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Florida House

Buy local? Not state House political candidates

November 2, 2014 By Michael Hinman

They have both championed jobs and money to flow into their district in Pasco County, but are two politicians seeking a place in Tallahassee practicing what they’re preaching?

Nearly $200,000 was raised from both sides in the campaign to replace Will Weatherford in the Florida House. But in the end, the district both Danny Burgess and Beverly Ledbetter hoped to represent saw very little of that money come back to them.

Since the primary, both Burgess and Ledbetter — the Republican and Democrat, respectively — pulled in $93,200 in cash donations for state House District 38. Yet, just $18,260 of that — less than 20 percent — was returned for purchases by the campaigns within Pasco County.

Of the two, Ledbetter had the worst record since the primary of buying local, spending less than $1,800 of the more than $28,000 in checks her campaign has issued. She has paid nearly $15,600 to Sonic Print in Tampa in the last reporting cycle alone for what were described as mailers. Another $440 went to a company called Parkway Strategies in Tallahassee for what the campaign said was “strategic communications.”

In total, Ledbetter spent $14,000 in the final weeks of her campaign, but only $100 — to volunteers for using gas in their cars — was paid out locally.

Burgess wasn’t much better. In the last two weeks of his campaign, the former Zephyrhills mayor spent nearly $61,500. But only $4,000 of that — less than 7 percent — ended up in local hands. Instead, nearly $47,000 was paid to a Jensen Beach company called David Millner Group for advertising, with another $10,000 going to a company called Strategic Image Management, which uses the same address as David Millner.

In fact, Burgess spent just under $81,500 with the Jensen Beach company, or 63 percent of his total expenditures. That’s enough to create four full-time jobs at $10 an hour, but spent in Martin County just north of the Fort Lauderdale area, and not locally.

Ledbetter spent $22,209 with Sonic Print in Tampa, or 69 percent of her total expenditures. That would’ve created one full-time job at $10 an hour, money provided for Tampa’s Carrollwood area.

Overall, since last November, Burgess has spent 27 percent of his money locally, while Ledbetter managed just a little more than 9 percent. Burgess turned away from local spending after the primary season, however, allowing his local expenditures to drop to 14 percent, while Ledbetter was at 6 percent.

“Our campaign bought local services when available, such as some printing supplies and materials,” Ledbetter told The Laker/Lutz News in an email. “I used a local Dade City printer for some work, and a local company for the T-shirts. Unfortunately, East Pasco — including Wesley Chapel — does not have any commercial mailing operation that I was aware of, and that comprises the bulk of my out-of-district purchases.”

As a grassroots campaign staffed by volunteers, Ledbetter said she hired very few professional services.

“Your report points out a need for the development of these types of companies in eastern Pasco,” Ledbetter added.

Burgess did not respond to a weekend request for comment.

Both candidates also relied heavily on political action committees to fund their campaigns since the end of August, with Ledbetter being more dependent on that money than Burgess.

Burgess has collected $26,700 in PAC money since the primaries, $16,400 for Ledbetter. However, that represented just 37 percent of his contributions during that time period, while for Ledbetter, PAC money made up 81 percent of her donations.

But even then, local money was missing. Of the more than $73,000 Burgess raised since the primary, only 17 percent came from local sources. Ledbetter picked up $20,111 in contributions during the same time, with 29 percent local.

Overall, Burgess raised $160,000 in this campaign over the past year, compared to $38,500 from Ledbetter. Of his total, Burgess saw 28 percent of that money being local, and 33 percent of it from PACs. Ledbetter had 44 percent of her money from local sources, while 47 percent of it was from PACs.

Voters will choose between the two for the state House race Nov. 4.

BIGGEST EXPENDITURES

DANNY BURGESS
David Millner Group/Strategic Image Management, Jensen Beach — $81,418
Capitol Consulting, Odessa — $8,750
OAI, Tampa — $2,204

BEVERLY LEDBETTER
Sonic Print, Tampa — $22,209
Image Media, Tarpon Springs — $4,735
Tampa Type/Print, Dade City — $1,145

Lopez-Cantera pulls no punches against Crist

October 2, 2014 By Michael Hinman

Carlos Lopez-Cantera is Florida’s second-in-command behind Gov. Rick Scott, but there are still pockets of the state he has only heard about.

Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera gives a campaign stump speech to members of the Conservative Club of East Pasco during an appearance Sept. 22. (Michael Hinman/Staff Photo)
Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera gives a campaign stump speech to members of the Conservative Club of East Pasco during an appearance Sept. 22.
(Michael Hinman/Staff Photo)

That included Zephyrhills, until he finally found his way to the City of Pure Water last week in a campaign stop in front of the Conservative Club of East Pasco. And while he might talk about how the governor has kept is word to the point that “even Democrats can’t deny it,” Lopez-Cantera had almost nothing good to say about who Scott succeeded and is facing again in the November election: Charlie Crist.

