K for some time.
23 And in their latest poll, 11 percent of whites
24 were very concerned about the milleneum,
25 32 percent of African Americans were very
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 15
June 8, 1999
1 concerned about Y2K.
2 And so we have deliberately begun
3 initiatives to get into the African American
4 community, and try to determine exactly what
5 the concerns are, and make that a strong
6 component of our public awareness campaign.
7 Our goal is that we leave no Floridian
8 uninformed, and we have no unanswered questions
9 about Y2K, from any Floridian, who speaks any
10 language.
11 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: May I ask a
12 question, Governor?
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: Yes. General.
14 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Let me ask
15 you one thing.
16 MR. McPHERSON: Sure.
17 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: We received
18 a number of complaints about various scam
19 artists that are using Y2K as being a problem,
20 to where your -- you better take your money out
21 of your savings account now, because when it
22 happens, you're going to have no money, and --
23 and all your assets are going to be gone, so,
24 therefore, we'll help you with that problem.
25 Are you -- are you also making this part of
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 16
June 8, 1999
1 your awareness program?
2 MR. McPHERSON: Absolutely.
3 And -- and we plan on having a session with
4 your people, with the Comptroller's people,
5 with Commissioner Crawford's people, and -- and
6 Commissioner Moore with the Florida Department
7 of Law Enforcement, with the -- with the intent
8 of actually putting together a special strike
9 force designed to deal with these Y2K scams,
10 and bank scams in particular, that are
11 beginning to come down on the elderly.
12 We've been monitoring that, and -- and
13 the -- the activity has been -- has been
14 light -- in fact, I believe that your people
15 are activating the Senior Spotter Program in
16 order to try to provide kind of a DEW line, or
17 an early warning line to -- to see if those
18 scams begin to accelerate in activity.
19 But that's an area of deep concern to us.
20 And, in fact, we -- we are cutting a commercial
21 ahead of time, just dealing with the scam issue
22 itself.
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Any other questions or
24 comments?
25 Thank you, Scott.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATUS UPDATE OF Y2K/TEAM FLORIDA 2000 17
June 8, 1999
1 MR. McPHERSON: Thank you very much.
2 Enjoyed it.
3 (The Status Update on Y2K/Team Florida 2000
4 Project was concluded.)
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
VOTE: TEMPORARY DUTY/FORMER PAROLE COMMISSIONERS 18
June 8, 1999
1 GOVERNOR BUSH: Next item on the agenda is
2 a vote for Former Commissioners to serve
3 temporary duty for the Parole Commission.
4 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
5 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: I'd like to move that this
7 be done on a block vote. Is that all right?
8 There's a motion and a second.
9 Without objection, it's approved.
10 (The Vote on Temporary Duty for Former
11 Parole Commissioners was concluded.)
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATION 19
June 8, 1999
1 GOVERNOR BUSH: The next Cabinet meeting
2 will be June 22nd, 1999, at 9:00 a.m. And I've
3 been told that it's going to be a long one.
4 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: It is that.
5 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: A long one?
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: A long one.
7 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: There is -- there
8 is major education agenda items. We have a
9 report -- requested a report from the two
10 possible -- more, but two that we are pretty
11 sure of, schools that will fall into the
12 opportunity scholarship area. They've
13 requested to make a presentation.
14 We have two charter school appeals, we
15 have --
16 GOVERNOR BUSH: A lot of stuff.
17 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- lots of other
18 things.
19 GOVERNOR BUSH: I think it's --
20 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: But those --
21 those --
22 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- a pretty full agenda --
23 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- two things are
24 going to take -- those two alone will take
25 quite a long time.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATION 20
June 8, 1999
1 GOVERNOR BUSH: We're expecting, with a
2 break for lunch, 3:00 or 4:00 o'clock. So just
3 plan accordingly.
4 State Board of Administration.
5 MR. HERNDON: Item Number 1 is approval of
6 the minutes of the meeting held on May 11th,
7 1999.
8 (Commissioner Crawford exited the room.)
9 TREASURER NELSON: Move it.
10 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Second.
11 GOVERNOR BUSH: Is there a second?
12 MR. HERNDON: Item Number 2 is --
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: Without --
14 MR. HERNDON: -- to request --
15 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- objection, it's
16 approved.
17 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I can't second.
18 GOVERNOR BUSH: Go ahead.
19 MR. HERNDON: I'm sorry.
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: That's all right.
21 MR. HERNDON: Item Number 2 is to request
22 approval of the Trustees to file the following
23 rule for notice to implement the 1999-2000
24 Hurricane Catastrophe Fund contract year.
25 This is an amendment to Rule 19-8.010, to
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATION 21
June 8, 1999
1 adopt an addendum to the reimbursement contract
2 which implements CS for -- CS for
3 Senate Bill 1790, which we couldn't do until
4 your office had completed action on that.
5 TREASURER NELSON: And I move the item.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: I have to second it.
7 TREASURER NELSON: You have to second it.
8 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
9 Without objection, it's approved.
10 MR. HERNDON: That completes the agenda.
11 Thank you.
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
13 (The State Board of Administration Agenda
14 was concluded.)
15 *
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY SAFETY/MOTOR VEHICLES 22
June 8, 1999
1 GOVERNOR BUSH: Department of
2 Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
3 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion on minutes.
4 GOVERNOR BUSH: Is there a second?
5 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: There's no
6 minutes, Governor.
7 MR. DICKINSON: Governor, Item 1 is
8 recommend reappointment of Dr. Byerly, a local
9 ophthalmologist, to our Medical Review Advisory
10 Board.
11 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: Is there a motion?
13 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
14 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
15 Without objection, it's approved.
16 MR. DICKINSON: Item 2 is approval for the
17 Attorney General to contract with private
18 counsel in those areas where he doesn't handle
19 our forfeiture cases. There are only three of
20 those now in the state.
21 And we do appreciate the relationship, I
22 might add, with the General handling those
23 forfeiture cases for us.
24 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
25 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY SAFETY/MOTOR VEHICLES 23
June 8, 1999
1 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
2 Without objection, it's approved.
3 MR. DICKINSON: Governor, Item 3, I'd like
4 to request withdrawal. I've talked to
5 Secretary Struhs. We're going to try to get
6 together and get y'all a little better game
7 plan on this emissions program.
8 There's some new information that has come
9 to light to us that may not necessitate
10 inspections in some of our counties. We want
11 to make sure that we're -- we're in line for
12 that, and we don't unnecessarily test. There
13 may be some new counties coming in that we need
14 to consider --
15 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion to
16 withdraw.
17 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
18 GOVERNOR BUSH: There's a motion and a
19 second --
20 (Commissioner Crawford entered the room.)
21 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- to withdraw.
22 Without objection, it's --
23 MR. DICKINSON: Thank you.
24 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- approv-- it's withdrawn,
25 not approved.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY SAFETY/MOTOR VEHICLES 24
June 8, 1999
1 (The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
2 Vehicles Agenda was concluded.)
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT 25
June 8, 1999
1 GOVERNOR BUSH: Department of Law
2 Enforcement.
3 Commissioner Moore, how you doing?
4 MR. MOORE: Good morning, Governor. I'm
5 fine.
6 Members of the Cabinet, Item 1 are the
7 minutes of the previous meeting.
8 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
9 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
10 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
11 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
12 Without objection, it's approved.
13 MR. MOORE: Item 2 is the Department's
14 Quarterly Performance Report for the quarter,
15 January through March of 1999.
16 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
17 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
18 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
19 Without objection, it's approved.
20 MR. MOORE: Item 3 is continuation of the
21 approval of the direction you gave us at the
22 December 8th, '98, Cabinet meeting to initiate
23 some rulemaking procedures.
24 As a result of that effort, we're here
25 today before you recommending final adoption of
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT 26
June 8, 1999
1 this series of rules, the majority of which, I
2 might add, are housekeeping in nature.
3 There are some 43 rules involved in this
4 process, and 28 of those 43 are being repealed,
5 either in whole or in part.
6 The only thing of a substantive nature
7 deals with about four or five sections in the
8 rule with delegation of authority, the most
9 important of which, if you adopt this, you
10 extend to me the authority as -- as the
11 Executive Director to approve contracts and
12 purchases up to $100,000, in lieu of the
13 $25,000 limit that is there now.
14 That brings us in line with the other
15 Cabinet agencies, and I'd so recommend these
16 rules to you, Governor.
17 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion, Item 2.
18 GOVERNOR BUSH: Is there a second?
19 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
21 Without objection, it's approved.
22 MR. MOORE: Thank you, sir.
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
24 (The Florida Department of Law Enforcement
25 Agenda was concluded.)
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 27
June 8, 1999
1 GOVERNOR BUSH: State Board of Education.
2 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion on the
3 minutes.
4 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: Motion. Second.
6 Without objection, it's approved.
7 MR. PIERSON: Item 2, Guidelines for Grant
8 Applications for Appropriations 104 and 134.
9 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
10 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
11 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
13 Without objection, it's approved.
14 MR. PIERSON: Item 3 is Rule 6A-10.060,
15 Amendment, Repayment of Excellent Teacher
16 Program Certification Fee.
17 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
18 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
19 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
20 Without objection, it's approved.
21 MR. PIERSON: Item 4 is repeal of
22 Rule 6B-4.005, 6B-4.006, --007, and --008.
23 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
24 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
25 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 28
June 8, 1999
1 Without objection, it's approved.
2 MR. PIERSON: Item 5 is appointments,
3 reappointments to the Community College Board
4 of Trustees. There are 61 appointments to the
5 Community College Board of Trustees. The
6 expiration date of term for all 61 appointees
7 is May 31st, 2003.
