SPAC60 2010 October Edition

8/8/2019 SPAC60 2010 October Edition

1/8

By Matthew D NyePublisher

The Brevard Board ofCounty Commissionersvoted Sepember 28th to seta nal millage of 6.2087, a13.46% increase over lastyears rate of 5.4720. TheCommission also voted toadopt a $1.018 billion nal

budget for 2010/2011.Before the votes took place,

District 3 CommissionerTrudie Infantini presented alaundry list of suggestionsto save the county more than$10 mil-

lion with-out rais-ing taxes.A m o n gthem:

Hold theMosquitoC o n t r o l

budget at2009/2010level of$5.5 million instead of almostdoubling it to $10 million for2010/2011.

Charge $1 for DVD rentalsat libraries, which wouldgenerate $1.4 million inannual revenue.

Reduce county employee

sick/vacation days from 24 per year to 18, resulting in$2.4million in savings.

Reduce the Economic De-velopment Commissions

budget by $500K.Hold EELs outside

spending budget item at2009/2010 level of $40K in-stead of proposed $446K.

None of the other Com-missioners commented onInfantinis suggestions.

County Manager Howard

Tipton defended the proposed budget, saying thestaff started in January of thisyear with great communityinput and the process wascertainly one of the most in-volved Ive ever seen.

Tipton said staff had hitits target of a 10% reductionfrom last year; that hiring andwage freezes would remainin effect; that 156 positionshad been eliminated; that fur-lough days would be imple-mented this year; and thatother things like eet con-

solidation,

e n e r g yconserva-tion, cen-tralizationand con-solidationwere be-ing lookedat for thenext bud-get cycle.

During public comment,Melbourne resident TrinaMartino pleaded with the

board not to raise taxes.By you increasing more

we are potentially in dangerof losing our home, she said.Its morally wrong to raise

taxes on people who are tak-ing cut in pay and unable tohardly put food on their tableany more. Its wrong.

In spite of a campaign pledge made in the FloridaToday Voter Guide onAugust 8th not o raise taxes,Commissioner Mary Bolinvoted for the increase. Fisherand Nelson also voted forthe increase and budget;Commissioners Andersonand Infantini voted against.

Scott, Sink in dead heat for Governor;independents will play deciding roleFrom Quinnipiac University

Closing the Florida governors race to a dead heat, ChiefFinancial Ofcer Alex Sink, the Democrat, now has 44 per-cent of likely voters to Republican Rick Scotts 45 percent,compared to the Republicans 49 - 43 percent lead October 1,according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

Ms. Sinks surge could be tied to voter belief, 44 - 28 per-cent, that she was a more ethical businessperson than Scottwhen both were in the private sector, the independent Quin -nipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University survey nds. A total of89 percent of likely voters say a candidates record in businessis either somewhat or very important to their vote choice.

By a 42 - 37 percent margin, Florida voters have a favorableopinion of Sink, while Scott gets a negative 39 - 46 percentfavorability rating. This compares to the October 1 surveyshowing her with a split 39 - 39 percent favorability, com -

pared to Scotts split 41 - 40 percent.In the last two weeks, Chief Financial Ofcer Alex Sink

has moved into a statistical tie with Rick Scott. Her image hasimproved while his has deteriorated. It would seem that thedebate through television ads about their respective businesscareers may be the reason, said Peter A. Brown, assistant di-rector of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. At this

point she is winning that debate handily and it is having animpact on the race.

How the voters feel about the economy is also directly tied

to their vote: Among those who think the economy is improv-ing, Ms. Sink leads 69 - 22 percent, while Scott leads 58 - 25

percent among voters who see the economy getting worse.Only 20 percent of Florida likely voters say the state econ-

omy is getting better, while 34 percent say it is getting worseand 43 percent say it is about the same.

Florida independent likely voters say 50 - 24 percent thatSink, the former president of Bank of Americas Florida divi-sion, was more ethical in business than Scott, the former CEOof Columbia/HCA, the nations largest hospital chain.

In the horse race, Sink leads Scott 82 - 7 percent amongDemocrats while Scott leads 83 - 8 percent among Republi-cans. Independent voters, who backed Scott 46 - 40 percentOctober 1, now back Sink 51 - 34 percent.

He has a 48 - 42 percent lead among men, while she leads47 - 41 percent among women.

Scott leads 65 - 20 percent among white evangelical Chris-tians; 15 percent of that group are undecided or for anothercandidate, larger than among the overall electorate.

How that group nally comes down could be a key to theelection. White evangelical Christians are a Republican group,

but the relatively larger number of undecided voters might in-dicate some may be holding back from Scott because of thecharges about his business conduct, said Brown. Among

Neck and neck: Republican Gubernatorial candidate Rick Scott is in a dead heat with Democrat CFO Alex Sink.

The $1.7 billion Columbia/HCA Medicare fraud settlement continues to be used as campaign fodder by Sink.

Board of CountyCommissionersapproves taxhike, nal budget

Continued on page 6

Infannis suggesons ignored byboard; Bolin votes for higher taxes

in spite of campaign pledge not to

Special Election Coverage Inside:

Understanding the Amendments

Ballot Recommendations

Club Directory

Upcoming Events

Also in this edition:

State will ace hardship as revenues decline

Understanding the TRIM process

Bill Micks Insider Column

Efects o Health Care Reorm bill yet to be elt

By Matthew D NyePublisherA new report published

by the Brevard County AuditCommittee shows a dramaticincrease in Brevard Countyspending relative to populationgrowth since 1999. The reportconrms what Clerk of CourtScott Ellis and several Con-servative citizen groups have

been saying since 2005: coun-ty spending expanded to con-sume all the available revenuegenerated by property taxesduring the real estate boom.

The report uses 1999as a baseline. The popula-tion increase calculated by

the auditors for the ten year period is 19%, yet the report nds the following :

Sheriff - The Sheriffsofce has grown from 806FTE in 1999 to 1,145 FTE in2009, which is an increase of339 FTE or 42%. Both theSheriffs total expendituresand General Fund allocationincreased 129% over thissame ten year period. In the

past ten years, the Countyhas transferred General Fundof approximately $596 mil-lion to the Sheriff. The report

makes no mention of whetheror not the number of callsresponded to has increasedfrom 1999 to present day.

Fire Rescue - In 1999,Fire Rescue had 354 FTE.By 2009, FTE had increased53% to 541. The total budgetfor that Department increasedfrom $28 million in 1999 to$57 million (116%) in 2009.

Stafng spiked in 2000through 2003 primarily due tochanges from a two person ba-sic life support engine to three

person advanced life supportengines. Other major expendi-tures included: 911 ambulancecrew and equipment for a new

station, Advanced Life Supportre engine, 800 mega hertz ra-dios, new re engines, mobiledata terminals for twenty-oneengines and a new re rescueunit and equipment. The re-

port makes no mention of thenumber of calls respondedto in 1999 or current day.

Parks & Recreation - Fulltime equivalents up from justunder 300 to 495 - an increaseof 53%. General fund trans-fers increased from ~$9.6million in 1999 to $17.5 mil-lion in 2009, an 82% increase.

Report chronicles growth in county spending

Up, up and away: A new Brevard County Audit report validates local activists claims Brevard Countygovernmet has dramatically increased in size relative to population. Chart courtesy of Roger Shealy.

Chairwoman Mary Bolin statedin the Florida Today Voter

Guide raising taxes is not anoption, but voted for a tenta-tive increased millage beforethe guide was even printed.


2/8

Page 2 October 15, 2010 Space Coast Sentinel

www.spacecoastsentinel.com

Vote Krupp for school boardFLORIDA TODAYS endorsement of

incumbent Robert Jordan for the Brevard School

Board District 1 seat is unconscionable.

He enjoys going to meetings and being on

boards. I can attest to that. But is he an experienced

educator? Has he been in the trenches? No.

We need his challenger, Mike Krupp, on the

Brevard School Board, not Jordan.

Dr. Krupp, a retired high school principal andteacher, is a visionary who is eminently qualied

for the school board. Dr. Krupp set my son and his

friends on the straight and narrow path at Merritt

Island High in 1984. He knows our schools lack

discipline. Why else would we need resource

sheriffs deputies at schools?

