Ralph Lair

Pasco gains state funding for wide assortment of projects

July 6, 2021 By B.C. Manion

Initially, things were looking pretty bleak on the state fiscal front — before the last session of the Florida Legislature.

Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey recalled some previous remarks from the county’s state lobbyist, Shawn Foster, of Sunrise Consulting.

“Before session started, you were like: ‘This is going to be a really bad session. We’re going to be billions of dollars in the hole,’” Starkey said, during the Pasco County Commission’s June 22 meeting.

Foster said that was before the dollars that came in from the America Rescue Act.

Nearly 10% of the state’s $101.5 billion came from the federal government, Foster said.

“If it had not been for that $10 billion that we got from the federal government, there would be no good here. There would be no good,” Foster said.

Without the federal money, he added: “There would be none of these projects on here, none of these other big grants.”

Instead, “the state took $7 billion of the American Rescue Act and implemented it into this year and held off another $3 billion for the next budget,” Foster said.

Instead of being decimated, the statewide budget includes:

$1 billion for community substance abuse and mental health
$3.2 million for homeless program challenge grants
$500 million for the Resilient Florida Trust Fund and programs
$626 million for septic to sewer and stormwater improvements
$146.7 million for the State Housing Initiative Partnership program
$74 million for the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund, including $24 million from last year
$1.5 billion in the Emergency Rental Assistance Program

The county can apply directly for funding through the Septic to Sewer/Stormwater Improvement program, Foster said.

“That was our Sen. (Wilton) Simpson’s priority and has been for years. I think it started with an idea a few years ago; it was $50 million. So, to see it up to $626 (million) is amazing.”

The lobbyist also noted that the Emergency Rental Assistance Program is one in which constituents can make direct applications, through OurFlorida.com.

Three Pasco County projects also went through to the governor.

Those were:

$6.5 million for the Handcart Road water and wastewater improvements
$200,000 for the Ackerman Street drainage improvements
$3,818,208 for the Lindrick sewer and water quality

“The county as a whole, really did well,” said Ralph Lair, the county’s intergovernmental affairs officer.

Other county projects receiving funding were:

$3 million to extend the runway at Zephyrhills Municipal Airport
$4,665,000 for the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis & Wellness Center in Zephyrhills
$25 million for a Florida National Guard Armory in Zephyrhills
$1.25 million for a CARES One-Stop Senior Center in Dade City
$450,000 for AmSkills Workforce Training
$25 million for a Pasco-Hernando State College student success and community engagement center in Dade City
$34,738 for a Pasco Association of Challenged Kids Summer Camp
$5 million for Metropolitan Ministries to expand its campus in Pasco County
$700,000 for Bridging Freedom Program in Pasco County

While Commissioner Mike Moore expressed gratitude for this year’s appropriations, he said the county needs to focus on securing funding to address flooding issues in areas such as Quail Hollow and around Eiland Boulevard.

“That needs to be a big focus, going forward,” Moore said. “Those are very important. Those affect our citizens on a day-to-day basis,” he said.

Commissioner Kathryn Starkey said she’d like to follow the Pinellas County Commission’s example of meeting with their county legislative delegation and with their federal legislative delegation.

She wants Pasco to be more proactive in seeking state and federal funding to help address county needs.

Foster expressed optimism about the state’s revenue prospects for next year.

Committee meetings will begin in the fall, and the next session of the legislature is set to start Jan. 11 and end on March 11.

Published July 07, 2021

Pasco commissioners reject process used to select lobbyist

November 24, 2020 By B.C. Manion

The Pasco County Commission has rejected the process used by county staff to recommend an outside lobbyist.

Instead, commissioners want to hear a 10-minute presentation from each of the three firms vying for the work, before making their selection.

The proposed contract calls for a maximum of $60,000 a year for the services, with the option of up to three one-year renewals. County Administrator Dan Biles would be designated to authorize the optional annual extensions.

Initially, Corcoran and Associates, doing business as Corcoran Partners; Shawn Foster LLC, doing business as Sunrise Consulting Group; and Shumaker Advisers Florida LLC, responded to the request for qualifications to compete for the work.

A four-member committee met and evaluated all of the proposals, they scored the Corcoran Partners’ proposal as the highest. The committee, which ranked the proposals, was made up of Biles, Cathy Pearson, Paula Baracaldo and Ralph Lair.

But, Commissioner Kathryn Starkey raised objections to the process.

“So, I’m not happy with the way this was done,” Starkey said. “When we picked our last lobbyist, we had presentations and the board selected the lobbyist. I’m not comfortable with the way that this went down.”

