Page 14 - Florida Sentinel 12-13-19

State News
Black Press Association Of Florida Learns Cabinet Successes And Priorities
BY DONNIE WILLIAMS
TALLAHASSEE --- Mem- bers of the Black Press Asso- ciation of Florida conducted annual meetings with Cabi- net officials by reviewing the 2020 priorities of two power- ful state regulators, Agricul- ture Commissioner Nikki Fried and Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis.
These elected officials run statewide like the Governor and U. S. Senators, and while they are not as well-known, they wield tremendous influ- ence. That’s because they are regulators protecting Floridi- ans and assisting them in a wide range of public services that impact their daily lives.
Both of these Cabinet of- ficers are white, young, driven, and passionate about getting things done. Fried is a Democrat, and Patronis is a Republican.
They share a common en- thusiasm for their jobs and partner up on issues where they agree. That was refresh- ing. Here are some of the priorities we discussed.
Fried Fighting Food Deserts, Gun Loopholes, And The Onerous Clemency Process
Fried stays busy. She says there is a lot of work to do in Florida. Among those issues is finding ways to deal with "food deserts" or food insecurity. Within months of taking office, Fried put to- gether a pilot project in Little Haiti, providing universal breakfast to those qualifying. Lyft provided transportation. Governor Ron DeSantis vetoed the $100,000 state budget appropriation. Fried
did not give up, and Lyft did- n't either. The program is op- erating without the money, which is a minimal allocation in the massive state budget. Fried will come back again this session, but has moved aggressively to address Florida's hunger problems by promoting and supporting urban farms, food trucks, and a host of volunteer initia- tives.
A former public defender, Fried has taken on the cum- bersome clemency process that hears pleas from con- victed felons to restore their civil rights. The process is so expensive and difficult to navigate, and few undertake the effort at all. In Septem- ber, the Commissioner wrote her colleagues on the Clemency Board, asking for a hearing to review the rules and regulations. But has re- ceived no response as of yet.
The Agriculture Commis- sioner is also responsible for oversight of the background checks for concealed weapons permits. Loopholes in the law came to light when Fried's predecessor, Adam Putnam, stopped cross- checking concealed weapon applicants on the FBI crime database for over a year. Fried wants to close other dangerous loopholes. "Right now, we cannot retain finger- prints," Fried says. Such common-sense safeguards and the reduction of the re- newal time to 5 years face re- sistance, however, from lawmakers and gun advo- cates like the National Rifle Association.
As citrus greening inten- sifies, Fried is working to-
Shown in the photograph BPAOF members with Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis: Ver- non Watson, WBQP TV; Taralisha Sanders, Capital Outlook; Vice President Rich Black, ONYX Mag- azine; Jimmy Patronis, Gayle Andrews, President; Treasurer Peter Webley, Caribbean Today; and Robert Hill, WRNE.
BPAOF members meet with Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried: Treasurer Peter Webley, Caribbean Today, Taralisha Sanders, Capital Outlook; Robert Hill, WRNE; Gayle Andrews, Presi- dent; Nikki Fried, Commissioner of Agriculture; Vice President Rich Black, ONYX Magazine; and Vernon Watson, WBQP TV.
ward a “come back," which means finding workers for the processing plants. But she is also looking to alterna- tive crops such as industrial hemp.
Hemp's potential as an environmental asset is tremendous, according to
Fried. Hemp will replace paper, plastic, and expedite processing cotton. 'There is an open market for hemp. It will provide 20-30 billion dollars for the Florida econ- omy," the Commissioner said.
Patronis: Uses Power To Stop Scams And Save Lives
Jimmy Patronis was appointed, then elected as Florida’s Chief Financial Of- ficer in 2018. He has a broad range of regulatory responsi- bilities over banking and fi- nance, insurance, while also serving as the Fire Marshall, and Treasurer. Fraud has been one of the biggest prob- lems Floridians face. Patro- nis has made combating it a priority, dubbing the effort" Fraud Free Florida." The CFO himself could have been a victim. He says he received a social security scam call. "If I got one, someone in the wrong frame of mind could have been ruined. This is stealing," he said. Consumer alerts and coordination with local and state law enforce- ment is ongoing.
Patronis turned to the devastation of Hurricane
Michael that ripped through the panhandle leveling com- munities.
"That hurricane resulted in 148,000 insurance claims, $8 billion in damages and $60 million in downed tim- ber debris. There are no homes left in Mexico Beach, and the tax base in Bay County has collapsed," ac- cording to Patronis, who is working with insurance com- panies, FEMA and HUD to rebuild the community. The deterioration of mental health is also a significant problem; a sharp increase in Baker Act commitments re- sulted after the storm.
The mental health overall and cancer insurance cover- age for Florida firefighters was an emotional issue for the CFO.
He points with pride to the April passage of the bill that expands benefits to fire- fighters exposed to 21 types of cancer-causing chemicals in the line of duty. It was a major victory for firefighters who had fought for the cover- age for years. For the upcom- ing 2020 session, plans continued focus on digital fraud and mental health is- sues.
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