8 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
9 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
11 Without objection, it's approved.
12 MR. PIERSON: Item 6, appointments to the
13 State Board of Community Colleges. Appointees
14 are Norman D. Tripp, Sheridan B. Plymale, and
15 Violeta Salud; expiration terms, September 30,
16 2003.
17 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
18 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
19 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
20 Without objection, it's approved.
21 MR. PIERSON: Item 7, appointments to the
22 Postsecondary Education Planning Commission.
23 The appointees are Jorge L. Arrizurieta,
24 February 4th, 200--
25 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: He's doing pretty
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June 8, 1999
1 good.
2 GOVERNOR BUSH: Close enough.
3 That's kind of a running joke with Jorge
4 and his last name.
5 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Arrizurieta, but
6 it's hard to say.
7 MR. PIERSON: I was going to apologize.
8 There are three or four in here I'll probably
9 kill. But --
10 The second appointee is Mary G. Bennett,
11 February 4th, 2001; Edward A. Dauer,
12 February 4th, 2001; Akshay M. Desai,
13 February 4th, 2003; Connie K. Kone,
14 February 4th, 2002; George H. Smith,
15 February 4th, 2002; Philip E. Morgaman,
16 February 4th, 2003; and Elaine M. Vasquez,
17 February 4th, 2002.
18 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
19 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
21 Without objection, it's approved.
22 And I'd like to thank the Cabinet for their
23 approval of very fine appointees.
24 And I'm glad we're finished with the
25 Community College appointments for a while.
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1 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Plenty of them.
2 (The State Board of Education Agenda was
3 concluded.)
4 *
5
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1 GOVERNOR BUSH: Trustees of the Internal
2 Improvement Trust Fund.
3 Secretary Struhs, how's your leg?
4 MR. STRUHS: It's fine, sir.
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: Would you like to tell us
6 how -- what happened to you to --
7 MR. STRUHS: No, sir. I'd --
8 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- lighten up our day a
9 bit?
10 MR. STRUHS: No, sir. I --
11 GOVERNOR BUSH: Okay.
12 MR. STRUHS: I'd just rather forge ahead.
13 But I would like to, if I might, just
14 congratulate you, Governor, and the entire
15 Cabinet, for the signing ceremony yesterday for
16 Florida Forever. It will guarantee that you'll
17 see me, or somebody from DEP, here for the next
18 ten years.
19 GOVERNOR BUSH: Like Larry Johnson says,
20 all praise goes to Allah; so that it's all
21 praise goes to the Legislature.
22 MR. STRUHS: Absolutely.
23 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion on the
24 minutes.
25 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Some may disagree.
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1 MR. STRUHS: Item Number 2 --
2 GOVERNOR BUSH: There's a motion, and --
3 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
4 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- is there a second?
5 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: It's approved.
7 MR. STRUHS: Item Number 2, at the request
8 of General Milligan, we'd like to defer that
9 item, please.
10 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion to defer.
11 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: There's a motion and a
13 second.
14 Without objection, it is deferred.
15 MR. STRUHS: Item 3, we're seeking approval
16 for four option agreements to acquire
17 approximately 220 acres within the Wekiva-Ocala
18 Greenway CARL Project.
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
20 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
21 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
22 Without objection, it's approved.
23 MR. STRUHS: Item 4, we're seeking approval
24 for an option agreement to acquire 456 acres
25 within the Estero Bay CARL Project.
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1 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
2 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
4 Without objection, it's approved.
5 MR. STRUHS: Item 5, we're seeking approval
6 for a purchase agreement to acquire 4.8 acres
7 within the Apalachicola Bay CARL Project.
8 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
9 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
11 Without objection, it's approved.
12 MR. STRUHS: Item 6, we're seeking approval
13 for two things: First, to amend the
14 acquisition agreement with the South Florida
15 Water Management District for the East
16 Everglades CARL Project; and, secondly, to
17 encumber parcels of State-owned land.
18 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
19 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
21 Without objection, it's approved.
22 MR. STRUHS: Thank you.
23 Item 7, seeking approval for an option
24 agreement to acquire one hundred and
25 sixty-two-and-a-half acres within the
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1 Save Our Everglades CARL project.
2 SECRETARY HARRIS: Motion.
3 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
4 GOVERNOR BUSH: Is there a second?
5 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: Did I hear a second?
7 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
8 GOVERNOR BUSH: It's moved and seconded.
9 Without -- without objection, it's
10 approved.
11 I'm a little hard of hearing.
12 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: No. I
13 didn't say anything.
14 MR. STRUHS: Item --
15 GOVERNOR BUSH: Oh.
16 MR. STRUHS: -- Item 8, we're seeking
17 approval for an option agreement to acquire
18 92 acres within the Charlotte Harbor CARL
19 Project, and to request a survey waiver,
20 please.
21 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
22 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
24 Without objection, it's approved.
25 MR. STRUHS: Item 9 is actually five option
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1 agreements to acquire 2.75 acres within the
2 Hickey Creek Mitigation Park, and also a
3 request for survey waivers.
4 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
5 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
7 Without objection, it's approved.
8 MR. STRUHS: Item 10, we're seeking
9 approval for a purchase agreement to acquire
10 .11 acres -- or acre for the benefit of the
11 Florida Board of Regents at FSU.
12 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
13 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
14 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
15 Without objection, it's approved.
16 I hope that one of these days that
17 .11 acres won't make its way to the Cabinet.
18 One of my big goals in life.
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I think you might
20 have a problem, because it does take five
21 Trustee members constitutionally to vote for a
22 sale of any public property --
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Oh, this is a sale?
24 MR. STRUHS: This -- this is an
25 acquisition.
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1 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Or a purchase --
2 or a purchase.
3 MR. STRUHS: Yeah.
4 GOVERNOR BUSH: You can't delegate this?
5 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I don't think
6 constitutionally you can.
7 GOVERNOR BUSH: I thought we were talking
8 about --
9 MR. STRUHS: Well, in --
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- finding a way to --
11 MR. STRUHS: -- in two weeks, we'll be
12 before you with -- with some recommendations.
13 But I --
14 GOVERNOR BUSH: This one won't be one of
15 them.
16 MR. STRUHS: -- but I believe the
17 Commissioner is -- is correct.
18 Item Number 11 --
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: It doesn't take
20 that long, when you think about it. It's just
21 a couple seconds.
22 MR. STRUHS: Item Number --
23 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I have a motion on
24 11.
25 MR. STRUHS: -- 11, I've been advised that
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1 Commissioner Gallagher may have a motion on
2 this.
3 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I do.
4 I'd like to make a motion for the Board of
5 Trustees to, one, approve the request by the
6 Department of Corrections to sell the Parkhouse
7 Community Correction Center; two, deny
8 acceptance of the highest bid in the amount of
9 $165,100; and, three, direct Department of
10 Corrections to readvertise the property in the
11 local newspaper, and provide other applicable
12 public notices. The asking price for this
13 property should be the appraised value of
14 240,000.
15 SECRETARY HARRIS: Motion.
16 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Motion.
17 SECRETARY HARRIS: Motion.
18 GOVERNOR BUSH: I'm sorry?
19 SECRETARY HARRIS: I was just moving the --
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Oh, there's a second?
21 SECRETARY HARRIS: Yes.
22 GOVERNOR BUSH: Any discussion?
23 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: I do,
24 Governor.
25 I -- I was driving by this parcel this
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1 morning on the way in. It's -- it's about a
2 half acre of land, it's a two story brick
3 building, fairly historic it looks like. I'm
4 sure it has some history. Right on Park Avenue
5 one block west of Magnolia.
6 I think it'd be very fitting and
7 appropriate, and -- and proper for this to be
8 the home of the Dean of the -- of the Cabinet.
9 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Say again?
10 Because he needs one in the city.
11 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Well, under
12 the present law -- you don't have a problem
13 with this, Governor. But the rest of us, we
14 have to live within the capital. Many people
15 believe the capital is -- is Leon County. The
16 capital is not. The capital is the City of
17 Tallahassee.
18 And by general law, it requires us to live
19 within the City limits. And --
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Every place you go, you get
21 robbed, too. So --
22 I'm not sure we want to depreciate the
23 value --
24 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Maybe the Governor
25 can rent you a room at the mansion.
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1 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: This is a
2 safe neighborhood. I've already checked it
3 out. And this would be very appropriate to --
4 the deal on this -- it's --
5 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: The Dean of the
6 Cabinet --
7 SECRETARY HARRIS: Dean of the Cabinet.
8 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Dean of the
9 Cabinet Mansion. I think that'd be --
10 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: This is -- this is
11 good.
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: So when -- just back to the
13 point at hand here. If the property's
14 advertised at the appraised value, from what I
15 understand, it takes -- it's going to require a
16 lot of money to fix it up to use it for general
17 office space. And the bids come in back down
18 more or less to the same place they were, we --
19 we're going to hold it, or are we going to
20 refurbish it, or --
21 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Well, that --
22 let's see what comes back.
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Okay.
24 SECRETARY HARRIS: Governor --
25 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: You -- if you're
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1 going to refurbish it.
2 SECRETARY HARRIS: If we could, just let --
3 in the real world. Can we advertise it at
4 240,000, and not say the minimum bid,
5 two forty. But say, listing and asking price
6 two forty, so that it doesn't preclude people
7 from -- from sending in offers.