Starkey made a motion to delay the selection until the board’s Dec. 8 meeting, during which the three firms each will be invited to make a 10-minute presentation, followed by the board’s selection.

Commissioner Christina Fitzpatrick seconded Starkey’s motion.

Commissioner Jack Mariano asked Starkey if she was OK with the lobbyist missing a couple of weeks while lawmakers are in Tallahassee.

Starkey responded: “I know time is of the essence, but I think this is — did you hear the presentations? Was there a presentation? I don’t know. But, I think it’s not staff’s lobbyist. I think we’re the policymakers. I think it’s more appropriate that we hear the presentation. So, I’m disappointed that the process that was set in place last time was changed. I think we should have been asked about the process.

“Dec. 8, we listen and we pick, and we get them to work right away,” Starkey said.

Commissioner Ron Oakley said he thinks there may have been a miscommunication between the board and the staff.

“I think they actually did a process based on us giving direction to reach out to lobbyists for this. Maybe we were not as clear as we should have been and said we wanted presentations. I don’t remember us talking about this,” Oakley said.

Erik Breitenbach, assistant county administrator for internal services, said the county staff followed the standard request for qualifications process.

He said the committee did not receive any presentations from the firms, but rather discussed and ranked the submittals.

Starkey has been pushing hard for the county to have outside lobbyists to represent the county both at the state and national levels. She said having someone to represent the county’s interests will create more opportunities to obtain state or federal funding or grants.

Board members approved Starkey’s motion to delay choosing a lobbyist until the Dec. 8 meeting, voting 5-0.

Published November 25, 2020

Pasco plans to hire two lobbyists

October 6, 2020 By B.C. Manion

The Pasco County Commission has directed County Administrator Dan Biles to take steps necessary to prepare to hire two lobbyists to represent the county’s interests.

One lobbyist would pursue federal dollars, while the other would focus on funding opportunities at the state level.

Commissioner Kathryn Starkey raised the issue at the board’s Sept. 21 meeting.

She had mentioned the need for it in the past and brought it back again.

“Frankly, I think we’re shooting ourselves in the foot by not having an outside lobbyist,” Starkey said. “I’ve talked to commissioners in other counties and we might be the only county this size, I think we would be the only county this size, that doesn’t have at least one outside lobbyist. The other ones have multiple.”

She said it’s especially important “at a time when money is going to be even tighter in Tallahassee,” and added, “we need to be looking out for the best interest of our citizens.”

Hiring a lobbyist, she said, “is going to bring back dividends to the county.”

She thinks the county can do better than it did last year, in terms of obtaining state funding for local projects.

“I think Ralph (Lair, the county’s lobbyist) does a great job, but there is a difference between an internal lobbyist and an external lobbyist, and we are better served, if we have both,” Starkey said.

Commissioner Jack Mariano agreed. He thinks the county is in a good position to attract funding for projects in the coming year, but said the county needs to have a strong advocate in Tallahassee.

He recommended bringing Shawn Foster, from Sunrise Consulting Group, back to represent the county.

“I think we should bring him back on. If he only gets one thing for us, we’re way ahead of the game,” Mariano said.

It’s important to have someone working on the county’s behalf up in Tallahassee.

“You’ve got to be up there. You’ve got to be in their face. You’ve got to be pushing to get these things through,” Mariano said.

Commissioner Mike Wells agreed. “The school board has their internal person and their external person. They work great together as a team. And, in the past, Shawn (Foster) has worked great for us as a team.”

Starkey also noted that both Hillsborough and Pinellas counties received “$10s of millions” from Washington D.C., this year.

Starkey made a motion to hire a lobbyist.

Wells asked if the motion includes hiring a federal lobbyist, as well as a state lobbyist.

Starkey replied: “I would love that. We are really missing out. We never would have got that Ridge Road project without that (lobbyist) help. I agree that we should have a federal lobbyist help us with this whole coastal effort.”

But, Commission Chairman Mike Moore asked: “On the federal side, what was our return on investment. How many bills were passed on our behalf? How much funding did we receive from the group we had previously hired on, as federal lobbyists?”

Starkey countered: “We have to be smart about what we ask for, and we haven’t used our lobbyists right. ‘Cuz we haven’t had a project, besides our Ridge Road one, that we went up there and asked them for. Although I did ask for help in changing some of the labor laws, and we did get that.

“Even Martin County, the little Martin County over there, they have two lobbying firms in Washington. They bring back millions and millions of dollars. We have to be more savvy about what we’re asking for. I think there’s transportation money. I think there’s possibly this dredge money. We should look at what other counties have done and mimic that,” Starkey said.

