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Major changes to the state’s KidCare program will be discussed tonight in Tallahassee. Lawmakers want to expand coverage to every kid and as Whitney Ray tells us they also want KidCare to pay for autism treatment.

Twelve years ago Laurie Staples gave birth to a seemingly healthy baby girl.

“She seemed normal, she walked, she talked, she played,” said Staples.

But by the age of two it became obvious something was wrong.

“She screamed bloody murder and I took her to doctors told me it was autism,” said Staples.

After a few years of treatment, Laurie’s daughter Caitlyn began to improve, but her progress was halted. Laurie’s insurance company stopped paying for therapy. Thousands of Floridians have similar stories. Now lawmakers are joining the battle.

“If we just addressed the private insurance market through a mandate we would only be addressing 43 percent of this population,” said Representative Bill Galvano.

Galvano serves on a select committee trying to expanding KidCare. The committee will look at adding autism treatment to the services paid for by the program and offering the insurance to everyone in the state.

Some people on the insurance pay 20 bucks or less for coverage, that could soon change. If the program is expanded statewide, premiums could be raised, slightly. Galvano said expanding KidCare would send a message to insurance companies.

“If they’re not able to come up with a solution, show us new product line, show us how you’re going to regulate your own industry, then a mandate will be coming,” said Galvano.

Lawmakers hope leading by example will persuade insurers to follow, so they don’t have to force the industry’s hand.

Black men have the lowest life expectancy in the country. They have higher rates of cancer than white men and die more frequently of the disease. Lawmakers joined doctors and professors at FAMU Monday in Tallahassee to announce the launch of the Coalition on African American Men’s Health. The coalition will try to figure out why black men have a harder time fighting cancer. House Representative Curtis Richardson said the state is already spending money looking for an answer.

“We’ll spend millions of dollars over the next several years on biomedical research and we included language in our biomedical research legislation that would cause them to focus specifically on minority health disparities while trying to recruit minority health practitioners,” said Richardson

Doctors and lawmakers agree that education is important in the fight against cancer. The coalition will try to educate high risk groups.

Lawmakers and people in the movie industry gathered to honor a fallen legislator. The late Don Davis arguably did more than any other lawmaker in his time to bring film crews to Florida. The former state representative helped pass an incentive package for film crews who choose to shoot movies in Florida. Today at the Capitol Film Florida announced the “Don Davis Film Finishing Fund.” The fund would provide completion funds to independent producers and filmmakers working in the Sunshine state. One of Davis’ longtime friends and fellow lawmaker Dick Kravitz said the fund keeps Davis’ dream alive.

“He would be so happy,” said Kravitz. “He’d be so happy if he were here today to see this great honor that you’re bestowing upon him.”

Davis died earlier this month. Forty-Eight films are slated to be shot in Florida this year compared to just eight last year.

A property tax cut you could vote on in November is being challenged by a state senator. Later this week the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission will vote on a plan that would cut property tax by 25 percent and raise the state sales tax by a penny. Cutting property tax by 25 percent would reduce school funding by more than 8 billion dollars, while early estimates show a penny sales tax increase wouldn’t raise near as much. Senator Mike Haridopolos said the plan will actually increase taxes in the long run.

“People are going to think this is some major tax decrease in exchange for a one penny sales tax. That’s far from the truth and we just want to make sure all the information is out there so people can make an informed decision and it doesn’t get framed as a tax break when in fact it is just the opposite,” said Haridopolos.

If the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission approves the plan, then it would be in the hands of voters in November.

Casting your ballot and having it counted this fall could be problematic say several voting rights groups. The NAACP, The ACLU, and others say Florida is the most hostile state in the nation to new voters. But as Mike Vasilinda tells us, the state argues that just because they say it, doesn’t make it true

Under Florida law, former felons still face huge hurdles registering to vote. Supervisors of elections are forbidden from hand counting paper ballots, and new identification standards make it easier to deny someone the right to vote. Leon supervisor Ion Sancho says that’s just the beginning.

“We seem to be more concerned with keeping people away from the voting processes, making provisional voting harder, making it more difficult to early vote,” Sancho said.

The ACLU says big changes are needed.

“Being Bill and having a social security card registered as William should not prevent a person from exercising the right to vote,” Courtney Strickland with the ACLU said.

But the state says it goes out of the way to make sure votes are counted.

“I think we’re smart enough to know Mike and Michael are the same person,” Secretary of State Kurt Browning said. “So we would, in fact, clear that on through as a match voter registration.”

The state argues people have plenty of time to make sure things are right.

“You have 23 months in which you can register to vote,” Browning said. “We go to great lengths to insure that the voters are on the list.”