“When Gov. Scott took over, we had lost 830,000 jobs, and had an 11.1 percent unemployment rate,” all from the Crist administration, Lopez-Cantera said. “Since then, we have added 640,000 jobs, and the unemployment rate is 6.3 percent.”

Yet while some might point out the entire nation was in an economic crisis during a good part of Crist’s tenure as governor between 2007 and 2011, Lopez-Cantera accused the former governor of continuously abandoning his post when he was needed the most.

“He didn’t even want to be governor when he was governor,” Lopez-Cantera said of Crist. “The first two years, he was chasing the vice presidency and not focusing on the state. The second two years, he was running for a United States Senate seat. And he is the first governor in the history of Florida to not run for re-election. That is how much he cared about being governor.”

Lopez-Cantera was a member of the Florida House representing the Miami area during Crist’s time in the governor’s office, and said he withdrew support of the governor almost from the beginning, despite the two being members of the same political party at the time.

“I have known Charlie for almost 20 years, and I really got to know him when I was a new member of the Florida House,” Lopez-Cantera said. “That’s when I lost faith in him.”

The lieutenant governor said problems started for him when then House Speaker Marco Rubio wanted to pass a much more aggressive property tax bill that would provide larger exemptions on the first $200,000 of a home’s value, and then 15 percent beyond that. Crist, however, “wanted a simple property tax bill, and that is unfortunately what the citizens of Florida got.”

Lopez-Cantera and Rubio, however, would vote for Crist’s version of the bill in a special session, using a property tax exemption method still used today.

All of Scott’s decisions “have not been popular,” either, Lopez-Cantera said. “But they have been the right decisions for the state’s economy.”

If Scott is re-elected, Lopez-Cantera said residents can expect another $1 million in tax cuts, and another $120 million assessed through cellphone usage.

Lopez-Cantera assumed the lieutenant governor’s office in February following the resignation of Jennifer Carroll, Crist’s original running mate in 2010. She resigned last year after she was questioned about her alleged involvement in pushing money toward Internet cafes, which some say are fronts for illegal gambling in the state.

“I talk to the governor all the time about the turnaround here in the state,” Lopez-Cantera said. “I’ve only been here for eight months, but I get to take credit for all his hard work. This is the hardest-working governor that I have ever seen, and I served with three governors.”

Campaign speeches tend to just lightly touch on a number of different issues voters may care about, and Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera had a lot to say in Gov. Rick Scott’s re-election campaign against former governor Charlie Crist. But what’s the full story behind some of Lopez-Cantera’s statements? Go online right now, and reach our fact-check at tinyurl.com/LtGovCheck.

Published October 1, 2014

See this story in print: Click Here

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08/08/2022 – Afterschool snacks

The Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative will host Chef Yamira Lee Johnson on Aug. 8 at 6:30 p.m., for a demonstration on easy, healthy recipes kids and parents can make for an afterschool bite. This is an online program for all ages. Register through the calendar feature at HCPLC.org. … [Read More...] about 08/08/2022 – Afterschool snacks

08/09/2022 – Butterfly gardening

The New River Library, 34043 State Road 54 in Wesley Chapel, will host a master gardener presentation on butterfly gardening on Aug. 9 at 2 p.m. Registration is online at PascoLibraries.org. … [Read More...] about 08/09/2022 – Butterfly gardening

08/09/2022 – Coffee with a deputy

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office will host “Coffee with PSO” on Aug. 9 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., at Wawa, 25155 Maren Way in Lutz. Deputies will be on hand to answer questions and to get to know the community. … [Read More...] about 08/09/2022 – Coffee with a deputy

08/09/2022 – Native Plant Society

The Nature Coast Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society will meet on Aug. 9 at 7 p.m., at Land O’ Lakes Heritage Park, 5401 Land O’ Lakes Blvd. There will be showing of the 2018 American documentary, “The Serengeti Rules,” directed by Nicolas Brown and based on the book by Sean B. Carroll. The film explores the discoveries of five pioneering scientists: Bob Paine, Jim Estes, Anthony Sinclair, John Terborgh and Mary E. Power. Popcorn will be provided. For information, call 813-469-9597. … [Read More...] about 08/09/2022 – Native Plant Society

08/09/2022 – Transportation stories

The New River Library, 34043 State Road 54 in Wesley Chapel, will present story times on the topic of transportation on Aug. 9 and Aug. 10. Toddlers can attend at 10:15 a.m., and preschoolers at 11:15 a.m. The 45-minutes sessions will include songs, stories and movement. Register online at PascoLibraries.org. … [Read More...] about 08/09/2022 – Transportation stories

08/11/2022 – Food distribution

Farm Share, the Pasco Sheriff’s Office, Pasco Sheriff Charities, The Gentlemen’s Course, and the Pasco County NAACP will host a free food distribution on Aug. 11 starting at 9 a.m., at the Big Lots parking lot, 4840 Allen Road in Zephyrhills. Food will be handed out rain or shine, on a first-come, first-served drive-through basis, until the items run out. … [Read More...] about 08/11/2022 – Food distribution

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