I doubt Mr. Jordan has ever taught a class of

kindergartners, middle school or high school.

We need to teach and reach all our students.

The money for expensive, catchy ads would be

better spent on classroom supplies instead of being

wasted on Mr. Jordans campaign.

I support Dr. Mike Krupp and so should every

taxpayer who wants his moneys worth.

Peggy Duarte ReichleMims

Davis responds to FloridaToday Endorsement of Nelson

It is true Mr. Nelson has accomplished many

things- but at what cost to taxpayers? Was it good

management to spend millions of tax dollars on

horse stalls and crab shacks, particularly when

many taxpayers were losing jobs or homes?

As to the comment that I offered no credible

solutions to the budget crisis. If you visit my

website, www.vote4ilenedavis.com, you can see

that I have presented not only ideas for reducing

the cost of government, but also ideas to grow our

economy.

Some things the Florida Today editorial did

not mention:

- my idea to pay not just county employees,

but all taxpayers a percent of savings they help me

identify for a vote.

- my plan to require county departments meet

my yellow page test.

- my $5000 x 5000 plan to raise funding for

local inventors / business owners

- how as a city council member, I discovered

misuse of tax dollars, and put it on the agenda to

require public discussion.

- during a 2006 interview, I warned declining

tax revenues as homes went into foreclosure would

be a greater problem than growth in Brevard

- during a 2008 FL Today forum, I warned

that our dependence on state and federal tax dollars

could be a serious problem for Brevard.

- That while Florida Today credits Mr.

Nelson with $158 million in budget cuts, since

2006 operating expenditures have dropped $57

million, but $76 million was from cuts in grants and

capital expenditures. Ongoing operating expenses

and employee compensation actually went up.

Mr. Nelson has spent most of his adult life

spending other peoples money, not always wisely.

I have spent most of my adult life helping clients

create affordable budgets that allows them to savefor their future.

It seems to me that someone like me, with

a degree in accounting, an MBA, and years as a

nancial advisor, would be the most qualied

person to deal with a budget crisis.

Ilene DavisLibertarian Candidate

County Commission, District 2

Seat belt laws unneccessarySeat belt laws are ne as far as they go. However,

if, as claimed by some experts as a justication

for helmet laws in some states, helmets reduce

head injuries and save lives for motorcycle riders,

why wouldnt they do the same for automobile and

bus (especially school bus) passengers?

Also, since there is much empirical data

available from NASCAR and the rest of the

professional racing world on the efcacy of Nomex

suits in vehicle res, why not require them for all

vehicle occupants? While were at it, since there

are occasions when the vehicle inadvertently ends

up in the water (Chappaquiddick comes to mind),

lets also mandate personal oatation devices for

all drivers and passengers. Why not require all

school bus passengers to be wrapped in bubble-

wrap?

Rather than mandating seat belts, helmets etc.

through legislation, let the private sector encourage

us to behave more safely through our wallets. Add

a clause to the auto insurance policy to the effect

that, if youre injured while not wearing a seatbelt,

your insurance coverage is null and void.

The same could apply to helmets for bikers.

Perhaps you could have the option to decline to

wear the belts or helmets and still have injury

coverage by paying triple or ve times the

premium (or whatever the insurance company

deems appropriate). This is just one more case of

government unnecessarily imposing itself in our

decisions in order to protect us from ourselves

when private sector solutions are available and

make more sense. Such intervention in our lives

merely serves to increase the size, scope, authority

and cost of government while reducing our liberty

by limiting our freedom to choose.

Skip BollingerMelbourne

opinion

I did a lot of soul searching the rst

couple of days after losing my bid

for the Brevard County Commission

District 4 seat on August 24th.

In addition to the usual what did

I do wrong/what could I have done

better analysis,

I had to wrestle

with the notion

that maybe it

really is hopeless.

Maybe even the

Republicans in

Brevard Countywant more

government, more spending and

higher taxes.

In the nal analysis I came to the

conclusion that isnt the case. As I

wrote in my guest column for the

Florida Today last month, I sincerely

believe the voters were misled by

the incumbents and the editorial

board of the Florida Today.

The Brevard County Property

Appraiser played a crucial role as

well, holding the mailing of the

TRIM notices until the last possible

day allowed by statute so taxpayers

wouldnt see the increase until after

the election.I believe I failed to get my

message out to the rank and le

Republican voter because I didnt

raise enough money to do the mail

pieces required to put the voters on

notice the incumbents had raised

their taxes. This is a typical problem

for grassroots candidates.

So I started thinking: how could

I help to prevent

this sort of thing

from happening

to the next wave

of grassroots

candidates? How

can we educate

and inform thevoters of what is

happening right here in their back

yard when the abuses in DC are so

outrageous they take center stage?

You are holding the answer to

those questions in your hands. The

Space Coast Sentinel is a monthly

newspaper that covers local

government. Sounds boring doesnt

it? Thats what I thought about local

government too, until I met the

Brevard Clerk of Court Scott Ellis.

From the Publishers desk:Welcome to the rst issueof the Space Coast Sentinel!

The things he showed memade me so angry I not onlygot involved, I ran for ofce...

THE

Mail SackRants & Raves from readers

Never has there been a moreimportant election to all Americansor for our healthcare system. If youdont think that the governmentshould be able to force you to

purchase health insurance (withONLY theoptions that areallowed); if youlike your companysponsored healthcoverage andwould like tokeep it; if you likeyour doctor; ifyou do not wantto have to submit a 1099 for every

purchase with every vendor your business utilizes over $600/year;if you would like more optionsfor health plans, not less; if youdlike EXPANDING Health SavingsAccounts you need to vote in thisupcoming election. And you need

for vote for the candidates that wanta free market in health care.

As it stands now, in 2014 there willbe only a few options for people topurchase for individual plans. Only30 year-olds can purchase popularhigh deductible, catastrophic plans.Employers are comparing the cost ofoffering coverage versus the $2000-$3000 penalty per employee for notoffering coverage and deciding itscheaper to pay the penalty! If youremployer doesnt offer coverage,

you will have to

purchase your owninsurance. If youdont do so YOUwill be penalized.

Enforcement ofall this will reston the IRS. TheCo n g r e s s io n a lBudget Ofce

(CBO) estimates the IRS budgetwill grow by more than $10 billion

the equivalent of roughly 16,500employees to enforce the mandatein the rst decade after health carereform takes effect.

Beginning 2014 an uninsured

Vote for candidates that

tout free market healthcare solutions as viable x

The Congressional BudgetOfce (CBO) estimates theIRS budget will grow by morethan $10 billion...

Continued on page 7

Continued on page 6

The Space Coast Sentinel is published monthly anddistributed to 10,000 businesses and homes. Mail

subscriptions are available at a cost of $24 per year.

Publisher

Matthew D Nye

Contributors:

Distribution ManagerChris Lefer - ext 4

Mailing Address:

PO Box 121383West Melbourne, FL 32912-1383

P: (321) 254-2002 F: (321) 821-0207

http://www.spacecoastsentinel.com

Opinions expressed within do not necesarilyreect those of the publisher.

Martin AdamsBrian Bellrose

Dana BlickleyBob Brewster

Ben CampionePenny Canales

Scott EllisPeter Fusscas

Chris Lefer

Bill Mick

Matt OHernDean PaterakisRoger ShealyMark VanceDale YoungVince Young


3/8

October 15, 2010 Page 3Space Coast Sentinel


We heard on Tuesdays BML that

George Soros has conceded vic-

tory to Republicans (in at least one

house of Congress) in the Novem-

ber election. Good news. He says

he is not even entering the ght in

this time around. It must appear

pretty bad to him if he is unwilling

to step into the mix.

And while that is good news for

Republicans and a decent indica-

tor that things are going our way,

we should have a bit of caution

as we march toward November

2nd. We have been here before.

Republicans controlled both

houses of Congress for much

of the Bush administration. We

did not handle it well at all. We

failed to lead when we should

have. We let the Democrats

push us and our agenda around.