“We have to have a plan. We have to have an ask and then we have to go work it. And, we can’t expect it in a year or two, but you have to build those relationships,” Starkey added.

Wells asked if Starkey wanted to use a solicitation procedure to fill the positions.

County Attorney Jeffrey Steinsnyder said that the county didn’t have the option to bypass that process.

Mariano asked if the board could extend Foster’s former contract.

“You can’t just go with Mr. Foster. It has to go out for bid,” Steinsnyder said, adding that Foster’s contract had long since expired and could not be resuscitated.

Commissioner Ron Oakley asked where the funding would come from, for the two positions.

County Administrator Dan Biles said: “I don’t know. This discussion is new to me.

“There’s not funding for either one in the budget. If the board wants to do that, we obviously will amend the budget to add money into the budget to do that, and then we will do the solicitation process for both contracts,” Biles said.

Moore said he thinks there is money available for the positions this year from funding that was returned to the county, that would cover the positions for this year — without dipping into reserves. But that would be for this year only.

Pasco projects in new state budget

May 22, 2019 By B.C. Manion

Florida’s $91.5 billion budget, approved by the Florida Legislature, includes funding for just two of the projects that Pasco County requested.

Legislators approved $1 million for the Land O’ Lakes U.S. 41 beautification project, and $1 million to improve the waterfront at Miller’s Bayou.

Dade City received $5 million for the extension of Morningside Drive.

While legislators approved the projects, Gov. Ron DeSantis still have the option of vetoing the projects.

Dade City also received funding for the Morningside Drive extension in last year’s budget, but it was vetoed by then Gov. Rick Scott, according to Ralph Lair, the county’s lobbyist.

Lair briefed the Pasco County Commission on the 2019 legislative session during the commission’s May 7 meeting.

In addition to funding decisions, legislators also took actions on numerous issues expected to have impacts on the county, Lair said.

Vegetable gardens could be popping up in front yards, under a law passed during the 2019 session of the Florida Legislature, unless Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoes the measure. (File)

That legislation affects growth management, vegetable gardens and tree trimming or removal, he said.

The growth management bill “will make it harder to challenge a developer’s plan for a new neighborhood or changes in any local comprehensive plan,” Lair said.

“For one thing, anyone who challenges a plan amendment and loses has to pay the prevailing party the attorney’s fees,” he said.

“Also, local governments cannot require affordable housing in new developments,” he said.

State lawmakers also passed legislation that “cripples the ability for local governments to tell people where they can plant a garden in the yard,” Lair said.

“The bill places personal property rights over the authority of counties and cities to dictate where people can grow vegetables in their yard and any existing ordinance, as we have, restricting any vegetable gardens, is void and unenforceable under the law,” Lair said.

However, deed restrictions still can regulate where vegetable gardens are planted, Lair added.

Local governments also can adopt regulations relating to water use during drought, fertilizer use and control of invasive plants and species.

State lawmakers also passed legislation that will prevent local government from requiring an application approval, permit fee, or mitigation for the pruning, trimming or removal of a tree on residential property, if the property obtains documentation from a certified arborist or licensed landscape architect that the tree is a danger to person or property.

The bill also prohibits local governments from requiring replanting of trees removed or trimmed, Lair said.

The Legislature also passed a 5-year moratorium on counties and cities from passing ordinances prohibiting plastic straws, while the state studies ordinances already approved by 10 cities that have already done so. However, DeSantis has vetoed that measure.

Commissioner Mike Moore thanked Sen. Tom Lee and Ardian Zika for their hard work in pushing through the $1 million request for Land O’ Lakes Boulevard beautification.

Moore said commissioners will keep their fingers crossed that the appropriation is not vetoed by DeSantis. He said the project to upgrade the appearance along the road is needed to help with redevelopment of U.S. 41, between state roads 54 and 52.

Moore and fellow commissioners Jack Mariano and Kathryn Starkey also noted that next year, the commission should shrink their list of priorities and work hard to get them through.

Lair agreed with the approach: “Short and sweet. Condensed is best.”

He also advised commissioners to go after funding for “shovel-ready” projects.

They tend to favor projects that are ready to go, and aren’t just in a planning stage, Lair said.

Published May 22, 2019

Could homestead exemption be $75,000?

April 5, 2017 By Kathy Steele

A proposed constitutional amendment to increase homestead exemptions to $75,000 could be a boon for homeowners, but a bust for local governments that stand to lose millions in property tax revenues.