8 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: My motion said
9 asking price.
10 SECRETARY HARRIS: Asking price. Yes.
11 GOVERNOR BUSH: I'll make a -- I'm going to
12 vote for this, but I'm making a prediction.
13 We'll be dealing with this --
14 What -- how long is the listing? Or the
15 bid process? Takes three months or --
16 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: No --
17 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- how quickly will
18 this be -- do you know?
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Well, let's say
20 the last time they placed an ad, it ran for
21 21 consecutive days, was December 11th, 1998.
22 GOVERNOR BUSH: Okay. We may not be
23 here --
24 There's a motion --
25 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: We may not be here
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1 if it comes back.
2 GOVERNOR BUSH: Yeah.
3 There's a motion and a second on
4 Commissioner Gallagher's idea.
5 Any discussion?
6 Without objection, it's approved.
7 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: I guess
8 nobody liked my idea then --
9 GOVERNOR BUSH: Didn't -- was that an
10 amendment to the amendment?
11 I've been to your house.
12 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: If he fixes it up,
13 it might be worth it.
14 GOVERNOR BUSH: Yeah, exactly.
15 MR. STRUHS: Item 12, we're seeking
16 approval to encumber two specific parcels of
17 State-owned land as a condition for the receipt
18 of Federal grant money.
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
20 SECRETARY HARRIS: Second.
21 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
22 Without objection, it's approved.
23 MR. STRUHS: Substitute Item 3 relates to
24 the --
25 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Thirteen?
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1 MR. STRUHS: -- settle--
2 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thirteen?
3 MR. STRUHS: Did I say 3? I'm sorry.
4 Thirteen.
5 -- that relates to the settlement agreement
6 that was approved in concept at the last
7 Cabinet meeting in Jacksonville.
8 What this item seeks to do is to get
9 approval for a conservation easement. The
10 forms for two public access easements, and a
11 mutual release is contemplated by the
12 settlement agreement that you all approved in
13 the case of the Board of Trustees of the
14 Internal Improvement Trust Fund versus
15 Lykes Brothers, Incorporated.
16 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: I move the
17 item, Governor.
18 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Second.
19 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Governor,
20 upon -- upon approval of this item, the final
21 resolution of Fisheating Creek litigation is
22 one step closer to reality.
23 It would not have been possible to
24 accomplish this task without the assistance of
25 an extremely able and dedicated group of
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1 scientists who participated in negotiations
2 over the terms of the easement.
3 This was -- this literally was -- has been
4 for four solid weeks, and just ended literally
5 a few hours ago.
6 I'd like to ask the following individuals,
7 if they're here, to stand up to be recognized:
8 Ruark Cleary with DEP; Steve Bohl with Division
9 of Forestry; Tim Breault with the Fish -- with
10 the Game and Freshwater Fish Commission;
11 Richard Hillinbeck -- Hilsenbeck with the
12 Nature Conservancy; Gary Knight and Kay NeSmith
13 with the -- with the Natural Areas Inventory.
14 And we -- we want to thank all of you for
15 your scientific expertise to the development of
16 a conservation easement that protects in
17 perpetuity the natural resource value of this
18 land.
19 Others who also have been of great
20 assistance to the overall effort are
21 Sheriff Jamie Adams, Dr. Allan Egbert,
22 Jim Antista, and Frank Montalbano of the
23 Game and Freshwater Commission, as well as
24 Pete Mallison and the staff of the Bureau of --
25 of Survey and Mapping at DEP.
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1 I want to thank all of you. It's a job
2 well done.
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: General, I think you needed
4 to thank your staff, too.
5 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Staff --
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: They've done a great job.
7 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: And thank the
8 General.
9 GOVERNOR BUSH: The -- and the General,
10 of course.
11 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: And
12 Monica Reimer and Nancy -- Diana Sawyer-Crane
13 have been really on this issue for literally --
14 we're talking about --
15 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Years.
16 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: -- each of
17 the last four weekends, and -- as well as the
18 attorneys for the Lykes and -- and the
19 Lykes Brothers have been a tremendous
20 cooperation. And I know
21 James Harold Thompson's in the audience there
22 charging his billable hours there, but --
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Earning a living.
24 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: But
25 everybody else who I named is on a -- on a
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1 fixed salary with the State, and they're not
2 getting paid the overtime. So --
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: There's a motion and a
4 second.
5 Without objection, it's approved.
6 MR. STRUHS: Agenda Item 14 is -- is a
7 little bit complicated, but it actually just
8 confirms the details of something you approved
9 in concept about a month ago.
10 We're seeking approval to modify an
11 existing lease with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
12 Service to exchange lands to establish an
13 aquaculture use zone to use 78 acres to
14 establish a high density lease area, and to
15 issue thirty-nine 2-acre aquaculture leases to
16 applicants in a high density lease area,
17 subject to all the applicable law and rule
18 requirements, final action by the U.S. Army
19 Corps of Engineers, and compliance with special
20 lease conditions.
21 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
22 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: Second.
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
24 Without objection, it's approved.
25 MR. STRUHS: Substitute Item 15, seek
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1 approval, subject to compliance with special
2 lease conditions, for a ten-year sovereignty
3 submerged land live rock aquaculture lease.
4 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
5 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
7 Without objection, it's approved.
8 MR. STRUHS: Substitute Item Number 16,
9 recommending approval of a modification to a
10 five-year sovereignty submerged land lease for
11 the expansion of the Navarre Beach Fishing
12 Pier.
13 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
14 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
15 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
16 Without objection, it's approved.
17 MR. STRUHS: I should point out, I'm sorry,
18 we -- we were seeking that approval subject to
19 the payment of the $8,704.10.
20 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion, with the
21 subject of payment included.
22 MR. STRUHS: Thank you.
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: Moved and seconded.
24 Without objection, it's approved.
25 MR. STRUHS: The 17th and final item, we
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1 actually have a half a dozen speakers. And
2 what I'd like to do, with your permission, is
3 to just introduce them. They have a particular
4 order in which they want to speak to the
5 Cabinet.
6 First is Mr. Bud Gordon, who's representing
7 mobile home owners in the Orange Harbor Mobile
8 Home Association.
9 GOVERNOR BUSH: Good morning.
10 MR. GORDON: Good morning.
11 GOVERNOR BUSH: Welcome.
12 MR. GORDON: I would like to thank you,
13 Governor Bush, and your Cabinet, for allowing
14 me the privilege of addressing you.
15 With your permission, I'd like to read a
16 letter from the park owner. You have a packet
17 in front of each of you, and all this
18 information is in that packet.
19 It says: Dear Governor Bush and Cabinet
20 members. Thank you for allowing me the
21 privilege of addressing you with this letter.
22 As managing partner of Orange Harbor
23 Mobile Home Park, I have an obligation to serve
24 the best interest of my customers, the park
25 residents, and a responsibility to put my
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1 empathy for them into action.
2 The difficulty with the DEP draft agenda is
3 the financial burden it places upon the
4 73 waterfront residents. Last year, as a
5 comparison, the lease fees were $3,715, which
6 averaged about $51 per resident annually.
7 Under the current draft agenda lease fee,
8 we would be paying approximately $700 per
9 resident. DEP calculation is for $29,476, but
10 that does not include the 6 percent sales tax
11 of $1,768, nor the $20,000 in survey fees.
12 Colleen Castille has the three survey bids.
13 Part of the problem is the
14 misclassification of Orange Harbor Mobile Home
15 park as an existing commercial docking
16 facility. In 1988, our submerged land lease,
17 number 360009925, totaled 6,960 square feet,
18 which included nine rental wet slips located
19 near the front office.
20 The Board of Trustees of the International
21 Improvement Trust Fund described this lease as
22 a private docking facility in conjunction with
23 an upland mobile home park. Although the park
24 owners have reduced the number of wet slips to
25 four, the original classification of this area
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1 is still accurate.
2 Since a great majority of the resident
3 docks were built before 1988, why were they not
4 included in the original submerged land lease?
5 Mobile home residents pay approximately
6 $376 a month for a riverfront lot location.
7 There is no difference in this monthly rental
8 fee, whether a riverfront resident chooses to
9 have a boat, a dock, a fishing pier, or not.
10 For over 25 years, the park owners have
11 never charged a special fee or extra rental to
12 the residents who own a dock.
13 It is for this reason, as outlined in the
14 park's perspectives, that the submerged land
15 lease fees and related costs will be passed
16 along to each affected resident.
17 On behalf of the affected park residents, I
18 respectfully request that you and your Cabinet
19 consider helping us reduce the financial burden
20 of the draft agenda.
21 Your assistance would be appreciated in
22 three ways: One is to allow us the waiver of
23 survey requirement, which the DEP granted us in
24 1995. This waiver would save the residents
25 approximately $20,000 in professional survey
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1 fees.
2 Whether we retained a footprint design or
3 go to the block system, the enclosed sketches
4 and drawings are very accurate. We reduce the
5 25 percent surcharge of the -- of $5,291 to
6 reflect the preempted area increase that will
7 be impacted with structural dock additions,
8 boats, et cetera.
9 In order to make the necessary changes, the
10 effective waterfront residents need less than
11 6,000 square feet, not 183,096 square feet.
12 The rest of this expansion area serves as a
13 buffer, and as open space between the
14 residential docks.
15 Return to the actual usage definition of
16 individual resident docks, ownership. The
17 resident docks have always been considered the
18 private property of each upland resident.