In what could have been an in-

dicator of what conservative

thinking and actions could have

done for America, we instead

started thinking we could crate

expensive programs to placate

the Democrats and lost sight of our

true vision.

A scally sound policy is

necessary and we should be

working toward that end.

Reducing government will be key

and easing regulation and taxes for

the investor class in this country is

essential. We cant start business

if everyone is scared to invest. If

we dont know when and what the

government will do next it is tough

to even think of taking the chance.

The question in this Republican

avalanche is: are we electing the

right Republicans that can get this

job done? In many corners I be-

lieve the answer is yes. In reality

the answer is: we have to wait and

see. We have fallen to the rhetoric

far too often and then saw these

ofcials cave to whatever inter-

ested distracted them from the

mission.

It is tough to have faith when

you have been burned, but we

must, for we know the alternative

is a path and that we are moving

down far too quickly now. A good

reminder to the candidates would

be that we did replace them in

2006 and are perfectly willing to

do so again if they fail to hold up

their end of the bargain. We must

have the resolve to do just that.

The good news is that with the

Tea Party and other movements be-

ing so prominent this election sea-

son, we have the mindset and abil-

ity to stay active and involved and

to do what is necessary to turn this

country around.

op-ed

Youre not going to want to hear

this.

Nonetheless, you have to.

If you want to win - indeed, if you

want to make any sort of serious

inroad into the American Political

Process, you need to read this, you

need to listen, and you need to adopt

this path.

If you do not, you will be

marginalized into irrelevance, no

matter what else you do.

Here it is:

You must discard - intentionally- all wedge issues as points of

debate, discussion,

or campaigning.

You know what

these issues are -

they fall broadly

into the category

of religion in one

form or another.

These are issues

such as abortion and gay rights (in

all its forms, including marriage

debates), but is by no means limited

to these two. In short, if theres a

religious basis for your position,

you must not campaign on it, and

indeed you must pointedly refuse todiscuss it.

The Tea Party began as a protest

over bailouts and handouts - that

is, theft and corruption within our

markets, government and economy.

This is a winning position with 90%

of the American Body Politic.

Any candidate who runs on theseissues - and these issues alone,

promising to stop it and lock up the

scammers - all of them - wins.

As soon as you bring the other

issues that everyone wants to talk

about into this, you will lose.

Heres why.

These are called wedge issues

for a reason. There is about half the

population, for example, that will

rally around a position of Abortion

is Murder. There is also about half

the population that will say well,

maybe in some cases, but in others

no, all the way down to you can

abort any time you want prior to the

rst breath.What you personally believe is

irrelevant to the

political process.

These issues are

used by the two

main political

parties to get the

electorate to divide

on a 50/50 basis -

thus leaving them

having to persuade exactly one

person of their position on some

other issue to win.

You cannot win such a contest. At

best you can force one of the other

parties - the one that most agrees

with you - to lose. The reason issimple - you will split that half of

the electorate, which means the

other party - the one that disagrees

with your position on those issues -

wins the election.

Drill this into your head folks:If you allow these issues to

become part of your campaign, you

will not only lose you will cause the

party that most-agrees with you to

lose.

I know this is going to be

unpopular, but it needs to be said.

Ive seen this happening in some

of the local Tea Party groups, and

it saddens me. The local Niceville

branch here featured people talking

about natural law as an important

qualifying factor for political

candidacy, as just one of many

examples. There were times I felt

like I had walked into a Baptist

sermon.The Tea Party and other political

expressions like it are, of course,

free to run on whatever platform

theyd like, and to back candidates

Tea Party must hold rm tosingular message of scalconservatism to win the day

The Tea Party began as a protestover bailouts and handouts... theftand corruption within our markets,

government and economy.

based on whatever theyd like.

But if youre going to do this, thenyoud be wise to try to take over the

Republican Party

instead of being

in d e p e n d e n t

or any other sort

of outside

inuence, because

it is the only way

you can win with

this approach.

That is, you can try to turn the

Republican Party into The Tea

Party, and then apply your litmus

tests. Now you have your 50%,

and you need to persuade only one

voter. Thats a winning strategy, if

you can pull it off. But to pull itoff you will have to displace all of

the money men who corrupted

the Republicans - let us not forget

that the Republicans were the ones

who brought Henry Paulson into

the Treasury after he, as Goldmanschief, set up lots of dodgy nancial

instruments, and

then protected the

banks who did

those deeds from

being smashed

when it all blew

up in their faces.

Not that the

Democrats are

blameless, of course. Who is Chris

Dodd and Barney Frank would be

a good starting question on that side

of the aisle, and of course it doesnt

stop there. Nancy Pelosi and illegal

immigrants anyone?

The Tea Party inltrating TheRepublican establishment is a long

shot. Witness John McCain, who

These are called wedgeissues for a reason... to getthe electorate to divide on a

50/50 basis.

Continued on page 6

Republicans will win big in November, butwill they act like Republicans once elected?

STATE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTSVote YES on Amendment 1 - Relating to repeal o PublicCampaign Financing Requirement. State budgets cannotaord unding costs; plus, candidates can raise undingrom donations and supporters.

Vote YES on Amendment 2 - Homestead Ad Valorem TaxCredit or Deployed Military Personnel. The scal impacton local government would be minor. We support ourmilitary personnel and amilies.

Vote NO on Amendment 4 - Reerenda requiredor adoption & amendment or local governmentcomprehensive land use plans. Voters are already in controlo comprehensive plans by their election o city and countyocials that represent them on uture developments. Theyhave the expertise and use due diligence in making correctdecisions. The amendment is a direct assault on privateproperty rights and would devastate Floridas economy.

Vote NO on Amendment 5 - Standards or Legislatureto ollow in Legislative Redistricting. Enactment wouldopen much litigation & possibly go to appointed judges to

redistrict & not by the peoples elected representatives.Vote NO on Amendment 6 - Standards or Legislatureto ollow in Congressional redistricting. Passage o Amendments 5 and 6 would increase the number o legalchallenges or uture redistricting. This would result in judgesmaking decisions about redistricting instead o electedocials.

Vote YES on Amendment 8 - Revision othe class sizerequirements or public schools. It would be cost saving andadds more fexibility rom the rigid class size limits. Moniescould be better spent improving student achievement

Vote YES on Reerendum 1 - Balancing the FederalBudget - A non-binding reerendum or an amendmentto the US Constitution. It would send a powerul messageto the Congress to cut spending to help reduce the ederaldecits.

BREVARD COUNTY CHARTER AMENDMENTS

Vote NO on Charter Amendment that requires analysis othe scal impact o a proposed charter amendment. TheCharter Commission has no way to und an analysis!

VoteYESon Charter Amendment that Requires MunicipalVoter approval o Charter Amendments aectingmunicipal service, unction, power or authority. This isa logical extension o the Home Rule concept; there areconcerns about its constitutionality, however.

Vote YES on Charter Amendment on Creation o citizensprocess or making recommendations. Provides amechanism by which the Board o County Commisisonersmust vote on recommendations oered by citizens.

Vote YES on Charter Amendment or Creation oPreamble or the Brevard County Charter. This is just somehousekeeping/legalise cleanup.

Vote NO on Charter Amendment or authority o theschool board to continue to levy 0.25 mills or criticaloperating needs. The School Board should participate inthe recession like the rest o us.

What is integrity?Integrity is the recognition o the act that you cannot ake your con-

sciousness, just as honesty is the recognition o the act that you cannotake existencethat man is an indivisible entity, an integrated unit o

two attributes: o matter and consciousness, and that he may permit no

breach between body and mind, between action and thought, between

his lie and his convictionsthat, like a judge impervious to public opin-ion, he may not sacrice his convictions to the wishes o others, be it thewhole o mankind shouting pleas or threats against himthat courage

and condence are practical necessities, that courage is the practical orm

o being true to existence, o being true to truth, and condence is the

practical orm o being true to ones own consciousness.