In May, the Florida Supreme Court will hear this Sarasota case, which could result in more power shifting to the state.

The suit involves Sarasota wanting stricter audit procedures than called for in state law.
It is a continuation of a fight over who controls elections…the state or local supervisors.

Nine families who bought land for their dream homes from the states largest landowner have had their dreams smashed.  The homes were built at a time when St. Joe Company did not need a permit to fill a low lying area and as Mike Vasilinda tells us, the fill the company used is creating a nightmare for residents.

In the mid 1980’s St. Joe Paper Company filled this low lying area in Port St. Joe. It used scraps from the company’s nearby paper mill. It then sold the lots with the help of  Federally insured loans.  Today, 9 homes sit on the filled area, but they are sinking.  This water meter was once flush with the ground.

Vernell Bailey raised six kids here, but the house is collapsing and condemned.

“Like this, the wall was coming away from the corner,” Bailey said. “All this here.”

The once solid wood fill underneath has since rotted, creating a mush under the homes. Driveways are cracked.  Windows are falling out. Walls inside and out have split.

Some residents use a rag to keep bugs and snakes out.

“Insects are coming in your house,” Charlie and Dorothy Ash said. “[Grandkids are] afraid. When they go to sleep, they have to leave the lights on.”

Federal money guaranteed the loans for the houses, so U.S. taxpayers may be out if the homeowners default. So far the company is giving the lawyer hired by the families a cold shoulder.

“They’re not saying that we didn’t sell you bad land,” Attorney Ben Crump said. “They’re saying for technical reasons, you can’t hold us responsible.”

Tougher standards are in place today which would have specified what fill the company could use.

Lawmakers want to ban a truck accessory some find offensive. They’re called “Truck Nutz.” “Truck Nutz” are plastic replicas of bull genitalia and as Whitney Ray tells us, drivers hang them from their bumpers.

For some people their truck is their most prized possession. They raise the cab, upgrade the tires, and even give their truck a gender. Today’s masculine vehicles have “Truck Nutz.” While some people think the plastic testicles are offensive, other just think they’re funny. Truck driver Lee Wagner isn’t laughing.

“You can’t ban stupidity,” said Wagner.

But Thursday Senators took a step toward clipping the potentially offensive accessory. If signed into law, drivers would have to neuter their vehicles or face a 60 dollar ticket. Men, who decided not to emasculate their vehicles, may face a stiffer penalty.

“Would you ever date a guy who had a pair of these on his truck,” a Capitol News reporter asked FAMU Sophomore Ava Virella.

Virella considered the question, but then decided.

“I doubt it, I really doubt it,” said Virella.

Opponents of the bill say these are just an expression of free speech and banning them would violate the constitution.

“If you want to put them on then put them on, but I wouldn’t put them on my car, nah, not on my car,” said Shivaya Way.

Some say just the fact that lawmakers are debating the issue proves they’ve gone nuts. A ban on “Truck Nutz” was added as an amendment to a transportation bill. The main purpose of the bill is to allow hybrid drivers unlimited access to the carpool lane.

Senator Mike Haridopolos held a public hearing to talk about a plan approved by the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission. The tax swap plan would trade a 25 percent cut in property tax for penny sales tax increase. Haridopolos said the plan would actually raise the amount of tax Floridians pay, because a one cent sales tax increase wouldn’t raise enough money to fill the gap left by the property tax cut.

“The best way to describe this plan is it’s unstable, it’s uncertain, and it does not bring jobs into this economy. And without question it overtaxes what I think are already over-taxed Floridians under the guise of a property tax cut, which we’re all for. But you’re taxing them through the back door,” said Haridopolos.

The Taxation and Budget Reform Commissions will have a chance to revote on the issue. If no one changes their original vote the plan will be put on the November ballot.

Speaker of the House Marco Rubio put his foot down today. Rubio ordered every representative to sit down. He demanded the doors to the House chamber shut and the internet turned off. Rubio was enraged after House Democrats attempted a filibuster of sorts by requesting every bill on the calendar be read in full.

“Every Bill on this agenda will be read in full. The clerk will secure the chamber. The sergeant will secure the chamber. Each member of the House will be, I’ll order the sergeant to find each member of the House and bring them into the chamber, and I think we’ll make plans to be here quite a while. I apologize to those of you who had evening plans,” said Rubio.

Many Jewish lawmakers had plans to get home for a religious holiday, but some worry Rubio’s demands may have delayed their plans.

Lawmakers say state money being spent on art could serve a better purpose. A bill to cut funding for art in city, county and state buildings passed a Senate committee today. As Whitney Ray tells us, the idea may be more about priorities than it is about saving money.

