The Fine Print

The money, gifts and trips edition

IIt's a special summertime money, gifts and trips edition of inside the Tallahassee bubble....

BOUND FOR FRANCE...As it happens every year when the humidity bears down oppressively on the Florida capital, many people in the state's political hierarchy are nowhere near North Florida.

Legislators of course have long gone back home. But the state Supreme Court is also on summer break, the Florida Cabinet is on hiatus until mid-August and Gov. Rick Scott's time in Tallahassee is likewise kept at a minimum (of course unless a serious storm threatens the state.)

One staple for legislators in the past has been visits to various conferences, including ones held by the National Conference of State Legislators or the American Legislative Exchange Council.

Many years these conferences are held in cooler and more pleasant environments than Florida. This year, NCSL is holding its annual legislative summit in Boston on Aug. 6 through Aug 9, while ALEC held its annual meeting last month in Denver.

Attendance to these events was usually higher back when legislative leaders routinely approved travel expenses for members. The tradition used to be that members would have one trip a year paid out of the House and Senate budgets.

That's not how it works anymore.

House Speaker Richard Corcoran allows members to pay for the trips out of their own district accounts, as opposed to having his office cover the expenses. (State law allows legislators to transfer unused campaign money into these accounts.)

"The speaker no longer approves travel for members but he is holding the members accountable if they are questioned on their expenses,'' said Fred Piccolo, a spokesman for Corcoran. "In other words, they have to be prepared to defend their travel."

Over in the Senate, however, there are a handful of members who have been approved for trips this year, said Katie Betta, a spokeswoman for Senate President Joe Negron.

When asked about it recently, Betta said that Sens. Audrey Gibson and Oscar Braynon had been approved to attend the NCSL summit in Boston. Betta also said that John Phelps, the Senate Committee on Rules staff director and former long-time House clerk, had also been permitted to go because of his "international reputation as a legislative historian."

Betta also said that Sen. Anitere Flores (pictured above) had been chosen to represent the Florida Senate in the NCSL Executive Leadership Development program being held in Normandy, France from Sept. 25 to Oct. 1.

BONDI'S TRAVELS...Speaking of trips, disclosure forms show that Attorney General Pam Bondi continues to take trips to Washington D.C. and elsewhere that are paid by various groups she's involved with.

Bondi had nearly $28,000 worth of travel provided to her in 2016, which included a "weeklong diplomacy mission to Israel" in late May-early June 2016 that cost $5,000 and was paid by the America-Israel Friendship League.

Bondi said shortly after the trip she traveled with seven other attorneys general and that "it allowed the members of the delegation to meet face-to-face with cybersecurity experts, national legal leaders and top government officials to share strategies to bolster public safety and security."

Bondi, who was once was the chairman and now sits on the executive committee of the Republican Attorneys General Association,  had several trips paid by the RAGA and the Rule of Law Defense Fund, which bills itself as "the public policy organization for issues relevant to the nation’s Republican attorneys general and promotes the rule of law, federalism, and freedom in a civil society."

The association, for example, picked up the cost of Bondi's travel to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland where she gave a speech that included her saying about Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton "Lock her up, I love that."

Bondi also reported that it was RAGA that picked up costs related to her attending the inauguration of President Donald Trump in January.

The group _ which was called a "money machine" by The New York Times _ has seen its activities come under scrutiny, because its meetings are held at resorts where large donors have access to attorneys general who can play a role in deciding whether to investigate corporations or get involved in policy fights.

The latest meeting for RAGA was held in Lake Tahoe late last month and Bondi was in attendance. She has not yet turned in her gift forms for that time period.

AN OLD TUXEDO, WINE AND CIGARS...While legislators and other top state officials are not allowed to take gifts directly from lobbyists or the principals who hire lobbyists, state officials can accept gifts from others that are worth more than $100 if they report them.

A look through some forms shows that only Bondi and Corcoran are the only top officials to regularly file them.

Scott, former Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, and Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam have maintained that they have received zero gifts worth $100 or more in recent years.

One top public official, however, who has disclosed gifts on a routine basis is Corcoran.

A review of his forms for this year shows that Corcoran accepted a "old tuxedo" from fellow representative and House budget chairman Carlos Trujillo at the time of the presidential inauguration. Sen. Keith Perry gave Corcoran a box of cigars worth $100 in late January.