Ayn Rand,For the New Intellectual

Ballot recommendations for StateConstitution and County Charter


4/8

Page 4 October 15, 2010 Space Coast Sentinel


By Roger ShealySpecial to Space Coast S entinel

Just as there are two sides to every

transaction, there are also two sidesto every bailout. With the bursting ofthe housing bubble (as well as the cor-responding private debt bubble), wewatched home prices fall and nancialinstitutions fail, and the federal responseto this crisis has created a moral haz-ard that somehow certain institutions,in spite of their risky behavior, are justtoo big to fail.

But as I mentioned, there are twosides to every transaction. If by bailing-out failed institutions we create a moralhazard in private markets, then how towe describe the hazard to those on theother side of thetransaction?

Unlike past incen-tive programs, the

economic stimulihanded out over the

past two years is thegreatest experimentin Keynesian theoryever in the history ofour Republic. Notonly have we bor-rowed more than atrillion to spend oneverything from clunkers to shovel-ready projects, but weve printed upmore than a trillion to purchase the verytoxic mortgages that brought our econ-omy to its knees. This immoral hazardis nothing less than a massive transferof risk from those who took it, to everysingle one of us.

But the hazards to do not end there.

Indeed, this seriously awed Keynes-ian behavior now permeates state andlocal governments as well. Unlike thefederal government which can run bud-get decits and printmoney, state andlocal governmentscannot. So when thefederal governmentslings billions to thestates, the hazard isset and states beginto spend more andnow in Florida, thoseexpenses exceed rev-enues.

There are conse-quences to such scal

behavior. In FY2008, all three of major

credit rating agencies cut Floridas bondcredit rating outlook from Stable to

Negative. We will see what happens in2010, but as long as we continue to runexpenses above our revenues, credit riskwill only increase.

To fund an operating decit, as shownon the above graphic, one either bor-rows money from others and/or spendssavings (and that you can only do once).The following shows the level of tax-supported debt issued by the State ofFlorida. Please note, this is a record

level of debt!As a result of the increase in annual

debt service costs (the annual amount

of principal and interest paid each yearon the outstanding debt) compared toannual tax revenues, our legislature de-clared a critical state of emergencylast year to provide them the authorityto continue issuing new debt. Clearly,we have debt problem. Indeed, lastyear, the Pew Center on States rankedFlorida sixth behind California facinga looming budget disaster. AlexanderHamiltons so-called blessing is ourcurse! This debt is a burden to futuretaxpayers, namely our children, to en-able spending for today.

Unfortunately, our savings haventfared much better.Take a look at thefollowing and note

just how much our

state has depletedits savings and re-serves.

While there is ause and a time forspending savings,a market driven de-crease in taxableretail sales does not

justify the wholesalewithdrawal we have seen. It is one thingto utilize savings to allow for a manageddecrease in spending, it is another thingto use your savings to maintain an el-evated level of spending betting on acomplete and immediate economic re-covery to solve the scal problem.

The scal issues facing our state willonly be exacerbated next year when the

federal stimulus dollars are gone. Re-ferred to as the stimulus ameout,Florida will be looking at a nancialgap of more than $5.5 BILLION. This

years struggle to balance a $70.4BILLION budget(a 6% increase overlast year) will palein comparison towhat our legislatorswill be facing nextyear.

The solution tothis problem beginswith voters whoare informed andengaged, and ends

with elected ofcials who understand

these facts and act to reduce the size andspending of government. The solutionrequires a clear understanding of theconservative idea that less governmentmeans greater individual freedom.

Friends, this is the single biggest is-sue facing our state. We can no longerafford the status quo and the time to actis now.

Roger Shealy is Certied PublicAccountant from Titusville and ran asa Republican candidate for the Florida

House of Representatives, District 29.

State will face toughchoices as revenuescontinue to decline

This years struggle to balancea $70.4 BILLION budget (a6% increase over last year)

will pale in comparison to whatour legislators will be facing

next year.

Referred to as the stimulusameout, Florida will be

looking at a nancial gap ofmore than $5.5 BILLION.

state

Ballot Amendments create confusion, potential for harmBy Brian BellroseSta Writer

This November voters willhave the opportunity to vote onsix Constitutional amendmentsto the State Constitution andone non-binding resolution.In order for an amendment to

pass it must receive a supermajority vote of 60%.

Amendment 1: Repeal ofPublic Campaign FinancingRequirement

Ofcial Summary:Proposing the repeal ofthe provision in the StateConstitution that requires

public nancing of campaignsof candidates for electivestatewide ofce who agree to

campaign spending limits.For: House and Senate

Republicans have spokenin favor of this amendment.The following statement wasmade by incoming SenatePresident Mike Haridopolosin an Orlando Sentinel article:Why would we be spendingtens of millions of taxpayermoney when obviously anyonerunning statewide is going to

be able to get the resources?Against: Democrats

have come out against theamendment. The argumentmade by Senator Nan Rich ofSunrise was that since therehas been no outcry to repeal

this and that, The peoplevoted for this. It is wrong tosend it back.

In 1998 voters approved aConstitutional amendment for

public nancing of campaigns;prior to that it had been donethrough legislative initiatives.In 2006 Charlie Christreceived $3.3 million for hisgubernatorial campaign and

the total cost for all statewide

races that year was $11.1million.

Amendment 2: HomesteadAd Valorem Tax Credit forDeployed Military Personnel

Ofcial Summary:Proposing an amendment tothe State Constitution to requirethe Legislature to provide anadditional homestead propertytax exemption by law formembers of the United Statesmilitary or military reserves,the United States Coast Guardor its reserves, or the Florida

National Guard who receive ahomestead exemption and weredeployed inthe previous

year on activeduty outsidethe continentalUnited States,Alaska, orHawaii insupport ofm i l i t a r yo p e r a t i o n sdesignated by the Legislature.The exempt amount will be

based upon the number ofdays in the previous calendaryear that the person wasdeployed on active dutyoutside the continental UnitedStates, Alaska, or Hawaii insupport of military operationsdesignated by the Legislature.

The amendment is scheduledto take effect January 1, 2011.For: A Mason Dixon poll

back in May showed theamendment receiving 71%support from Floridians.

Against: The St. PetersburgTimes in their September, 28tharticle, Three Ballot Measuresdeserve a no vote stated,This is a well-intended effort

by the Legislature to provide an

additional homestead propertytax exemption for membersof the military and the Florida

National Guard who aredeployed overseas. But it isunfair in its application andcreates another loophole in a

property tax system alreadyfull of special breaks.

Amendment 4: Referendarequired for adoptionand amendment of localgovernment comprehensiveland use plans.

Ofcial Summary: Es-tablishes that before a localgovernment may adopt a new

comprehen-sive land

use plan,or amend acomprehen-sive land use

plan, the pro-posed plan oramendmentshall be sub-

ject to vote ofthe electors of the local gov-ernment by referendum, fol-lowing preparation by the local

planning agency, considerationby the governing body and no -tice. Provides denitions.

For: Submitted by FloridaHometown Democracy, Inc.,PAC. Andrew Dickman, a landuse attorney, said I realize

Amendment 4 is a signicantchange to the current system.But the current system hasdone NOTHING to protectnatural resources, NOTHINGto stop private condosfrom replacing recreationaland working waterfronts,

NOTHING to stop newincompatible developmentsfrom encroaching on existing

neighborhoods, or NOTHING

to build a broader economicbase that isnt vulnerable to the boom-bust real estate cycles.Florida, I have concluded,simply cannot wait fordevelopers and elected ofcialsto recognize the harm they arecausing.

The Hometown Democracyweb site states: Amendment4 will give voters oversightcontrol over how theircommunities grow. UnderAmendment 4, your cityor county commission willstudy and vote as usual on

proposed changes to the localcomprehensive land use plan,which is a blueprint for future

development. Plan changesapproved by the commissionwill then be submitted to you- the voter -- on the ballot atthe next regularly scheduledElection Day. You will eitherveto or approve them. Its thatsimple. Amendment 4 doesntrequire special elections.