19 Currently, as well as in the past, all
20 permitting, maintenance, and insurance have
21 been the responsibility of each resident dock
22 owner. See rule number 11 in the Orange Harbor
23 Rules and Regulations.
24 Please allow the individual residents,
25 dock owners of Orange Harbor Mobile Home Park,
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1 the same rights and privileges as a single
2 family resident, waterfront property owner.
3 Thank you for your time and your
4 consideration in these important matters.
5 To elaborate just a bit, my name is
6 Bud Gordon. I live at 321 Shoreline Drive in
7 mobile -- in the mobile home park. I'm also
8 the Commodore of the boat club that we have
9 there.
10 I don't know where the numbers all came
11 from. We refer to our docks and our piers and
12 buying bigger boats and extending our docks.
13 If you'll take a look at the brochure, this is
14 what we're talking about.
15 We're talking about little bitty docks made
16 out of 4 by 4s and 2 x 6s to accommodate the
17 people who want to go fishing, and take their
18 grandkids for a ride in their boat.
19 We don't have Chris Craft cruisers, and we
20 don't have 35 foot yachts. The average boat
21 would be about 20 foot. These docks were built
22 by people 25 years ago, and they've been
23 maintained by each homeowner since.
24 Sure, we have to do some modification on
25 them: 4x4s rot out, and we have to pull it out
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1 and replace it. But we are not a docking
2 facility.
3 I have a lot on the water, I have a dock,
4 and I have a boat. I'm surely not a facility.
5 I'm just one person trying to enjoy what I've
6 got left in life down here in Florida. I came
7 from Texas to come down here and enjoy it.
8 Yes, I've seen your brother.
9 So if you'll give us a little consideration
10 in this, we'd all appreciate it. We're not
11 going to be able to afford this. Many people
12 are in their seventies, eighties, and nineties.
13 A vast majority of them do not even use the
14 water.
15 They haven't even been to the water in a
16 long time, but they do own the property because
17 their husband bought it 25 years ago, and they
18 have to stay there, and fill out their time.
19 There are a couple other issues that would
20 like to be brought up by the people of
21 Orange Harbor. As you can see, we're here in
22 a -- in a group. We suffered the rain
23 yesterday to get up here, only because we
24 thought this was really necessary.
25 GOVERNOR BUSH: We appreciate you coming
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1 up.
2 MR. GORDON: I thank you for your time.
3 And I'll turn this over to the next speaker.
4 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
5 MR. GORDON: Thank you.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: What part of Texas you from
7 originally?
8 MR. GORDON: Just outside of Dallas.
9 Gun Barrel City.
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: Sounds like a good Texas
11 name.
12 MR. GORDON: Don't laugh. It's real.
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: I bet it is. It's Texas.
14 MR. STRUHS: Members of the Cabinet, the
15 second speaker is Mr. Frank Pettengill, who's
16 also a resident of the park.
17 GOVERNOR BUSH: Good morning.
18 MR. GORDON: Excuse me, Frank.
19 MR. PETTENGILL: Good morning,
20 Governor Bush, Honorable lady and gentlemen of
21 the Cabinet.
22 I'm Frank Pettengill. I am the President
23 of the Homeowners Associations of
24 Orange Harbor, a mobile home which is located
25 east of Fort Myers on the confluence of the
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1 Orange and Caloosahatchee River. We have two
2 areas that are on the river, and it is a
3 manatee zone.
4 To give you the history of this, in 1965,
5 the park was created; in 1975, it was sold to
6 the present owners; and in 1985, I bought my
7 piece of property at 34 Channel Lane.
8 At that time, I had a boat. I later put a
9 houseboat on it of 36 feet, and now I have the
10 largest boat in the park, 44 foot houseboat.
11 There's one other boat that is over
12 30 feet, and the rest are 24 and smaller.
13 There are approximately 40 people who have
14 footprints required by the submerged land law
15 which covers their dock, their boat, and
16 wiggle room for the boats and the tide.
17 This went along fine for a couple of years,
18 and then we were notified in December 31st,
19 197-- 1997, this letter from the Department of
20 Environmental Protection. And this caused a
21 great deal of problems with our people, because
22 it threatened us, pure and simple. I'll read
23 from it.
24 As such, whenever the Department documents
25 lease violations at your site, any associated
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1 administrative fine will be subject to four
2 times multiplier. Therefore, it is reasonable
3 to anticipate that each future violation will
4 entail a minimum of $1250 fine.
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: Excuse me, sir. Did you --
6 did -- that letter came without any notice?
7 No -- no phone call, no --
8 UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Nothing.
9 MR. PETTENGILL: No. We had a visit from
10 one of the members of DEP from Lee County. And
11 he said we had all kinds of violations.
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: Okay. So they --
13 MR. PETTENGILL: But he didn't name any but
14 two: One next door to me, and one, the owner's
15 trimaran.
16 It says: Therefore, it is reasonable -- a
17 $1250 fine. Chronic lease violations could
18 also result in the Department cancelling your
19 sovereignty submerged land lease, and requiring
20 the removal of all structures from this land.
21 If that isn't a threat, I don't know what
22 is.
23 Therefore, as we have discussed, it may be
24 prudent for the Orange Harbor Mobile Home Park
25 to consider a future modification of its
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1 sovereignty submerged land lease to include
2 additional areas of sovereignty submerged land
3 to serve as a buffer for each docking facility.
4 And it goes on and it says you should have
5 a little bigger buffers.
6 Therefore, the owner commissioned one of
7 our people, who is a good architectural drawer,
8 to go around to every single one of the people
9 who had a footprint, and say, do you want a
10 larger -- do you want a bigger boat, do you
11 want to have room for a bigger boat, or a
12 second boat.
13 He did that, and it was submitted last
14 April to the DEP in Lee County.
15 Nothing has happened since then on those
16 leases -- requests, or those footprint
17 requests.
18 What we did get was we want to go to
19 blocking, which is on the old section on
20 Orange River to go out 40 feet; and on
21 Caloosahatchee, to go out 61 feet. And the
22 people who have no dock and no boat would be
23 charged for all this area.
24 It would cost approximately $70 a month the
25 first year for those on the Orange River, and
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1 90 on the Caloosahatchee. A month. I -- I
2 paid I think $121 for a year's lease. And this
3 is a ridiculous increase.
4 We have asked for a meeting with the DEP,
5 and they came to our place. And they come out
6 with an agenda that said we agreed with them.
7 We did not.
8 There were four people who wanted docks in
9 the worst way. One of them, because he
10 couldn't get it right away, sold his place in
11 the past month or so. So we have three people
12 that want docks and are pending.
13 The rest of us have submitted our
14 footprint, and DEP has not acted upon them, but
15 suggested this blocking system, which calls for
16 us to go out from the lot lines 40 feet into
17 the manatee area, and 60 feet on the
18 Caloosahatchee. And we have no lot lines.
19 Our prospectus says, average width. Some
20 are pie shaped because of turning corners. I
21 don't know how they're going to figure it on
22 the land, or the water.
23 I read in the Sunday's paper that the
24 State of Florida is saving 3 million dollars a
25 month in welfare funds because of the reduction
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1 of welfare. To turn around and charge
2 senior citizens a few thousand doesn't seem to
3 me politically correct.
4 Thank you.
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you, sir.
6 MR. STRUHS: If -- if -- if I might, just
7 very quickly offer for your consideration.
8 The -- the letter that Mr. Pettengill referred
9 to, in fact, was sent. It was addressed to the
10 SunTrust Bank, and not to the actual residents.
11 The other thing is I just wanted for the
12 record, and -- and for your benefit, to assure
13 you, and the residents, that the DEP is not
14 pursuing or seeking any penalties in this
15 matter.
16 Item --
17 UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Can't hear you --
18 UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Can't hear you.
19 UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We can't hear you.
20 MR. STRUHS: The Department will not -- or
21 is not or will not seek any penalties in this
22 matter.
23 The third -- the third speaker is the
24 Vice President of the Home Association,
25 Aileen Lackey.
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1 MS. LACKEY: Governor Bush and members of
2 the Cabinet, my name is Aileen Lackey. I'm
3 Vice President of the Orange Harbor Mobile Home
4 Owners Association.
5 I was told this morning I would be meeting
6 with legal and political professionals, and
7 that it was important for me to make a
8 pragmatic, politically correct, and unemotional
9 presentation.
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: You can do whatever you
11 want.
12 MS. LACKEY: This is --
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: Not required to --
14 MS. LACKEY: I'm going to.
15 GOVERNOR BUSH: We're not big on political
16 correctness, at least here. So --
17 MS. LACKEY: This is very difficult for me,
18 because I represent the people who ultimately
19 will have to pay for the proposals of this
20 agenda. SunTrust Bank, the
21 Environmental Protection Agency, and the
22 Hoffman family, who own Orange Harbor Mobile
23 Park, will move on to other business once this
24 proposal is approved.
25 Our senior citizens, people who live on
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1 Social Security and limited incomes, will be
2 subjected to these provisions into eternity.
3 We are a community of people ages
4 fifty-five to ninety-eight. Our single and
5 double wide homes were manufactured in the
6 1970s, and range on resale from $10,000 to
7 $56,000, depending upon the location and
8 condition.
9 Most of the docks were grandfathered,
10 having been installed shortly after the house
11 was set on the pad. Tenancies on riverfront
12 lots do not turn over, as suggested in the
13 agenda.