If approved, homeowners potentially could add another $25,000, excluding school taxes, to the current $50,000 homestead exemption.

At least 60 percent of voters statewide would have to approve the increase in a 2018 referendum.

The Senate Community Affairs Committee, headed by State Sen. Tom Lee, R-Thonotosassa, recently approved the amendment. Senate subcommittees also must weigh in. A similar amendment proposal is anticipated in the Florida House of Representatives.

Estimates peg the loss to Pasco County’s revenues at nearly $1.4 million annually. More than 60,000 parcels would be removed from the tax rolls, said Ralph Lair, Pasco County’s government affairs officer.

“It’s nice to give people the exemption, but how far do you want to go?” Lair said.

The proposal to increase the homestead exemption was one of the issues that Lair covered, as he gave an update on 2017 legislative issues to the Pasco County Commission at its March 28 meeting.

Lair said the revenue losses in some small counties could be so severe that “they’re not going to have a budget to work with.”

Counties, including Pasco, already are struggling to find revenues to pay for basic services, said Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey.

“Instead of trying to keep our parks and libraries open, we’ll be shuttering them,” Starkey said.

The Florida League of Cities and the Florida Association of Counties oppose the increase.

Legislators also are considering a bill that would stop local governments from approving new regulations for businesses, professionals and occupations, Lair said. Any regulations passed after Jan. 1 would be null and void.

If approved, the new law would affect local control of licenses issued to such establishments as liquor stores and bingo halls.
Lair said the bill is broadly written and counties also could lose the ability generally to approve ordinances that impose fees.

Pasco County Commission Chairman Mike Moore said there was push-back on that bill. He didn’t anticipate it being approved.

Another bill is backed by utility companies that want to place cell towers of 60 feet or shorter in rights of way without consulting with local governments first.

“AT&T is pushing this,” Lair said. “If they see they can get this, they’ll go further.”

State Rep. Richard Corcoran of Land O’ Lakes, who is the Speaker of the House, is pushing a House bill to phase out community redevelopment agencies, or CRAs.

If approved, the bill would eliminate all existing agencies on their current expiration date or by Sept. 30, 2037, whichever is earlier.

Meanwhile, no new community redevelopment agencies would be permitted after July 1. Also, existing agencies would be barred from starting any new projects or programs effective Oct. 1.

A similar Senate bill also is in play. Both bills also include ethics training for “commissioners” of CRAs.

Community redevelopment areas are established as special tax districts. Oversight is provided by a redevelopment agency, whose members often are chosen from elected officials within the district.

Each year a portion of property tax revenues collected by counties is reinvested into community projects within those districts. There are rules and limitations on how the money can be spent, but generally the purpose is to end blight and poverty.

The tough stance on CRAs appears to have started with long-standing accusations of mismanagement of the North Miami Community Redevelopment Agency in Miami-Dade County. But, the proposed legislation would cover all CRAs in the state.

Zephyrhills, Dade City, New Port Richey and Port Richey all have CRAs.

At their March 28 meeting, county commissioners had concerns about overly broad interpretations of how CRA money can be spent. Their focus was on what they deemed questionable expenditures within CRAs in New Port Richey and Port Richey.

Pasco is seeking to schedule workshops in the future to discuss the matter.

No one from the CRAs was in attendance to respond.

The legislature concludes on May 5, with a budget that then goes to Gov. Rick Scott and his veto pen.

Published April 5, 2017

Speakers present their wish list to lawmakers

October 7, 2015 By Kathy Steele

Speaker after speaker stepped up to the podium to present their request to Pasco County’s state lawmakers.

They wanted funding to help a nonprofit.

They wanted lawmakers to put in a good word with state highway officials.

Or, they wanted their backing for a special cause.

About 100 people gathered on Sept. 29 in the gymnasium of Sunlake High School in Land O’ Lakes for a public forum, hosted by Pasco’s legislative delegation.

Sunlake High Band members played the National Anthem at the public forum hosted by Pasco County’s legislative delegation in the high school gymnasium. (Kathy Steele/Staff Photo) — Sunlake High Band members played the National Anthem at the public forum hosted by Pasco County’s legislative delegation in the high school gymnasium.
(Kathy Steele/Staff Photo)

State Representatives Amanda Murphy, Richard Corcoran and Danny Burgess, and State Senators John Legg and Wilton Simpson listened for nearly three hours, as about 60 representatives of nonprofits, counties and municipalities, civic groups and individual citizens talked about the needs in their communities.

The forum is an annual tradition held prior to the annual legislative session, which is scheduled to convene on Jan. 12, 2016.