Against: Florida Chamberof Commerce, BuildersAssociation, and Coalition forProperty Rights. In a January3rd article for the FloridaTimes Union, Abel Hardingsaid, Amendment 4 is not theway to solve Floridas growth

problems. Electing honorableofcials and holding them

accountable is. St. Petersburgpassed a similar law in 2006.Mr. Harding continued, St.Pete Beach learned quickly thatvoter-approved comprehensive

plan changes can be bothcumbersome and expensive.After developers andcommunity leaders launched

In 2006, my hometown, St. Petersburg Beach, became the rstcommunity in Florida to adopt a local version of Amendment 4, what somehave called Hometown Democracy.

We were told that the amendment would simply give the people a sayon growth. So, I signed the petition to put it on the ballot. And in 2006, Ivoted for it.

To call it a bad decision would be a spectacular understatement.Our town is proof that Amendment 4 is designed to stop growth,

regardless of what the voters want.Few St. Petersburg Beach residents could have imagined how quickly

this amendment would erode our towns quality of life and lead to costlylawsuits that we cannot afford.

This law did not give us a say on growth. It drove away jobs andhalted common-sense progress.

In St. Petersburg Beach, our economy relies heavily on tourism.

However, over time, many of our local landmarks have deteriorated.Numerous properties have turned into eyesores, fallen out of code or evenbecome condemned.

However, after adopting our law, implementing even the most minorplanning decisions became impossible.

Rundown properties could not be xed.Empty lots could not be redeveloped.Property owners were unable to repair their own businesses.While neighboring beach towns were thriving, our City Council was

powerless to make even the most minor changes without a costly, lengthyand uncertain referendum process.

Within a few months, businesses began to fail. Many left town and tooktheir jobs with them.

Soon, residents became frustrated. They called for a new election toupdate our towns growth plan. In 2008, the citizens of St. Petersburg Beachapproved many long-overdue changes.

However, within 24 hours of the election, anti-growth interests in St.Petersburg Beach had led a lawsuit to overturn the results.

In fact, this amendment has now cost St. Pete Beach taxpayers over$500,000 in legal fees.

A year after voting for a new growth plan, St. Petersburg Beach residentsare still tied up in court.

Now, a handful of well-to-do lawyers are attempting to impose the sameill-conceived idea on every Florida hometown.

They are even using the same rhetoric. They are telling voters that thisproposal is just designed to give the people a say.

Dont let them get away with it. Dont let them do to Florida what theyalready did to my hometown.

- Michael CastlemanSt. Petersburg Beach

A letter from a St. Pete Beachresident regarding Amendment 4

In order for an

amendment to pass, itmust receive a supermajority vote of 60%

Continued on page 7


5/8

October 15, 2010 Page 5Space Coast Sentinel


By Dana BlickleySpecial to the Space Coast Sentinel

Understanding the TRIM Process and the Truth inMillage Statement (TRIM Notice) can be overwhelming,

but the following information should provide a generalunderstanding of Part I of the TRIM process, includingwhy the Notice of Proposed Property Taxes (TRIM No-

tice) is sent, and Part II of the process, which completesthe legal requirements of the property tax levy procedure.

Part I The TRIM Process

The Notice of Proposed Property Taxes statement(TRIM Notice) received each year by property owners isderived from the Truth in Millage or TRIM process. TheTRIM Notice informs taxpayers and the public about thelegislative process by which local property taxes are deter-mined. Florida law provides for public input and for gov-erning bodies of taxing authorities to state specic reasonsfor proposed changes in property taxes and their budgets.The TRIM process is complex, but the following key datesshould allow for a better understanding of the procedureand the variables involved in producing the TRIM Notice.

July 1st - Is day one of the TRIM process. On or before this day, the Property Appraiser must certifythe preliminary assessment roll. In addition, the Prop-erty Appraiser must certify the taxable value within the

jurisdiction of each taxing authority on a prescribedform (DR-420) and deliver to each taxing authority.

July 15th - On or before this day of the process,the Board of County Commissioners budget of-cer delivers a tentative budget to the Board. Typi-cally, between Day 1 and Day 35, budget workshopsare held to make decisions about the tentative budget.

August 4th - On or before this day (day 35), each tax-ing authority must inform the Property Appraiser, on a

prescribed form (DR-420), of certain information that in -cludes the following: Prior year millage rate, the currentyear rolled-back rate, the current year proposed millagerate, and the date, time, and meeting place of the tentative

budget hearings. (The rolled-back rate is a millage rate thatwould equate to collecting the same amount of taxes as the

previous year, excluding taxes from new construction).

August 5th - 24th Anytime between these dates,but no later than August 24th (the last legal day - day55), the Property Appraiser, on behalf of all taxing au-thorities in Brevard County; and at the expense of theBoard of County Commissioners, must prepare anddeliver a Notice of proposed property taxes (TRIM

Notice) to each property owner. The TRIM Notice provides the property owner with important informa-tion and can be described as having four sections:

(1) Property Identication;(2) Taxing Authority Information;(3) Property Appraiser Value Information; and(4) Taxing Authority (Budget) Hearing Information.The Property Identication section includes a brief

legal description of the property, the name and mailingaddress of the owner of record, the tax account and par-cel identication numbers, and the millage code (which

uniquely identies all applicable taxing authorities).The Taxing Authority Information section includes the

tax information applicable to the specic parcel in question.This information is in columnar form and contains the tax-ing authorities, prior years taxes, the prior years adjustedtax rate (millage), the current tax rate and taxes if calculat-ed at the rolled-back rate (NO budget change), and the cur-

rent tax rate and taxes if the proposed budget is adopted.The Property Appraiser Value Information section in-cludes the market and assessed value for the current and

previous year, applicable exemptions and assessed valuereductions (assessment cap and classications), and thedeadline for ling a petition to the Value Adjustment Board.

The Taxing Authority (Budget) Hearing Informa-tion is located on the back of the form, and lists thetaxing authorities, contact phone numbers, and thedates, times, and locations of all budget hearings.

It is important to examine the TRIM Notice thor-oughly by reviewing the PROPERTY APPRAISERVALUE INFORMATION to determine if the marketvalue of the property is accurate for the current year;AND all applicable exemptions or property classi-cations are clearly displayed under the headings: AS-SESSED VALUE REDUCTION and/or EXEMPTIONS.

If the property owner disagrees with either of the twostatements above, a petition to the Value Adjustment Boardshould be led with the Clerk of the Circuit Court by thedeadline specied at the bottom of the TRIM Notice. Pe-titions can be led online at http://www.brevardclerk.us.

Part II The TRIM Process

September 3rd to 18th - Within 65 to 80 days of the cer-tication of the assessment roll, each taxing authority holdsa public hearing on their tentative budget and proposedmillage rate. At the public hearings the taxing authoritieswill amend and adopt the amended tentative budget andthen re-compute the proposed millage rate. Additionally,the taxing authority will publicly announce the percent, ifany, by which the re-computed proposed millage rate ex-ceeds the rolled-back rate. After all of this has been com-

pleted, the tentative millage and budget will be adopted.

September 18th to October 3rd - Within 15 days af-ter the tentative budget hearing, the taxing authority mustadvertise for their nal hearing to adopt a nal millage

rate and budget. This advertisement contains a Noticeof Proposed Tax Increase or a Notice of Budget Hearingand a Budget Summary. If the tentatively adopted mill-age rate is greater than the rolled-back rate, then a No-tice of Proposed Tax Increase must be advertised. If thetentatively adopted millage rate is equal to or less thanthe rolled-back rate, then a Notice of Budget Hearingmust be advertised. The Budget Summary must be ad-vertised adjacent to either the Proposed Tax Increase orthe Notice of Budget Hearing, whichever is applicable.

September 20th to October 8th Within 2 to 5 daysafter the appropriate advertisement is published, each tax-ing authority must hold a public hearing to adopt the nalmillage rate and budget. At this nal public hearing thetaxing authority will adopt the millage rate before adopt-ing the budget, by separate votes. Also, the taxing authori-

The Alphabet Soup Dictionary:

Understanding the Truth InMillage (TRIM) ProcessAccording to the Brevard County Property Appraisers web site, the Truth in Millage (TRIM)Notice is sent annually as required by law and:...tells you the taxable value of your property and provides information on proposed millagerates and taxes as estimated by each Brevard County taxing authority which includes theCounty Commission, School Board, Cities, etc....