But Negron - whose relationship with Corcoran seemed strained at times during the legislative session and subsequent special session - gave Corcoran a "humidor, crystal, wine, lighter and cutter" worth approximately $1,000 during the first week of the 2017 session.

Fellow House Rep. Ralph Massullo gave Corcoran $400 worth of wine in early May, while Rep. Travis Cummings gave the Republican speaker about $100 worth of wine two weeks later.

A request for gift forms in fact shows Corcoran has been filing them as far back as 2011 - when he got $200 of cigars from then (and now lobbyist) Rep. Chris Dorworth. Future House Speaker Rep. Jose Oliva _ and who along with his family created a successful cigar business _  has also given him cigars on several occasions.

Then-Sen. Frank Artiles (who resigned this spring after using racial slurs during a tirade at a Tallahassee bar) gave Corcoran a "gun and display" worth $1,000 last November. Corcoran has gotten grilling tools, artwork and even DVD copies of speeches made by famed economist Milton Friedman.

But maybe the most interesting gift Corcoran reported? A sword he got in Sept. 2015 from Mat Bahl, an attorney and former chief of staff for House Speaker Dean Cannon who became Corcoran's chief of staff last year.

BIG PRICE-TAG FOR SENATE GOP FUNDRAISER...Remember the fundraiser for the Florida Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee held at the famed Torrey Pines golf course in June? It got some publicity because there was concern that this year's budget-related special session would collide with it.

Well it appears the fundraiser - which attracted the attendance of many well-known Senate Republicans - wasn't cheap, according to campaign finance reports. The GOP committee _ which gets its money from groups seeking to pass or defeat legislation in the Legislature _ spent more than $77,000 on lodging, meals and golf fees for the two-day event.

There's no requirement that an organization breakout how much money is received at a single fundraiser. The committee reported that it raised $720,000 during the quarter that ended on June 30.

 

Dispatches from the Capitol: House GOP to hold private reception at restaurant aided by subsidies

With news coming out in a constant torrent, instead of holding it back like it's been done in the past - this is the start of something new - dispatches from the state Capitol. (Don't worry the 800-word pieces will be returning soon as well.)

First up...

Florida House Republicans _ already caught up in an escalating feud with Gov. Rick Scott over the future of business subsidies (incentives, corporate welfare, taxpayer money take your pick) _ are holding a behind-closed doors reception Wednesday night at the upscale Edison Restaurant located a stone's throw from the state Capitol.

This marks the first time that the House Republican caucus has gathered by itself since last fall's election, according to House Majority Leader Ray Rodrigues.

Rodrigues maintains that the entire event is strictly social in nature and there won't be any discussion of policy. He noted that the GOP caucus in the House has a lot of freshmen in its class.

"The majority caucus wants to make sure our members have an opportunity to interact with each other,'' Rodrigues said.

Rodrigues said that the entire event at the Edison is being paid out of a House Majority account maintained by the Republican Party of Florida. An invitation to the event that was sent out on the House Majority office email account that "heavy hors d'oeuvrs and beverages will be served."

When asked about why House Republicans chose the Edison, Rodrigues said that it was because their first choice - the Hotel Duval - was not available. He said they wanted to have the reception at a place that both a private room and an outside patio area.

The Edison of course has had a complicated history here in Tallahassee with some activists upset that the restaurant was constructed in Cascades Park with the help of more than $2 million from the city and a local community redevelopment agency.

Rodrigues said he was totally unaware of the controversy.

"I don't follow Tallahassee politics, that's news to me,'' Rodrigues said.

House Republicans led by Speaker Richard Corcoran are charging ahead with a plan to eliminate Visit Florida, the state's tourism marketing arm, and Enterprise Florida, the agency charged with helping lure companies to the state. Gov. Scott has shown his extreme displeasure with the idea and in the last week has chastised his fellow Republicans, even going so far as to visit the hometowns of some Republican members and call them out by name. He has accused House members of voting to kill jobs. Corcoran and other Republicans so far are bucking the governor and have maintained that both agencies are poorly run and that government should not be picking "winners and losers" by helping out some businesses.

also worth pointing out: The event is being paid by the RPOF - which itself is led by Rep. Blaise Ingoglia - which means the money is coming from donors. Donors generally include lobbyists and special interests. Corcoran has also railed about the influence of lobbyists and special interests and has come up with tough ethics restrictions when it comes to interactions between lobbyists and legislators.