Corcoran, a Republican from Land O’ Lakes, will hold the powerful position of Speaker of the House.

Nearly all of the speakers gave lawmakers packets of information detailing specific funding needs or particular policies they want the delegation members to support or reject.

Requests covered a broad range of topics from public safety and school construction, to voter registration and smoke-free beaches and parks.

Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco advocated for tougher laws to help clamp down on illegal sales of synthetic marijuana.

Current law makes no distinction between the sale of one packet of the illegal substance or 1,000 packets, he said.

“We’re not trying to go after the person with a substance problem,” the sheriff said. “What we’re trying to do is go after the dealer.”

Nocco also urged lawmakers to address the growing problem of terrorist threats made via social media including threats to “shoot up” a school or church.

“There is no law in effect where we can go after them,” Nocco said. But he added, “People make statements and words have meanings.”

Sunlake High School student Mykenzie Robertson lobbied for a state law to ban smoking at public beaches and parks. Robertson is active with Tobacco Free Partnership of Pasco County and the statewide Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT).

“Parks, to me, are a place for healthy recreation,” she said.

Robertson also joined with Sunlake High School student Ormond Derrick later to talk about the problem of substance abuse among young people.

Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley asked lawmakers to consider adding veteran’s registration cards and gun permits to the list of approved identification for voters.

Corley also advocated for at least some of a voter’s personal information to be shielded from public records laws.

Now, access is open “to anyone and everyone,” Corley said. He cited a case of a man in New Hampshire who used Pasco County voter registration data to contact people for business purposes.

A handful of voters de-registered as a result of for-profit businesses accessing their information, Corley said. “That’s sad,” he said. “I think you would agree.”

Protecting data also was on the agenda for Pasco County Clerk and Comptroller Paula O’Neil who talked about the budget challenges in keeping up with technology to allow access, but also protect public records.

“About 95 percent of civil filings are electronic,” she said. “And that will soon be 100 percent.”

Funding issues are facing Pasco County’s school district as it tries to keep up with the explosive growth of new subdivisions, said Pasco School Superintendent Kurt Browning.

New residential development, especially along the State Road 54 corridor through Land O’ Lakes and Wesley Chapel, is pumping up school enrollments.

Sunlake High, for instance, was built for 1,800 students. But Browning said, “We exceeded that number. There are very few schools that don’t exceed what they were built for,” Browning said.

Oakstead Elementary School has 1,200 students in a school built for 762 students.

“Where do we put these kids?” Browning said. “We put them in portables. We cannot build schools fast enough.”

He made a pitch for lawmakers to approve a bill that would give local school boards the autonomy to increase existing property tax millage by half a mill. Board members would need to approve the increase by a super-majority or a unanimous vote, he said.

Pasco County’s Government Affairs Officer Ralph Lair presented lawmakers with a list of priority projects and issues for the coming year, including a state loan for widening State Road 56.

Another issue is funding for the Coast to Coast Connector Trail, which will link Florida’s west and east coasts from St. Petersburg to Titusville. The Florida Department of Transportation will decide which of two routes will be built for one of the trail’s segments. One route goes through northeast Pasco, while another would bypass Pasco.

Pasco officials hope to convince the state roads department to build both routes and create a loop.

“Just have that one on your radar,” Lair said.

Other speakers included Timothy Beard, president of the Pasco-Hernando State College. Help for a performing arts center was among his funding requests.

Brian Anderson advocated for veterans and discussed his nonprofit, Veterans Alternatives, which provides alternative therapies for veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorders.

Representatives for Pasco Fine Arts Council, Habitat for Humanity, AMIKids Pasco and the Good Samaritan Health Clinic of Pasco also brought their concerns and talked about their program successes.

Peggy Wood of the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs and Janice Howie of the Nature Coast Chapter of Florida Native Plant Society spoke about environmental issues.

Howie said her organization supported Amendment 1, a constitutional amendment approved by 75 percent of voters to use real estate taxes to purchase land for conservation. In the last legislature, only a fraction of the anticipated $700 million was budgeted for land purchases.

“There is an opportunity to do better this year,” said Howie who is conservation chairwoman.

Wood asked lawmakers to oppose a bill that would bypass local control and give the state sole authority to regulate hydraulic fracturing, often called “fracking,” which is a controversial method of oil drilling.

At least 15 counties in Florida have approved bans on fracking, Wood said.

Texas has passed a bill that bypasses local authority, Wood said. “Now Texas has fracking, whether they (local government) want it or not.”

Published October 7, 2015