The TRIM Notice also gives you information on proposed millage rates and taxes as esti-mated by your county taxing authorities. It also tells you when and where these authoritieswill hold public meetings to discuss tentative budgets and set your fnal tax millage rates.

The three great rights are so bound together as to beessentially one right. To give a man his life, but deny him hisliberty, is to take from him all that makes his life worth living.To give him his liberty, but take from him the property which isthe fruit and badge of his liberty, is to still leave him a slave.

- George Sutherland,Associate Justice o the United States Supreme Court, 1921.

By Penny CanalesSta Writer

The Founding Fathers designed the Constitution to protect therights Justice Sutherland spoke of. According to Blacks Lawdictionary, property is: the right to possess, use, and enjoy adeterminate thing (either a tract of land or a chattel); the rightof ownership or any external thing over which the rights of

possession, use, and enjoyment are exercised.According to the Brevard County Code Enforcement web site,

the mission of Code Enforcement is: to ensure and enhance thequality of life of county residents by requiring owners of propertyin non compliance with county codes, to come into compliance.

The Brevard County Code Enforcement Division 10th AnnualReport goes on to state that the Code Enforcement Core Values

are: protection of Constitutional Rights, continuous improvementthrough dedication to excellence, openness and transparency,

both within the department and the community, teamwork, andproblem solving.

The Brevard County Commissioners fund and operate the codeenforcement program for the unincorporated areas of BrevardCounty which include: Barefoot Bay, Cape Canaveral, CocoaWest, June Park, Kennedy Space Center, Malabar, Merritt Island,Micco, Mims, Palm Shores, Port St. John, Sharpes and SouthPatrick Shores.

The current department employs 12 full-time equivalentpersonnel, six code enforcement ofcers, one Field Supervisor,one Program Manager and four Support Staff. This is a reductionfrom the staff in 2000-2001 made of 16.25 full-time equivalents,nine code enforcement ofcers, one Field Supervisor, one ProgramManager and 5.25 Support Staffers.

According to the Code Enforcement web site, code enforcementis not supposed to be proactive: the process begins when acomplaint is received by our ofce and is assigned to a Code

Enforcement Ofcer to investigate. In 2009-2010 there were2,125 such calls which resulted in 4,135 investigations costing anaverage of $96.65 per investigation. The price tag? $398,487.95.The number of complaints in 1999-2000 was 4,729 and escalatedto 6,704 in 2001-2002.

Comparing the code enforcement budget of scal year 2000-2001 ($803,723) to the budget of 2010-2011 ($904,402), the

budget has increased by $100,679 over the last 10 years. Yet thenumber of complaints received in 2009 was less than half thenumber received in 1999/2000.

Salaries, including benets, for the 12 person department areas follows:

Manager - $93,862.45 (Solid Waste pays 48%)Supervisor - $72, 381.72 (Solid Waste pays 48%)Code Ofcers - $51, 632.44 to $60,304.72 (Solid Waste pays

48%)Administrative Secretary $46,768.82 (Solid Waste pays 48%)Projects Coordinator $46,863.95 to $57,317.34 (100% from

General Fund).

Not only are the salaries of the code enforcement supplementedby Solid Waste but so is nearly half of the vehicle eet which totalsseven. Four of the vehicles are supported by general funding.

The last Code of Ordinances for Brevard County was adoptedin 1994 by Truman Scarborough, Jr., District 1; Ron Pritchard,District 2; Nancy Higgs, District 3; Sue Carlson, District 4; JackieColon, District 5; Tom Jenkins, County Administrator; Scott KnoxCounty Attorney; and Scott Ellis Clerk to the Board of CountyCommissioners.

The code of ordinances is also continually updated. In Septemberan ordinance was passed to add denitions for: enclosed building;improper outdoor storage; litter; trash; junk or debris; outsideand outdoor; overgrowth and additional requirements to maintain

property and to add notice process. If youd like to share your experience with Brevard County

Code Enforcement, please contact Penny Canales via e-mail [email protected].

A Cut Above Video Production4450 W Eau Gallie Blvd, Suite 2202

Melbourne, FL 32934(321) 253-5677

Ashes Cigar Tavern7720 N. Wickham Road

Suntree, FL 32940(321) 255-5035

www.ashescigars.com

Atlantic Financial Advisors3682 N Wickham Rd #C

Melbourne, FL 32935(321) 751-5599

Data Doctors7640 N Wickham Road, Suite 119

Melbourne, FL 32940(321) 242-0366

www.datadoctors.com

Harbor City Animal Hospital7670-B North Wickham Road

Melbourne, FL 32940(321) 757-7993

www.harborcityanimal.com

Hoover Audio Visual3172 Skyway Circle Suite 2

Melbourne, FL 32934(321) 749-4455

www.hooverav.com

HSAs of Florida(321) 482-9552

www.hsasoffla.net

Imagjen That!PO Box 110991

Palm Bay, FL 32911(321) 676-5749

www.imagjenthat.com

Life Maid Easy(321) 604-0404

www.mylifemaideasy.com

Mater Team Automotive, Inc.6000 Technology Drive Unit A

West Melbourne, FL 32904(321) 722-1481

Jim Trainor, RealtorRE/MAX Olympic(321) 223-4912

Virtual Information Systems(321) 626-9791

www.virtualinfosys.us

WCN InteractivePO Box 373151

Satellite Beach, FL 32937(321) 446-2155

www.wcninteractive.com

county

Continued on page 6

Spotlight on:

Code Enforcement

Free Market Friendly Local BusinessesThese locally owned businesses are staunch supporters of Capitalism and haveput their money where their mouths are by actively supporting candidates andlegislation promoting less government intrusion in the marketplace.

Be sure to visit our web site at http://www.spacecoastsentinel.com for an up to the minute list!


6/8

Page 6 October 15, 2010 Space Coast SentinelVeritas Omnia Vincit


Tea Party movement should avoidwedge issues; focus on fiscal message

made a campaign spectacle

out of bailing out the banks.Hows JD Hayworth doingin challenging him? He lost,right? Howd that happen?The same way it alwayshappens: Hayworth let thecampaigns terms includethose wedge issues, and thengot tattoed by the guy withthe bigger warchest and theability to threaten people

politically.You either change the terms

of the debate and the issuesupon which the election isdecided or you lose.

Its that simple.The candidate that says this

to the TV cameras and his

opponent wins:I am running on scal

responsibility which I deneas (insert your platform),and on the removal ofembezzlement and fraud fromour government and nancialsystem, (insert your platform),including the reversal of the

bailouts my opponent votedfor and supported. Wherefraud and embezzlement took

place I will do everything inmy power to see that eachand every person involvedgoes to prison, starting withthose at the top of theselarge corporations and, whennecessary, current members

of our government.If you insist debating

other issues the microphoneis all yours, and you maymonopolize it all you want.We may agree or disagree

on those issues, but thatsnot what Im here to discuss,and its not what Im running

on.If you elect me you will

get the following(list of corruptionand fraud thatyou intend toexcise, alongwith your scalresponsibility

p r o m i s e s ,i n c l u d i n gcharts, facts andgures).

I understandthat theseother issuesare importantto virtually everyone, but Ialso understand that almost

exactly half of you who hearme speak now are on eachside of these issues and noneof you are going to changeyour mind.

Therefore,the questionI ask you isthis: Are thoseissues moreimportant thangetting ridof the fraud,cor rupt ion ,and scammingin ourgovernment and economy?

If they are, no matterwhich side of those issuesyou happen to be on, thenIm probably not yourcandidate.

If, on the other hand,xing our economy, lockingup the fraudsters and putting a

stop to the rampant theft fromeach and every citizen in thisroom, which has personally

indebted each and every man,woman and child in America

by more than$40,000 overthe last threeyears, is themost-importantissue before youas you head tothe polls, thenI ask for yourvote.

If you dontdo this as at h i r d - p a r t yor outsidercandidate, you

lose.You need to appeal to the

90% issues and ignore the50/50 ones.