UPDATE: While Rodrigues said the meeting would be entirely social, the Tampa Bay Times reported late Wednesday that during the gathering Corcoran showed a five-minute video to the Republicans that criticized Enterprise Florida. A spokesman for Corcoran maintained that this was allowed and did not run afoul of the state's open-meeting laws. Corcoran has vowed that as speaker he would hold to higher standards and make it more transparent and accessible.

Did Jeb Bush just save Florida's maligned lobbyist gift ban?

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush returned to the state capital on Monday to outline his plans to overhaul the culture of Washington D.C.

And in doing so - he may have  _ to the consternation of some of those in the audience helped preserve the state's lobbyist gift ban.

The ban was enacted in late 2005 - one of the strictest regulations in the country at the time - and came after legislative wrangling that was an outgrowth of changes sought by then-Senate President Tom Lee.

For a national audience it may have sounded Monday as if Bush was the instigator of the ban.

"I know how that culture works,'' Bush said. "I saw it here in Tallahassee. Over time, lobbyists and legislators grew a little too comfortable in each other’s company, cutting deals that didn’t have much to do with the public interest. So along with the other changes we made, the Florida Legislature passed a law that I signed into law that created the strictest lobbying reforms in the country."

There's nothing inaccurate in that statement. But it does kind of brush aside a bit of the back story that existed in the development of the ban since it was legislators, not the governor, who was the main driver of the change.

Lee's goal was never to ban anything. He advocated two things: Disclosure of the freebies that lobbyists gave to legislators - and disclosure of how much money lobbyists were paid.

Lee told reporters at the time that they would be surprised how much money was in the system, and how that disclosure would shed a light on why the Legislature did some of the things that it did.

The Brandon Republican made his push for changes at the same time that a series of articles _ many of them in The Miami Herald _ that showed how the state's existing disclosure and gift laws had been flouted.

One example: Legislators couldn't accept anything more than $100 - and items lower than that but higher than $25 were supposed to be reported. Lobbyists would routinely agree to split the costs among themselves and spread it to multiple legislators to sidestep this requirement.

Other stories disclosed how one legislator solicited contributions from lobbyists for a trip to Africa, while another described a lavish engagement party held for one legislator and paid for lobbyists.

Lee's push initially went nowhere - but the issue gained momentum after the Herald published a story in late 2005 that pointed out four legislators flew to Canada on a private jet and visited a casino. They argued that they were raising money for the Republican Party of Florida so it was legal. But the cost of the trip was much more higher than the money raised. Plus it came at a time when legislators were considering how to implement a constitutional amendment dealing with gambling in South Florida.

During a special session late that year Lee pushed to add the gift ban to the mix since it was not included in the initial call issued by Bush. (The special session was called to implement an overhaul of Medicaid and to implement the amendment that allowed slot machines in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.)

The initial Senate bill did not ban everything. Instead it required detailed reporting of who provided meals and beverages to legislators on an individual basis. But it was the House _ led then by Speaker Allan Bense _ that moved a bill that called for a complete ban.

The telling of the tale since then has posited that Bense and the House did not like the disclosure requirements pushed by Lee so they countered with such a Draconian measure that the Senate would reject it. Only that didn't happen. Lee and the Senate amended their bill to match the House measure and sent it over. Just 9 legislators voted no. Bush eagerly signed the measure into law.

"I applaud President Lee and Speaker Bense for their leadership in reforming the political status quo,'' Bush said at the time. "This measure increases transparency and accountability for the political process."

Since then the ban has survived a legal challenge, but the criticism against it has been steadily mounting, including those who note that there are legal ways for legislators to sidestep it. One key way: Solicit money from lobbyists for political committees and then use that money to pay for meals and other items.

Some lobbyists have complained that the gift ban has somehow distorted the process because they can't share a meal, or drink with legislators and that the ones with access are those who raise large amounts of money for campaigns and political committees.

Tallahassee-area legislators have maintained _ with little empirical data _ that the gift ban hurt the local economy.

Last year marked the first time since 2005 that an attempt to alter the gift ban statute made it through the process. The bill made a relatively minor tweak by making it clear that a local government that gives a legislator use of public property for a public purpose does not violate the gift ban if the local government has hired lobbyists.