14 Most are ten years or more, and are
15 terminated by illness or death of the
16 homeowner. Some of our Riverside residents
17 have owned their homes over 20 years.
18 Orange Harbor residents have lived in
19 frustration and anxiety over this dock issue
20 since 1994, fearful of violations, and under
21 threat of being fined. Meetings have been
22 scheduled by the DEP, then canceled; facts
23 misconstrued; figures changed.
24 Our representatives met with the staff of
25 the agency, and came away feeling that they got
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1 vague and indefinitive answers, and that the
2 meeting was futile and a waste of time.
3 Now some of our residents fear that they
4 must put their houses on the market because
5 they cannot afford the block plan as presented.
6 We have initially responded to the DEP's
7 plan for a foot plan -- a footprint drawing for
8 the dock and a preempted area.
9 And DEP understood that we were willing to
10 comply with this request. After 14 months,
11 they have now switched to the block plan, which
12 they advise us is cast in stone, and we must
13 accept, a plan which is like Swiss cheese, it
14 is full of holes. We do not favor it, we are
15 outraged by it.
16 The block plan incorporates all 73 lots
17 adjoining the Caloosahatchee and Orange River.
18 Some of our people who have neither boat nor
19 dock are going to be charged for this submerged
20 land, for which they have no interest or need.
21 Until the 12th of May, when they received
22 copies of the current agenda, they had no
23 knowledge or concern in this matter or
24 participation in the proceedings.
25 Under this proposed plan, those of us who
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1 have pontoon and fishing boats will be assessed
2 five times more than what we are currently
3 paying for the additional square footage that
4 has been added into the proposed lease,
5 additional footage that we neither need nor
6 want.
7 This is more taxation than we pay on our
8 homes and our cars. Depending upon the
9 location and footage, this could range from 50
10 to $100 more per month in additional expenses
11 in the coming year.
12 The rationale for the 25 percent surcharge
13 and the sales tax has not been explained to us
14 satisfactorily.
15 Why must we pay a 6 percent sales tax on
16 top of a surcharge? Are these funds designated
17 for environmental purposes, or for the general
18 fund?
19 We have a right to ask these questions.
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Sure you do.
21 MS. LACKEY: And where is the money to be
22 spent, since we are the ones who ultimately
23 will have to pay these pass-on charges.
24 We are seeking an equitable and fair
25 solution to this problem. For us to accept the
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1 conditions of the current proposed lease, as
2 presented, is to become victims of an
3 inflexible and an arrogant bureaucracy. We are
4 elder citizens who vote and pay taxes in
5 Florida. We have made Florida our home. We
6 want to live in peace and enjoy our remaining
7 years, and we do not need the hassle and
8 anxiety that this is causing.
9 We will use all avenues at our disposal to
10 seek a reasonable and an equitable solution.
11 The people of Orange Harbor thank you for
12 your audience.
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you very much.
14 MR. STRUHS: The fourth speaker is
15 Mr. Bill Boger, also a resident of the park.
16 GOVERNOR BUSH: Good morning, sir.
17 MR. BOGER: Good morning.
18 Governor Bush and Cabinet --
19 Governor Bush and Cabinet, I am Bill Boger,
20 and I've lived in Orange Harbor for 19 years.
21 I'm here to protest the granting of a lease
22 to increase the preempted area from
23 26,116 square feet, to 209,200 square feet for
24 an existing private dock facility.
25 The DEP claims that it is -- is a
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1 commercial facility. We are zoned as a
2 residential mobile home park. Residents own
3 their own private homes, and lease their lot it
4 is on.
5 Residents built and paid for their docks --
6 their own private docks. So what constitutes a
7 commercial facility? The only people to gain
8 from this change in the lease will be the
9 SunTrust Bank of Florida, and the owners of the
10 park which are the Hoffmans and the Matchams.
11 That is the reason for this request by the
12 owners of the park. They are under the
13 assumption that they can pass this charge on to
14 the people that live on the river.
15 GOVERNOR BUSH: They can, can't they,
16 legally?
17 MR. BOGER: If it is a request by the
18 owners, according to the DEP, Mark Miller in
19 Fort Myers, he claims that the owners are
20 requesting this increase in square footage.
21 GOVERNOR BUSH: But they can pass on any
22 costs to you by -- by law.
23 MR. BOGER: If it's a mandate. If it's
24 mandated, they can pass it on.
25 But if --
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1 GOVERNOR BUSH: They're not here?
2 MR. BOGER: If it is a request --
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: They're not here.
4 MR. BOGER: -- then they cannot pass it on.
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: They're not here, are they,
6 David?
7 MR. STRUHS: I don't --
8 GOVERNOR BUSH: SunTrust?
9 MR. STRUHS: I don't believe they're here.
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: Or Mr. Hoffman.
11 MR. BOGER: That's the reason they're not
12 here.
13 MR. PETTENGILL: Governor Bush, I have a
14 solution to this.
15 MR. BOGER: We are not opp--
16 GOVERNOR BUSH: Hold on.
17 MR. BOGER: We are not opposed to paying
18 for the submerged land that we actually use for
19 our boat and dock. This is a senior citizen
20 retirement community, and most retirees are on
21 a fixed income.
22 I met with Mark Miller, the manager at DEP,
23 the South District of Fort Myers, on Thursday,
24 May the 13th, at his office.
25 Mark stated he was in favor of the increase
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1 of square footage because it will relieve him
2 and his staff of frequent lease modifications,
3 which we probably have had four or five in the
4 last 20 years.
5 This -- this is probably part of his job
6 description.
7 Governor Bush, I read an article in the
8 News Press dated May 15th where you -- quote,
9 you stated: We have to be truly engaged in
10 building up our community by helping others.
11 This is a great time to start, by refusing
12 this request.
13 I still believe the GOP is the party of
14 lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
15 Governor Bush, and members of the Cabinet,
16 if this request is approved, please stipulate
17 in this -- that this is not a government
18 imposed, as this will be -- this is a request.
19 We're not sure whether the owners requested
20 this, or the DEP's trying to put it on to us.
21 According to the DEP, the owners of the park
22 requested it.
23 But we didn't request it, the -- the
24 residents.
25 Thank you for your time.
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1 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
2 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Can I ask
3 Secretary Struhs a question, Governor?
4 MR. STRUHS: Yes, sir.
5 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: What -- what if --
6 in other words, it looks to me like the owner
7 wants to have this large footprint for each
8 home, and that's all well and good.
9 But I would think that if that's what he
10 wants, that's what he should pay for.
11 UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Right.
12 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Now, if the owners
13 are wanting to rent space, they should have the
14 option to rent the space that they want to use.
15 And any mobile home park owner should have the
16 option to rent space from the owner based on
17 the size boat they want to put in.
18 MR. BOGER: Absolutely.
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: That's what every
20 other dock owner has to do. And, of course,
21 longer boats pay more than shorter boats, and
22 they do it by square foot they -- their --
23 MR. BOGER: Short boat --
24 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- length of boats
25 usually.
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1 And so I'm -- my tendency is to approve the
2 big footprint for the owner, let the owner pay
3 for it. Now, I know there's some mobile home
4 law problem here.
5 But only allow a lease for that owner to be
6 passed on to owners of the mobile home park
7 that use the boat space.
8 MR. STRUHS: Right.
9 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: For a fair market
10 value of what -- of what that would be for the
11 size boat they have.
12 Then if no -- if no owner of the park wants
13 to put a space, then the owner -- owner that's
14 rented it from the State has to figure out what
15 he does next.
16 And what -- I know there's probably some
17 problems with the mobile home law --
18 MR. STRUHS: Of course.
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- with that.
20 Would you explain those to us?
21 MR. STRUHS: Well, I will to the best of my
22 ability.
23 As you probably know --
24 Well, all right. Well -- thank you.
25 I'll read that in a minute.
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1 To qualify to have a submerged land lease,
2 you have to own the upland. And the --
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: David --
4 MR. STRUHS: -- residents --
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- you need to speak into
6 the mic.
7 MR. STRUHS: I'm sorry. Is that better?
8 In order to qualify for a submerged land
9 lease, one has to own the adjacent upland. And
10 in this situation, as is the case with most
11 mobile home parks, the residents are not
12 actually the land owners.
13 And that's why the lease in question here
14 is actually with the SunTrust Bank. That's why
15 we sent the letter to them, that's why we're
16 dealing with them.
17 The way in which SunTrust decides to pass
18 on, or not pass on, any increases in the fees
19 is, as I understand it, entirely their
20 business. And as I understand it, they
21 currently have, I believe, 73 residents who
22 have some type of waterfront access, or
23 waterfront dock.
24 We have made the determination that it is a
25 commercial activity because we're not looking
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1 at it on a resident by resident basis, but
2 rather we're looking at it as dealing with
3 SunTrust.
4 The issue of the increase in square
5 footage, I honestly don't know who requested
6 the increase, but I know the rationale for it.
7 The rationale for it is that it gets to the
8 issue of what is preempted. Preempted meaning
9 what is being used for arguably private
10 purposes, and is, therefore, no longer open to
11 the general public. And given the
12 configuration of the docks, a lot of the water
13 sheet in between these docks is essentially
14 preempted.
15 Any movement along the lines of what you've
16 suggested in terms of setting the fees based on
17 the size of the dock and whether it's used
18 exclusively for fishing, or whether it's used
19 for one boat, or whether it's used for two
20 boats, or the size of the pier may make some
21 good sense. Practically speaking though, it
22 creates a difficult problem in terms of the
23 fact that those uses typically change over
24 time, and we don't want to be in a situation
25 where every time somebody adds a boat or
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1 lengthens a pier or shortens a pier, that we
2 have to come back before the Cabinet.