On purpose.Oh sure, there will be some

people who wont vote for youwithout thoseanswers tothe questionsyou refuse toentertain andwaste yourtime on. Thesiren songfrom those

organizations, whether they be Focus on the Familyor Planned Parenthood isstrong. But their siren songis false, for every voter youattract by appealing to themcomes with one who will voteagainst you with rabid furor,and the direction in which

you declare your intentionson these issues doesnt matter- there is no winning in those

points of debate no matterhow you approach it. You canonly lose and worse, causethose most-aligned with youto lose.

In short those who thinkthat $40,000 is less importantthan your stance on abortionwill split their vote for andagainst irrespective of whichside of that issue you comedown on. Your opponent thatis closest to your personal

position on abortion will thuslose, and so will you!

The only way you canavoid this happening is tonot allow the debate to godown that road, and you must

be steadfast and studious inrejecting all entreaties andattempts to get you to speakon those issues, because thetwo major political partiesknow this is how they get youto forfeit your ability to win- the fact that you stand andrun on an issue they cannotagree with and yet which90%+ of the population seesyour way!

Denninger has been a full-time trader since 1998; authorof The Market Ticker (http://market-ticker.org), a daily marketcommentary, and operator ofTickerForum, an online tradingcommunity; both since 2007.Mr. Denninger received the2008 Reed Irvine Accuracy InMedia Award for Grassroots

Journalism for his coverage ofthe 2008 market meltdown.

Continued rom page 3

You either change theterms of the debate andthe issues upon which theelection is decided or you

lose.

The things he showed me made me so

angry I not only got involved, I actually

ran for ofce - something I never - ever

- considered doing. Im convinced that

when you see some of the things taking place right here in your backyard you

will nd a similar desire to become

engaged to help clean things up.

The mission of the Space Coast

Sentinel is to make local government

understandable and give you the

information and tools you need to hold

your local ofcals accountable.

Every month we will have a center

spread that covers a different topic in

depth. This month we look at the TRIM

process to learn how those notices

conveniently ended up hitting taxpayer

mailboxes the day AFTER the election.

We will have standing sections like the

upcoming Brevard Meltdown, where we

will give you a graphical representation ofBrevard Countys nancial deterioration.

We have similar graphs regarding the

states current nancial predicament in

this issue.

In the Alphabet Soup Dictionary

we explain what all of those cryptic

acronyms mean. TRIM, DROP, LOGT,

MSTUs, CRAs, RANs, COPs - your

elected ofcials dont want you to know

what these things are because knowledge

is power, and once you understand what

these are supposed to be used for and howthey are being used you will probably be

very upset.

The Spotlight section will zero in on

a particular county department every

month so you can judge for yourself

whether we should be raising taxes or

cutting spending.

My personal favorie is the Hall of

Shame - every month we will go back

and look at some of the biggest scandals

and spending debacles and who the key

players were. You may be surprised to

learn that not only were these folks not

red or voted out of ofce, they now

hold positions of even greater power.

Nye ran as a Republican for Brevard

County Commission Dsirtcit 4 in theAugust 2010 primary against incumbent

Commissioner Bolin. He currently

works as Regional Director for Verteks

Consulting, Inc., a leading provider of

voice and data networks.

Never give up, never surrenderContinued rom page 2

ty will ensure that the nal millage rate adoptedDOES NOT exceed the millage rate tentativelyadopted and indicated on the TRIM notice.

September 23rd to October 11th Within

3 days after the nal hearing, the taxing au-thority must send a copy of the resolution orordinance adopting the nal millage rate to theProperty Appraiser, Tax Collector, and the De-

partment of Revenue. In addition, the PropertyAppraiser must send the Certication of FinalTaxable Value on prescribed Form DR-422, toeach taxing authority and if applicable, FormDR-422-DEBT, Certicate of Final VotedDebt Millage. The DR-422 and DR-422DEBTstate any aggregate change in the assessmentroll from the preliminary assessment roll.

September 26th to October 14th Within 3days after the receipt of the forms listed above,the taxing authority must complete and certifythe nal millage(s) to the Property Appraiser.This is the ofcial notication of nal millage

rates to be used by the Property Appraiser to ex-tend taxes and certify the annual tax roll to theTax Collector.

Additional information about the TRIMprocess is found in Chapter 200 of the Flor-ida Statutes, which governs the process.

Blickley currently works as an auditor for the Brevard County Clerk of Court andis a candidate for Brevard County Prop-erty Appraiser. She can be reached by

phone at 321-514-3176 or through herweb site at http://www.danablickley.com.

Understand TRIM process to safe-guard your rights, real propertyContinued rom page 5

charges about his business conduct, saidBrown. Among many of those voters it may

be a question of whether to vote for Scott ornot vote in the governors race.

The big reason for Sinks move into paritywith Scott has been the turnaround in indepen-dent voters, who are often the key to victoryin close races, said Brown. Because theyare not members of either party, independents

are the most likely to be moved by questionsabout a candidates ethics.

Most voters, 86 percent, say their minds aremade up and they will not switch their alle-giance, with 13 percent - equally split amongSink and Scott voters - saying they mightchange their minds.

From October 6 - 10, Quinnipiac Univer-sity surveyed 1,055 Florida likely voters witha margin of error of +/- 3 percentage points.


Sink closes lead on Scott in latestQuinnipiac University polling data


7/8

October 15, 2010 Page 7Space Coast Sentinel Veritas Omnia Vincit


adult will be penalized $95 per year or 1% of annualincome. In 2016 the penaltiesrise to $695 per year and upto 2.5% of annual income fornot purchasing the mandatedhealth insurance.

This will logically result ingaming of the system wheresome will decide to pay the

penalty if it cost less than thehealth care plans available.This is already happening inthe state of Massachusetts.Under Massachusetts law,individuals cannot be deniedcoverage for pre-existing

conditions, which meansthey can opt in at any time.People thus opt not to havecoverage until they have anurgent need for it. They opt

in, utilize a lot of services,

and once the need has passedthey drop out again. It doesnttake a genius to gure out that

business model is impossibleto maintain.

The expansion of the stateMedicaid programs will putundue pressure on alreadystressed state government

budgets. As it stands now,Florida Medicaid comprises29% of the entire budget forthe State. With healthcarereform by 2014 that numberwill be over 50%.

An ongoing problemwith the problem we calledhealthcare is who is going

to pay for it. Now that one problem

has been solved by theintroduction of the limitedrisk pools for those whove

been denied coverage due

to pre-exisiting conditions,another problem has beenidentied - hardly anyonehas signed up - only a fewthousand to date nationally.

The premiums range from$363/monthfor 34 yearold and under,and more than$773/monthif you areover 55. Whyhavent more

people takenadvantage?Like a lot ofother things, those who tout

healthcare as a right dontthink they should be payingfor it.

It is more desirable tohave others (through layers

of government bureaucracy)

pay for your stuff. Or as aLegislator friend once toldme, everyone likes a tax thatsomeone else pays for.

In the end, we are all goingto pay for this nightmare

one wayor anotherunless wemake adifference on

No v e m b e r 2nd and elect

people whowant to focuson the thingsthat are wrong

with our current system, but

easily xed. These includetax deductions for individual

plans, transparency in billing,tort reform, allowing formore insurance products with

less government mandates

(buying insurance acrossstate lines) and expansion ofHealth Savings Accounts.

The debate about healthcare being a right or a

privilege has raged for a longtime. I believe health care is a

product to be bought and soldin the marketplace, just likeany other.

To those who thinkhealthcare is a right, I saythis: for years Ive done theright and responsiblething to always have personalhealth coverage, whether Iworked two to three jobs and/or purchased it myself. With

the passage of this healthcare reform legislation, itis no longer in my nancialinterest to act in this fashion.Economically speaking, I

am better off to game the

system. By declaring healthcare a right and passing thislegislation, the advocatesof this scheme have robbedme of my desire to exercise

personal responsibility anddo the right thing. There isntanything right about that atall!