But the passage of the bill included several asides from legislators that more substantial changes should be made to the law in the near future.

Bush may have blunted that momentum for now by citing the ban as a justification for a series of reforms he wants to push if elected president.

"I think the system is significantly better after that law was passed,'' Bush told a crowd gathered at Florida State University.

Now for certain it was an interesting crowd for Bush to make the remark since many of those in attendance are themselves lobbyists.

Some of the news accounts noted the connection that Bush himself has to lobbyists, including that his top adviser, Sally Bradshaw, is married to Paul Bradshaw, who founded one of Tallahassee's most successful lobbying firms Southern Strategy Group.

But by placing the gift ban into the orbit of his legacy Bush has created a rationale for top Republicans in the Legislature to support keeping it in largely intact for now. Many top GOP leaders are backing Bush for president.

It still may have been unlikely that the gift ban would have been revamped during the 2016 election year but Bush's decision to champion it may make that an even more remote possibility.

What you need to know about Florida's seven-year-old gift ban

UPDATED:

Sen. Tom Lee - who has already acknowledged that his effort is likely a long shot this year - moved his  rework of the state's seven-year-old "zero tolerance" gift ban through its first committee stop on Monday.

Lee is pushing through the changes to take away some of the constant criticisms that he's heard over the years since the gift ban was first passed.

These include provisions that lawmakers "can't even take a cup of coffee" or "a bottle of water" during a meeting with a lobbyist. His proposed changes would also attempt to make it easier for a lawmaker to show up at a luncheon sponsored by a hometown group.

The kicker in Lee's bill is that it would revert everything back to current law on June 30, 2015. Lee said he put these provisions in to make sure that just in case the changes he proposed turn into big loopholes the law will automatically revert back to the way it once was.

Lee's effort is a long shot because there is no House companion bill - and he's trying to get it through his first committee during the mid-way point of the session.

But it's important to recall a bit of history here to understand why - and how - Florida got to where it is now.

The state first cracked down on lobbyist gifts to lawmakers after an investigation by State Attorney Willie Meggs in the early '90s. This came in the wake of reports that lobbyists paid for trips to various exotic locations. From a Sun-Sentinel story:

``It has gone on year after year,`` said prosecutor Anthony Guarisco of legislators vacationing luxuriously at lobbyists` expense.

The seven-page report from the grand jury reads like a deluxe travelogue as it outlines where lobbyists took legislators. The destinations included Riverview Plantation, Camilla, Ga.; Monterey,  Mexico; Anchorage, Alaska; Colorado; Paris; Zurich, Switzerland; and Monte Carlo, Monaco. Also on the list were several out-of-state college sports games.

Meggs wound up charging legislators for failing to report gifts worth more than $25.

State lawmakers in response to the ongoing coverage of the trips changed the law to ban all gifts worth $100 or more.

But by 2005 it was clear that a system had arisen that allowed lawmakers to still receive benefits from lobbyists. It was done in a way to sidestep disclosure requirements that mandated that lobbyists report expenditures over $25.

From a Feb. 28, 2005 Miami Herald story:

The meeting of Miami-Dade lawmakers over dinner was held at an oak-shaded French restaurant near the Capitol.

On the agenda: fighting a controversial change in school funding that could hurt urban districts.

The tab for that night at Chez Pierre: $481.89 - about $70 for each of the seven legislators in attendance. The bill was paid by Bill Rubin, a powerful lobbyist who represents, among other clients, the Broward County School Board.

Almost a year after the dinner, Rubin has yet to file the gift-disclosure form required by Florida law. Had a Miami Herald reporter not accidentally walked in on the event, the public would never have known about it.

Rubin, who did not return calls for comment, isn't alone in how he deals with Florida's disclosure requirements for lobbyists. A Herald review of three years' worth of gift-disclosure forms shows that only a few lobbyists regularly report when they hand out gifts or pay for meals worth more than $25 - the threshold for reporting for legislators or their aides.

That same story detailed that lobbyists such as Ron Book side-stepped the disclosure requirement by inviting large groups of people to receptions he paid for which brought down the per-person costs. Other lobbyists would divide the amount spent on a legislator by dividing it by the number of clients they represent.