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: David --
4 MR. STRUHS: Yes, sir.
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- the -- this was dealt
6 with differently, maybe incorrectly, by the
7 Department of Natural Resources when it was
8 originally permitted, but it was dealt with
9 differently than it is today.
10 MR. STRUHS: That's correct.
11 GOVERNOR BUSH: And people bought -- or
12 leased lots and docks based on a different
13 approach.
14 MR. STRUHS: I --
15 GOVERNOR BUSH: And the part that's a
16 little difficult for me, since I -- I'm new to
17 the job here, that I don't quite understand, is
18 why would then DEP come back after interpreting
19 the law -- or implementing the law, in one way
20 come back to implement it to -- to interpret it
21 in a dramatically different way that'll have a
22 dramatic impact on the people that were using
23 these docks.
24 If you look at the docks, this is not a
25 marina. I mean --
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1 UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: No.
2 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- these are in the
3 backyards of mobile homes.
4 MR. STRUHS: No. You're -- you're correct,
5 Governor, in identifying the fact that there
6 were mistakes made by the Department in
7 previous years, going back probably 10 or
8 12 years ago --
9 GOVERNOR BUSH: The other question becomes:
10 Should we penalize the people who had a --
11 thought they had an implied contractual
12 obligation. They -- they came to rent these
13 lots based on a certain set of rules, and now,
14 after the fact, we're changing it, and in a
15 dramatic way in terms of costs for them.
16 I mean, if this is more than their property
17 taxes that they pay, and more than their car
18 payments, this is a significant change in
19 lifestyle.
20 And I just don't understand where we're --
21 where we're going here. How did the --
22 MR. STRUHS: Right. Well, at -- sir, at
23 the risk -- at the risk of sounding defensive,
24 which I'm not, because --
25 GOVERNOR BUSH: You just got here, too.
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1 MR. STRUHS: -- I'm new, just like you.
2 But at the risk of sounding defensive, what
3 happened --
4 GOVERNOR BUSH: In a couple more weeks.
5 MR. STRUHS: Yes.
6 What happened when these facilities -- when
7 these piers were first constructed, is the
8 tenant, the person who held the lease, owned
9 the mobile home, would come to the Department,
10 and apply for permission to -- to build this
11 facility.
12 Given the fact that it was not a commercial
13 operation -- the perception was that it was not
14 a commercial operation, that it was a private
15 landowner, and that it was a very small
16 structure, there was essentially a -- an
17 automatic waiver. I'm not sure I'm using the
18 exact terms.
19 But essentially, a general permit to allow
20 them to build that without having to come
21 before you, and without having to pay any fees.
22 And we felt that at that time -- the Department
23 felt at that time that that was the appropriate
24 course of action.
25 It's come to the Department's attention
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1 more recently, however, that, in fact, the
2 residents are not the upland landowner. So
3 technically speaking, under the law, the --
4 in fact, the land owner --
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: Practically speaking,
6 they're still the same people --
7 UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: With the same docks.
8 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- with the same docks and
9 the same --
10 MR. STRUHS: I'm just trying to give you
11 sort of the --
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: Okay.
13 MR. STRUHS: -- the --
14 GOVERNOR BUSH: I thought --
15 MR. STRUHS: -- as to where the Department
16 was on this historically.
17 GOVERNOR BUSH: Why -- why couldn't we do
18 something like this: Do something that
19 would -- if -- if there was a change in use of
20 the property, if the Trust -- the Trust --
21 SunTrust or the -- who they represent --
22 MR. STRUHS: Right.
23 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- decided to convert this
24 to an apartment -- or a condominium of some
25 kind --
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1 MR. STRUHS: Uh-hum.
2 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- where current law would
3 be more applicable, why couldn't we do this
4 lease in that fashion, where it's -- in the
5 future, should there be a change in the land
6 use, that these -- that this lease would apply,
7 that the block lease would apply, rather than
8 doing it the way we have been doing it.
9 MR. STRUHS: My -- my advice on that is
10 that if you wanted to go down that path, you
11 would want to give some definition to what you
12 meant by change in use.
13 Because as I interpret what you're saying,
14 you don't want to define going from a small
15 boat to a larger boat, or one boat to two
16 boats, or fishing to boating to be deemed a
17 change in use.
18 When you talk change in use, I think you're
19 looking at a --
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: On the uplands.
21 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I think you
22 need --
23 MR. STRUHS: On the mobile home --
24 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- upland change
25 in use from mobile homes to --
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1 MR. STRUHS: I just wanted --
2 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- condominiums,
3 say.
4 MR. STRUHS: -- to clarify that, sir.
5 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I know that we --
6 there's also some concern from the Save the
7 Manatee group, so we may as well hear --
8 MR. STRUHS: We have --
9 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- from them.
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: Other people want to speak.
11 MR. STRUHS: We actually have one -- one
12 more resident from the mobile home park,
13 Mr. Dick Schulte --
14 GOVERNOR BUSH: I'm sorry.
15 MR. STRUHS: -- and then I believe Pat Rose
16 is here, wants to speak from the Save the
17 Manatee Club.
18 And then to the extent you want to get into
19 a bit more detail, I'd be happy to offer up one
20 of the DEP staff who will provide -- provide
21 much more insight.
22 Mr. Schulte.
23 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: A sacrificial
24 lamb.
25 GOVERNOR BUSH: Good morning.
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1 MR. SCHULTE: My name's Dick Schulte.
2 As you can see, I must be the last person
3 to have purchased a home in Orange Harbor
4 because of the way I'm dressed.
5 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Supposed to get
6 that at closing.
7 MR. SCHULTE: I purchased the home
8 approximately two months ago -- two,
9 three months ago. And I was under the opinion
10 when I purchased the home, that I was going to
11 have a dock behind my house.
12 My wife and I thought we'd died and went to
13 heaven. We're looking out directly on the
14 Orange River.
15 And then just before we were going to
16 purchase the house, we found out that we would
17 not be able to put a boat at our dock.
18 Now, I've gone to all these little meetings
19 that they've had. And it gets -- it really
20 gets ridiculous when you -- not only can't the
21 people put their boats at the dock, but they've
22 also made the people take the boats out of the
23 water that were at the docks because they told
24 them that they were going to be fined $1200 if
25 they left their boats at these docks.
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1 Now, their boats have been at the docks for
2 years. You know, some of them have been there
3 20 years. The dock behind my house is probably
4 as old as the house.
5 My wife and I are both working on the home
6 to fix it up, to make it what we want it to be.
7 I -- I had planned on working on the dock,
8 because it's an older dock, and fixing it up
9 for a place for the boat, you know --
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: But you were going to get a
11 permit when you fixed the dock.
12 MR. SCHULTE: Oh, absolutely. I mean, you
13 can't do much of anything without a permit.
14 But -- but the problem is, if I wanted to
15 get a permit now, I couldn't even do that,
16 because this thing is under a cloud.
17 So what it -- you know, I just wanted to --
18 in the meetings that they have, they -- they
19 say, like, if I wanted to put my boat in the
20 water, I could do it, but I couldn't put it
21 next to my dock. I could anchor it 1 foot off
22 my dock.
23 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: So it can ram
24 against the dock --
25 MR. SCHULTE: But --
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1 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- as opposed to
2 be tied to it.
3 MR. SCHULTE: -- not put it on the dock.
4 Now, behind my seawall, I happen -- because
5 there's some mangroves there, there happens to
6 be dirt piled up there. I guess over the
7 years, it's piled up against the mangroves.
8 Now, when I bought it, I talked to the
9 people in the park, and they said, well, you
10 could remove the dirt if you wanted to. They
11 wouldn't do it. But if I wanted to hire
12 somebody to come in; dig it up; put it in a
13 truck and haul it off, I could do that.
14 So when the DEP came down, I had them come
15 down, look over the wall. And the guy went
16 down there -- he's here today somewhere -- and
17 he looked -- he looked at it, and he said,
18 sure, Mr. Schulte, you could pull your boat up
19 on that dirt if you wanted to. You can't put
20 it at your dock, but you can pull it up on the
21 dirt because the dirt is actually --
22 GOVERNOR BUSH: That's where we're --
23 MR. SCHULTE: -- above the line.
24 So -- and so it just gets -- when I tell
25 all my friends --
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1 GOVERNOR BUSH: We're glad you're here.
2 MR. SCHULTE: -- they say, boy, you bought
3 a great place, but what kind of a place have
4 you got, you can't put a boat in.
5 So all -- all I -- all I -- it's -- the
6 rationale for the whole thing just seems
7 ridiculous.
8 Now, what Mr. Gallagher said sounds
9 reasonable before. What he said was if
10 SunTrust or the owners of the park want to have
11 something in some area of the park where
12 they're going to rent docks, fine, block that
13 in.
14 But if you had a -- if you had a -- if my
15 dock is right here, and the next wall is
16 another dock, now, normally I'd pay
17 eleven-and-a-half cents a square foot for this
18 portion of my dock, for whatever sticks out
19 over Florida's land.
20 And the next one is all the way at the
21 other wall. But now I have to pay for
22 everything in between there, too, because of
23 this block situation.
24 Now, the -- the bank or the park, if they
25 want to do it, fine and dandy. But why -- why
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1 take it out on the people? Why take it out on
2 the people that are -- that just have one small
3 dock behind their house.