Buttereld has been alicensed pharmacist andhealthcare provider for morethan 20 years. She started

HSAsofFLA LLC to helpindividuals and small tomedium size businesses ndthe most cost effective solution

for their individual and group

health insurance needs. Heragency has clients all overthe country, but is primarily

focused in the Southeast andthe State of Florida.

a campaign to push through anew growth management planthat narrowed the citys version

of its Hometown Democracy-style laws, St. Pete Beach wassued. Hundreds of thousandsof dollars in legal fees later,development slowly returned.

Amendments 5 & 6:Standards for legislatureto follow in legislative/Congressional redistricting

Ofcial Summary:Legislative/Congressionaldistricts or districting plansmay not be drawn to favoror disfavor an incumbent or

political party. Districts shallnot be drawn to deny racial orlanguage minorities the equalopportunity to participate inthe political process and electrepresentatives of their choice.Districts must be contiguous.Unless otherwise required,districts must be compact, asequal in population as feasible,and where feasible must makeuse of existing city, county andgeographical boundaries.

For: Fair District Florida,from their web site: The newrules or standards proposed by

FairDistrictsFlorida.org will prohibit drawing districts tofavor an incumbent or a party.The standards will requirethat districts be compact

and community based.Communities -- like SeminoleCounty -- will not be dividedamong multiple representatives.And Florida will have strongestconstitutional language in

the country to ensure thatredistricting is not used toreduce the representation ofracial and language minorityvoters.

Against: House andSenate Republicans.Critics, led by leaders of theFlorida Legislature, say theamendments goals, thoughlaudable, are impossible tomeet and would be impossibleto defend in court. Further,

they say, the amendmentsas proposed would preventlegislators from drawingdistricts that balance the

playing eld for minorities

(known as minority-accessdistricts), which historicallyhave not been compact and

by their nature favor one partyover another. (Collinscenter.org)

Amendment 8: Revision ofthe class size requirements for

public schoolsOfcial Summary:

The Florida Constitutioncurrently limits the maximumnumber of students assignedto each teacher in publicschool classrooms in thefollowing grade groupings: for

prekindergarten through grade3, 18 students; for grades 4through 8, 22 students; and forgrades 9 through 12, 25 students.Under this amendment, thecurrent limits on the maximumnumber of students assigned toeach teacher in public schoolclassrooms would becomelimits on the average numberof students assigned per classto each teacher, by speciedgrade grouping, in each publicschool. This amendment

also adopts new limits on themaximum number of studentsassigned to each teacher inan individual classroom asfollows: for prekindergarten

through grade 3, 21 students;for grades 4 through 8, 27students; and for grades 9through 12, 30 students. Thisamendment species thatclass size limits do not applyto virtual classes, requiresthe Legislature to providesufcient funds to maintain theaverage number of studentsrequired by this amendment,and schedules these revisionsto take effect upon approval

by the electors of this state andto operate retroactively to the

beginning of the 2010-2011school year.

For: Legislators attemptingto reduce impact and cost ofthe 2002 amendment. Fromthe Sun Sentinel on June23rd, Four gubernatorialcandidates have endorsedthe referendum going beforevoters in November to repealFloridas 2002 constitutionalamendment on class size.Democrat Alex Sink, whois Floridas Chief FinancialOfcer; Republicans Attorney

General Bill McCollum and businessman Rick Scott; andindependent Bud Chiles allsupport amendment 8, whichgives school districts exibility

in meeting the class-sizecaps.Against: Teachers Unions,

The class size provisionsvoters placed in the Constitutionhave had a practical and

measurable effect on classroomperformance. Teachers say theyhave made their classroomsmore manageable and testscores have risen steadilysince class sizes have begun toshrink.

Referendum: Balancing theFederal Budget. - A NonbindingReferendum Calling for anAmendment to the UnitedStates Constitution.

Ofcial Summary: In order

to stop the uncontrolled growthof our national debt and preventexcessive borrowing by theFederal Government, whichthreatens our economy and

national security, should theUnited States Constitution beamended to require a balancedfederal budget without raisingtaxes?

For: Republican backersin the state Legislature saythe question will providevoters with a chance to weighin on the issue. They also sayan afrmative vote would

put pressure on Congress totighten its belt and give Floridadelegates in Washington

political support to make theargument for an end to decitspending. Weve got to stopthis runaway train, said Sen.Garrett Richter, R-Naples, inregard to federal spending.(collinscenter.org)

Against: There is littleopposition since it is a non-

binding resolution andtherefore its passage has noeffect of law.

You can read Bellrosesballot recommendations onlineat www.spacecoastsentinel.com.

Ballot Amendments hard to understand; wrong choicescould have far reaching, devastating consequences

Full ramications of health care reform bill yet to come;study candidates position on free market solutions



Critics say theamendments goals,though laudable, are

impossible to meet, andwould be impossible to

defend in court...

Teacher Unions say theclass size provisions...have had a practical and

measurable effect onclassroom performance...

It is more desirable tohave others (through layersof government bureaucracy)pay for your stuff.... everyonelikes a tax that someone elsepays for.


8/8

Page 8 October 15, 2010 Space Coast SentinelVeritas Omnia Vincit


Monday, October 11th, 6pmRepublican Liberty Caucus

o Central East FloridaOctober Meeting

MeMaws BBQIndian Harbour Beach, FL

Thursday, October 14th, 6:30pmBrevard Republican Executive Committtee

October MeetingTemple Israel

Viera, FL

Monday, October 18th, 6:30pmCitizens or Constitutional

Property RightsOctober Meeting

Jimmies RestaurantTurtle Creek at Rockledge, FL

Thursday, October 21st, 10:30am

Republican WomensNetwork o South Brevard

October MeetingEau Gallie Yacht Club

Melbourne, FL

Thursday, October 21st, 6pmPort St Johns Patriots

October MeetingPort St John Community Center

Port St John, FL

Thursday, October 21st, 6pmRepublican Mens

Club o BrevardOctober MeetingDoubles Hoagies

Indian Harbour Beach, FL

Thursday, October 21st, 6pmRonald Reagan Clubs

October MeetingJimmies Restaurant

Turtle Creek atRockledge, FL

Brevard 912Organizer: Barbara KnickPhone: (321) 253-3500

E-mail: [email protected]: www.brevard912.net

Brevard RepublicanExecutive Committee

Chair: Barbara DavisPhone: (321) 254-0073

E-mail: [email protected]: www.brevardrepublicans.org

Brevard RepublicanMens Club

Chair: James MarshalPhone: (321) 243-1234

E-mail: [email protected]: www.meetup.com/republicanmensclub/

Brevard Tea PartyOrganizer: Matt Nye

Phone: (321) 626-9791E-mail: [email protected]

Web: www.brevardteaparty.com

Citizens or ConstitutionalProperty Rights

Chair: Clyde ThodeyPhone: (321) 453-5055

E-mail: [email protected]: www.brevardccpr.org

Melbourne Area FederatedRepublican Women

President: Barbara DavisPhone: (321) 727-1212

E-mail: [email protected]: www.melbournegopwomen.com

New Millenium ClubChair: Greta McLaughlinPhone: (321) 255-0619

E-mail: [email protected]

North Brevard Republican ClubChair: JB Kump

Phone: (321) 543-1608

E-mail: [email protected]: www.northbrevardrepublicans.us

Port St John PatriotsChair: Pat

E-mail: [email protected]: www.psjtptypatriots.com/

Republican Club o BrevardChair: Duwayne Lundgren


RLC o Central East FloridaChair: Bob White


Web: www.rlcce.org

Republican WomensNetwork o South Brevard

Chair: Margie KinderPhone: (703) 962-0315

E-mail: [email protected]: www.republicanwomen

networksouthbrevard.com

Ronald Reagan ClubsChair: Barry Plans


Web: www.ronaldreaganclubs.com

Space Coast Patriots

Chair: Judy TimothyE-mail:

Web: www.spacecoastpatriots.com

Titusville PatriotsOrganizer: Don ForwardPhone: (321) 421-6616

E-mail: [email protected]: www.titusvillepatriots.ning.com

Local Political/Grassroots OrganizationsGet involved and make a derence in your community!

Upcoming EventsGet o the couch and start mingling!

For an up to the minute list please visit ourweb site at www.spacecoastsentinel.com.

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