That same year saw a series of stories in the Miami Herald about the relationship between lobbyists and legislators including:

Rows of sushi and Chinese food greeted the political power-hitters at Sen. Alex Diaz de la Portilla's upscale home in Tallahassee as a guitarist strummed away and the wine and liquor from the open bar poured freely.The March 9 party was in honor of Sen. Victor Crist and his new fiancee. The main bankroller for the $5,000 tab: prominent South Florida lobbyist Bob Levy, whose lengthy roster of clients includes the Professional Wrecker Operators of Florida.
  

....Because as many as 150 people were present at the party, the event would not violate Florida's ban on gifts of more than $100 to public officials. But the party is another example of the often-hidden world in the state capital where legislators have a cozy relationship with lobbyists who represent special interests.

Or this one:

A prominent Miami lobbyist, whose list of clients includes tow-truck operators, nurses, hospitals and the New World School of the Arts, is sponsoring an engagement party Tuesday for freshman Republican Rep. Anitere Flores.

All 25 members of the Miami-Dade County legislative delegation have been invited for cocktails and dinner at the New Chinatown Restaurant in South Miami to celebrate the upcoming wedding of the 29-year-old Flores, a lawyer who works at Florida International University

And this one:

A month ago The Miami Herald reported that (Sen. Mandy) Dawson had sent out a letter to lobbyists asking them to help pay the $2,500 she needed to take an economic development trip to South Africa. In her letter on official Senate stationery, Dawson asked lobbyists to send the money to the state's Legislative Black Caucus.

Two of the people she wrote to, including powerful South Florida lobbyist Ron Book, gave money to the caucus, as did a South Florida ophthalmologist and well-known fund-raiser.

And in the incident that helped propel the decision to push the ban during a 2005 special session:

The owner of Gulfstream Park and other racetracks across the country paid nearly $50,000 to fly four powerful state lawmakers to the company's headquarters in Toronto this summer, but reported the costs as a contribution to the Republican Party of Florida.

The two-day trip in July came in the midst of an ongoing effort by track owners in Broward County to persuade state legislators to spell out when slot machines can be installed there. Broward voters approved allowing four parimutuels in the county to have slot machines, but state legislators ended the 2005 spring session without passing a bill to let the tracks add the machines.

The payment came to light this week when the state Republican Party filed its quarterly contributions report....There is nothing illegal or improper about such large contributions, as long as they are controlled by the party. But they cannot be made to individual legislators: State law prohibits giving lawmakers gifts valued at more than $100.

While one of the lawmakers on the trip, former Senate President Jim King, insisted it was simply an opportunity to raise money for the state GOP, current Senate President Tom Lee said no one in the party ever authorized the fundraiser.

It's also important to note that Lee and the Senate initially did not propose a complete ban on all expenditures by lobbyists. The original bill, SB 6B, instead proposed that lobbying expenditures be restricted to food and beverage and novelty items and that detailed reports be filed detailing which legislator or legislative employee received the gift. That same legislation also would have barred convicted felons from serving as lobbyists unless they had their civil rights restored.

Tallahassee lore - which several legislators have since confirmed - has that the House did not like the reporting mechanism included in the bill and instead proposed a zero ban.

The thinking was that the Senate would not accept such a strict requirement and the status quo would remain. Instead the Senate did adopt the "zero tolerance" language and the bill was passed and sent to the governor. This final measure changed the language regarding felons to apply it only to someone convicted after Jan. 1, 2006.

Interestingly enough, that bill actually also wiped out a requirement that lobbyists twice-a-year file overall lobbying expenditure reports.

These reports not only included entertainment expenses, but also included any money spent on media advertising, research, publication etc. In its place lobbyists - excluding those working directly for local governments or associations - began reporting how much they got paid by their clients. (A legal challenge to this portion of the bill did not succeed.) But what this meant is that lobbying firms were no longer required to report how much was spent say on TV ads trying to convince lawmakers to pass or defeat a bill.

Since the bill was passed there have been plenty of articles that have pointed out the ways to get around this ban, including lawmakers using political committees known as committees of continuous existence, or relying on perks given in connection to fundraisers.

There also unsubstantiated anecdotes that a new barter system has been established where a legislator will attend an event at the home of a lobbyist and show up with a bottle of wine or some other item to cover their costs.

Obviously to use an oft-heard phrase - trying to put limits on the relationship between lobbyists and legislator is a "work in progress."