4 What you said before, you know, what --
5 what -- why the change? Where did it come
6 from? Who brought it up? I'm not sure either.
7 I'm not sure whether the people from the
8 bank, the people that own the park, I'm not
9 sure who brought it -- or the Department of
10 Environmental Protection.
11 Now, I talked to Mr. Boscano here on the
12 telephone. And I explained --
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: Close enough.
14 MR. SCHULTE: Somehow I got ahold of him.
15 Anyway, I -- I don't want to get carried
16 away here. I -- but I -- I just think --
17 GOVERNOR BUSH: Well, we appreciate you
18 coming.
19 MR. SCHULTE: -- if you -- if you rule --
20 if you rule for putting it in a block
21 situation, I think you're making a big mistake.
22 I think the individual's docks behind these
23 places, like -- like Mr. Bush said, they're --
24 they're there for the -- for these people that
25 own the home, and that -- and that's it.
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1 They're not going to be used as -- like the
2 marina around the corner, I can understand,
3 because they have dock after dock after dock.
4 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
5 MR. SCHULTE: Thank you.
6 MR. STRUHS: One more speaker before we try
7 to answer your questions, and that is
8 Mr. Pat Rose from the Save the Manatee Club.
9 MR. ROSE: Good morning.
10 I'm Pat Rose, Governor, Directors -- I'm
11 not feeling well this morning, so I apologize.
12 But -- a little light-headed.
13 But we're here to not object to what the
14 residents are trying to do in continuing
15 their -- their traditional uses of these
16 facilities behind their -- their docks.
17 We feel that there are -- there are,
18 however, better solutions than what's being
19 proposed to you today to fix that. And I guess
20 what we would offer is that this issue, without
21 complicating it -- actually -- we would request
22 it be deferred, and let us work with the
23 Department, with the residents so that these
24 traditional uses could be contingent, and so
25 that they don't have to end up having to
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1 necessarily be charged a lot of higher costs.
2 But at the same time, because of the
3 location of this facility, and because it's not
4 owned by these individual folks, but by
5 SunTrust with a -- together with a partnership,
6 our concern is with where this could go in the
7 future, and what else may go in there that is
8 inconsistent with these traditional uses, the
9 way that these folks have been using it.
10 So we don't object to the concerns they've
11 raised to you today. In fact, we're
12 sympathetic to those concerns.
13 But would ask you that we need to find a
14 better, more comprehensive solution to this
15 that protects their traditional uses, but also
16 protects this from the standpoint of what might
17 happen in the future.
18 It is at the mouth of the Orange River and
19 the Caloosahatchee, which is a very important
20 manatee sanctuary. There are over 300 manatees
21 that depend on that every winter. And there's
22 year around use in this area of the
23 Caloosahatchee.
24 So we think a solution can be crafted that
25 can take all these things into account, both
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1 our concerns and the residents' concerns, and
2 we would ask you to -- to look at that.
3 Thank you.
4 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Governor, I
5 recognize that we're -- it looks to me that
6 maybe somebody would like to have this whole
7 area blocked off to be able to use it for who
8 knows what down the road.
9 And that is -- that's not my objective
10 here. I think that I would like to see us
11 allow a lease to the owner for the space that
12 is required for these mobile home upland
13 renters to -- to use, pretty much in the
14 traditional manner that it's been.
15 Now, is there a way, Mr. Secretary, that we
16 can continue a lease at the correct fee and
17 everything --
18 MR. STRUHS: Uh-hum.
19 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- for the amount
20 of space that is wanted to be used, which would
21 include the dock and the boat that's going to
22 be put next to it, not the space in between the
23 two docks, in a manner in which -- similar to
24 what it's been, but at the correct fees for --
25 for these people.
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1 Is that a possibility?
2 MR. STRUHS: Well, it -- it may be. And --
3 and if you would give me a little indulgence,
4 Commissioner Gallagher, there's three -- three
5 points I would offer to be helpful.
6 The first is: How did we ever get to this
7 position to begin with? Because perhaps the
8 Department had made some historical mistakes,
9 but what's suddenly brought it to our attention
10 here and now?
11 Apparently one of the residents, under the
12 old system, came in and was seeking a permit to
13 build a boat lift. And in terms of looking at
14 how you would permit the boat lift, the issues
15 of ownership came to the surface, and then
16 there was the realization on the part of the
17 Department that there was a mistake in the
18 past, that --
19 (Secretary Harris exited the room.)
20 MR. STRUHS: -- the ownership was a
21 commercial ownership, and that is what -- what
22 brought us here today.
23 The -- the second point I wanted to offer,
24 just by way of history and context, is that the
25 Department then went to SunTrust, and pointed
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1 out that there was this legal problem.
2 It was -- I'm told the representatives from
3 SunTrust who then came back to the Department
4 and asked if they could not do a simple sort of
5 block delineation. From -- from SunTrust's
6 point of view, the surveying costs of doing
7 the -- the extra lines of cutting in and out
8 between the docks was prohibitive, and it was,
9 to them, in their mind, more cost-effective to
10 simply draw a straight line and do a block.
11 Thirdly -- the third point is -- and this
12 is the curse of being in the line of work I am.
13 We always have to think about precedence, and
14 precedence for other mobile home parks and
15 other facilities around the state.
16 So as -- as accommodating as I would like
17 to be, and the Department would like to be, to
18 address your concerns and see if we can't find
19 that compromise, I would hesitate to -- to do
20 that in detail here and now for fear that we
21 might commit to things that would cause us just
22 further problems in the future.
23 So --
24 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Well --
25 MR. STRUHS: -- it may -- it may require a
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1 bit more time.
2 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: And I understand
3 that.
4 And, Governor, I'd like to postpone this
5 and give the Department a chance to look into
6 other precedents it could cause, and hopefully
7 eliminate those in a manner in which we can
8 give these residents the opportunity to use
9 this space that they now use at the cost that's
10 now charged.
11 And try and see if they can come back with
12 a solution for us, although it is hopefully --
13 it looks to me like that the -- somebody's done
14 a survey already on the individual docks. So
15 that --
16 MR. PETTENGILL: A complete survey.
17 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- that's already
18 been done.
19 MR. PETTENGILL: Yes, sir.
20 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I mean, you can go
21 either the big block, or you can go with the
22 individual docks. So hopefully there's no more
23 cost on that. But that needs to be looked
24 into.
25 MR. STRUHS: Yes, sir.
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1 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: And if we could
2 give the Department a chance -- maybe another
3 month or so, to work this out and see if they
4 can come back with some kind of a compromise --
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: I --
6 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- that takes --
7 GOVERNOR BUSH: I have --
8 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- care of them.
9 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- subject to one thing.
10 If there has been a change in policy as it
11 relates to the use of these docks by the owners
12 of the -- of the housing units and the upland,
13 perhaps you could reconsider if people are not
14 being allowed to put their boats in --
15 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I think that's --
16 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- they were having the use
17 of --
18 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I think DEP caused
19 them not to put the boats in, saying that the
20 land's not leased. Therefore --
21 GOVERNOR BUSH: I know --
22 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- you can't
23 put -- you can't put your boat --
24 GOVERNOR BUSH: I mean, we're -- if we're
25 going to spend a couple of months dealing with
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1 this, I --
2 MR. STRUHS: Absolutely.
3 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: All right. So
4 let's let the people put their boats in while
5 this is being --
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
7 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- settled.
8 MR. STRUHS: Absolutely.
9 There would be no intention -- and I'm
10 sorry if there was even the impression --
11 there'd be no intention to limit people's
12 ability to use the docks that already exist.
13 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: All right. But
14 now, you've got somebody standing right behind
15 you a little nervous about that statement.
16 So you want to get that --
17 MR. STRUHS: Well, what I --
18 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- clarified?
19 MR. STRUHS: -- what I -- what I would
20 offer is -- is Kirby Green, whom you all know,
21 could perhaps shed a bit more light.
22 To the extent the Cabinet agrees to defer
23 the issue, I'd recommend deferring it until
24 August.
25 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Right.
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1 MR. STRUHS: The next agenda that we
2 have --
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: Well --
4 MR. STRUHS: -- is a very long and
5 complicated one.
6 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: August would be
7 fine. I'd like to change it to an August date,
8 depending on what the Department wants --
9 GOVERNOR BUSH: Yes, ma'am.
10 MR. STRUHS: Kir--
11 MS. LACKEY: I would like to --
12 GOVERNOR BUSH: I'm sorry.
13 MS. LACKEY: -- address the map.
14 I reside on the Caloosahatchee River, in
15 the bowl area, lot 336. If the block plan goes
16 into effect, where my sea wall is, if I go out
17 62 feet, it will put me into the trees, because
18 there is a large bar in that bowl --
19 GOVERNOR BUSH: I see it. It's very
20 beautiful.
21 MS. LACKEY: -- shown on the map --
22 GOVERNOR BUSH: Oh.
23 MS. LACKEY: -- that's --
24 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: It's in the
25 picture here, isn't it?
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1 MS. LACKEY: -- it has trees on half of it,
2 and the rest is a sandbar.
3 In time, the river will do what the river
4 does naturally. Every time a large boat goes
5 down the waterway --
6 (Treasurer Nelson exited the room.)
7 MS. LACKEY: -- there is washing across
8 that bar, and the bar is filling in.
9 The other point that I wish to make is that
10 those of us who are in that curve, and it
11 constitutes six of the tenancies, the 62 feet
12 will cross over the tops of --
13 (Secretary Harris entered the room.)
14 MS. LACKEY: -- each other. There is no
15 way that that is a practical solution where the
16 bowl exists, because we will cross over the top
17 of each other. And if we were to put any
18 structures out there, we would bar the use of
19 the river to our neighbors.
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you.
21 MR. PETTENGILL: One of the things that you
22 asked, Governor, was about the legalities. We
23 got an opinion from the Federation of
24 Manufactured Homeowners of Florida. And they
25 go into the fact that they can pass on
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1 utilities and ad valorem taxes.
2 However, the final paragraph reads: As the
3 DEP assessment is neither an ad valorem tax,
4 nor a utility, it would be a violation of the
5 statute for the park owners to pass on these
6 charges to the homeowners unless said pass-on
7 was disclosed in your prospectus. It is not.
8 Violations of the statute should be
9 reported to the Bureau and so forth.
10 There's a second legal point in 723, which
11 governs us, and that is increase to the
12 expenses he can charge us. This would be an
13 increased expense for him he could charge us.
14 GOVERNOR BUSH: Well, I think we're --
15 unless you guys want to keep coming up, we're
16 more than -- since you drove so far, and you
17 want to keep talking, you can. But --
18 MR. PETTENGILL: Yeah.
19 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- I think you can declare
20 victory here, and you're going to have a
21 cooperative DEP, I believe, to find a solution
22 that is -- meets our policy objectives --
23 MR. PETTENGILL: Yeah.
24 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- of protecting the
25 submerged land so that there's not a precedent
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1 that could be used across the state --
2 MR. PETTENGILL: But there --
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: -- but also be respective
4 of the fact that they are now changing their
5 policy, and it should not create an undue
6 burden on you. So --
7 MR. PETTENGILL: And there is no law --
8 GOVERNOR BUSH: You can keep talking.
9 MR. PETTENGILL: -- there's no law that
10 they can do this block.
11 MR. BOGER: They agreed with us, Frank.
12 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Governor --
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: There's a motion to --
14 there's a motion to defer.
15 Is there a second?
16 COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD: Second.
17 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Now, let me add
18 one other thing, if I may, Governor.
19 I'd like --
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: Okay.
21 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- DEP to offer a
22 temporary use agreement until this issue is
23 settled.
24 GOVERNOR BUSH: Exactly.
25 MR. STRUHS: Yes.
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1 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: So I'd like to
2 make that motion.
3 MR. STRUHS: Yes. We -- we will -- well,
4 I guess you'd need to vote on that. But --
5 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Motion.
6 GOVERNOR BUSH: All in favor.
7 THE CABINET: Aye.
8 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: This one
9 gentleman has --
10 GOVERNOR BUSH: Opposed.
11 ATTORNEY GENERAL BUTTERWORTH: -- a
12 problem, Governor.
13 MR. STRUHS: We would be happy -- we would
14 be happy to provide that temporary use
15 agreement, and -- and we will --
16 MR. SCHULTE: I have -- I have one more
17 question, if I could, of DEP.
18 GOVERNOR BUSH: Well, can you do that just
19 in a --
20 MR. SCHULTE: And -- and the people I'm --
21 GOVERNOR BUSH: Oh, and the Cabinet?
22 All right. Come on.
23 MR. SCHULTE: They -- the dock that I have
24 behind -- now, if -- if you're going to allow
25 us to put the boats in, okay, does that mean
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1 that -- the dock behind my house is only a
2 fishing pier. It's not a boat dock. But there
3 is a distinction between the two.
4 Now, I can't --
5 GOVERNOR BUSH: Oh, you --
6 MR. SCHULTE: -- put a boat -- I can't put
7 a boat there until someone says, you can put a
8 boat at that dock. Will the DEP allow me to
9 put that boat in there, even though it's --
10 even though it's a fishing pier?
11 GOVERNOR BUSH: Well, did you lease the lot
12 based on the fact it was a fishing pier?
13 MR. SCHULTE: No. I didn't know it was a
14 fishing pier. I -- all I knew is there was a
15 dock behind my house. Later on, I find out
16 it's a fishing pier.
17 GOVERNOR BUSH: Well --
18 MR. SCHULTE: But there's never been -- at
19 that --
20 GOVERNOR BUSH: I'm not sure that's DEP's
21 fault.
22 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: That's a problem
23 with you and the -- and the person you rented
24 it from, not --
25 GOVERNOR BUSH: Exactly.
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1 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- DEP.
2 MR. BOGER: Yeah. That's not --
3 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: I mean, we
4 can't -- we're not going to get in the middle
5 of --
6 MR. SCHULTE: No. No.
7 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- that agreement.
8 MR. SCHULTE: All I want to do is get a
9 permit to put a boat in.
10 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Well, probably
11 that's going to have to be some of the
12 settlement that takes place between now and --
13 and August. Because what you rented is what
14 you got. And we're not in the middle of that.
15 GOVERNOR BUSH: I don't --
16 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: We're not against
17 you having a dock.
18 MR. SCHULTE: No, I understand.
19 GOVERNOR BUSH: That's a commercial
20 discussion that you need to have with the --
21 the --
22 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: This is not the
23 place to get that settled, unfortunately.
24 MR. SCHULTE: Oh, I -- I understand. I --
25 you know --
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1 GOVERNOR BUSH: That's kind of like the --
2 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Nice try though.
3 It was a good try.
4 We recognize a good try.
5 MR. STRUHS: Thank you very --
6 MR. BOGER: One thing, Governor.
7 Would you notify the -- them to let us know
8 when the next meeting's going to be --
9 GOVERNOR BUSH: Absolutely.
10 MR. BOGER: -- so we --
11 MR. STRUHS: Yes.
12 MR. BOGER: -- understand what's --
13 GOVERNOR BUSH: We look forward to having
14 you back.
15 MR. BOGER: -- bring us up on what's
16 happening. They don't give us any information
17 at all.
18 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: All right. Well,
19 we're -- we got lots of -- it's all public
20 records, and we'll make sure that you're
21 notified.
22 MR. STRUHS: Okay.
23 MS. LACKEY: Thank you.
24 MR. GORDON: Thank you.
25 (Treasurer Nelson entered the room.)
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1 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you very much.
2 MR. STRUHS: The three --
3 MR. GORDON: Just one thing, if I might,
4 Governor.
5 Just a moment ago about the manatee
6 situation.
7 GOVERNOR BUSH: Yes, sir.
8 MR. GORDON: Out front of Orange Harbor is
9 a large -- almost 40 foot sculpture that was
10 designed by an American Indian in the area,
11 paid for by him, and erected.
12 Unfortunately it started to go to -- to
13 waste because nobody could afford to keep it
14 up.
15 The people of Orange Harbor banding
16 together refurbished that complete sculpture,
17 donated money, $5, $2, $10, $20, to the extent
18 that it was completely refurbished, relighted,
19 which goes on every night automatically, so
20 that the people in the area know that this is a
21 manatee area.
22 GOVERNOR BUSH: Excellent.
23 MR. GORDON: Each dock there has the
24 manatee sign. Slow. Caution. Manatee area.
25 MR. STRUHS: Uh-hum.
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1 MR. GORDON: There's enough donations from
2 these people here, who are all retired, that
3 there is a fund in the bank to maintain this
4 sculpture for many years to come.
5 I just wanted you to know the kind of
6 people we're dealing with.
7 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Great.
8 GOVERNOR BUSH: Well done.
9 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Thank you.
10 MR. STRUHS: Three -- three take-home
11 points: We will issue a temporary use
12 agreement so that there's no fear of anybody
13 being in violation; we are not pursuing any
14 penalties; and we will make sure everybody's
15 notified as to when this next gets on the
16 agenda, and we'll come back with a plan that
17 we'll work on with your Cabinet Aides.
18 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Not only next on
19 the agenda, but notify them of any meetings
20 that take place in regards to --
21 MR. STRUHS: Yes, sir.
22 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: -- a settlement of
23 this.
24 MR. STRUHS: Yes, sir.
25 COMMISSIONER GALLAGHER: Okay.
ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
TRUSTEES/INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT TRUST FUND 100
June 8, 1999
1 MS. LACKEY: Thank you.
2 MR. STRUHS: Thank you.
3 GOVERNOR BUSH: Thank you very much.
4 MR. STRUHS: Thank you.
5 (The Trustees of the Internal Improvement
6 Trust Fund Agenda was concluded.)
7 *
8 (The Cabinet meeting was concluded at
9 11:05 a.m.)
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
101
June 8, 1999
1 CERTIFICATE OF REPORTER
2
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5 STATE OF FLORIDA:
6 COUNTY OF LEON:
7 I, LAURIE L. GILBERT, do hereby certify that
8 the foregoing proceedings were taken before me at the
9 time and place therein designated; that my shorthand
10 notes were thereafter translated; and the foregoing
11 pages numbered one through 100 are a true and correct
12 record of the aforesaid proceedings.
13 I FURTHER CERTIFY that I am not a relative,
14 employee, attorney or counsel of any of the parties,
15 nor relative or employee of such attorney or counsel,
16 or financially interested in the foregoing action.
17 DATED THIS 14TH day of JUNE, 1999.
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20 LAURIE L. GILBERT, RPR, CCR, CRR, RMR
100 Salem Court
21 Tallahassee, Florida 32301
850/878-2221
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ACCURATE STENOTYPE REPORTERS, INC.
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Cabinet
Affairs