Sculptor Michael Jernigan chooses to craft his latest work inside the Capitol. This sculpture “Officer Down” will be featured out front in the Courtyard. Jernigan says Public buildings need art.

“If you take that away then you just lose part of your soul,” said Jernigan.

Half a percent point of the total budget for state buildings is set aside for paintings, sculptures and fountains. Senator Ronda Storms says given the current budget deficit art should be on the chopping block.

“Talk to people who are not getting raises, and who are having to face cut backs, and it’s in appropriate for us to be spending money on art when some people are taking out their stuff in boxes,” said Storms

The money is used to buy from Florida artist only. Fred Doyle joined his Daughter Ellen on a field trip to the Capitol Thursday. The dolphins outside the Capitol caught Ellen’s eye.

“I really like marine life,” said Ellen.

Fred said art enhances the experience.

“I think it’s important that the state funds that kind of art investment. We enjoy it,” said Fred.

Regardless of the opposition to cut art funding, Storms says at the very least the idea raises some questions about the state’s financial priorities. Last year about 700,000 dollars was spent to buy art for public buildings.

Governor Charlie Crist continues to tout his plan to make insurance reasonable for the state’s millions of uninsured. Tuesday Crist’s plan passed the Senate unanimously. Crist wants to provide insurance to Floridians ages 19 to 64, at cost as low as 150 dollars a month. The governor said his plan is about people not politics.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re a Republican a Democrat or an Independent when the people give you the great honor of saying I want you to represent me, than what you told them in the course of a campaign is that you were going to go to Tallahassee and fight for them, then you damn sure better do it. Or you won’t be back here,” said Crist.

Crist plan faces its biggest test in the House, where some lawmakers want to change the health insurance plan.

A few of Florida’s bravest were at the Capitol today to support a plan to help men and women returning from Iraq. Governor Charlie Crist joined ranking members of the Army, Navy and Marines to support the Florida Veterans First initiative. The Veteran will over guidance to soldier returning from Iraq. It’s made up of members of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, the Agency for Workforce Innovation, and Workforce Florida. Executive Director of Veterans’ Affairs Admiral LeRoy Collins Jr. says young veterans have a lot on their plates.

“They have needs such as education, retraining, they have to get mortgages, and so the need is very different. And so were working with the agency of work innovation to make that happen,” said Collins.

The group set up a website to help veterans find state funded services. The address is www.FloridaVetsFirst.com.

3 months ago today, Amber Denise Lee was kidnaped raped and murdered in Charlotte County on Florida’s Southwest coast.  Several people called 911 to report a woman screaming in a car, but dispatchers ignored the urgency. On today’s anniversary, state lawmakers moved one step closer to requiring training for 911 operators.

A Senate committee room was packed, and hushed as Denise Amber Lee’s father told lawmakers about an apparent series of keystone cop like occurrences that meant the difference between life and death for his daughter.

“And if you listen to the 911 call, you can hear them screaming at each other, laughing in th background, and shouting,” Lee’s father, Richard Goff said. “And I don’t think that’s very appropriate. But as of that day, the deputy was sitting, waiting in that car while the suspect drove right by him. If he had had that call answered correctly and dispatched correctly, she’d be alive with us today.”

But the hearing pointed to bigger problem and it came from  the Association of 911 Operators.

“We have one of the highest turnover rates of anyone in the country,” Lobyist Richard Pinsky said.

Despite questions about the voluntary nature of the certification, costs, and turnover, the Senate Committee vote was unanimous. Outside Amber Lee’s father and husband showed no joy.

“It really doesn’t matter what day it is, it’s still tough because my daughter, our daughter is not with us today to be here,” Goff said. “We’re here because of her death and it’s tragic and it doesn’t matter what day it is, it doesn’t make it any better.”

The family says it will be at the Capitol every opportunity to see the legislation through, hoping a lot of good comes from their tragedy.

Despite one of the biggest budget shortfalls in state history, Governor Charlie Crist wants to lower taxes. Crist says a gas tax holiday would help Florida families, but as Whitney Ray tells us, a gas tax holiday in 2004 may have hurt more than it helped.

Gas prices are so high Whitney Hodges is hanging up her car keys.

“I’d rather catch the bus than put gas in my vehicle because it’s higher,” said Hodges.
The price of a gallon of gas at a Tallahassee station is about $3.40. More than 30 cents of the cost is state tax. Governor Charlie Crist wants to reduce the state’s cut, for a little while.

“I think reducing gas taxes is a good thing to do and if we can do it we should certainly try,” said Crist.

Crist doesn’t have a sponsor, doesn’t know when the break would happen, or how much of a break there could be. Still drivers like the idea.

“It helps a little bit in the long run and every little bit helps,” Bo Bemis said while he filled up his tank.

In 2004 a similar plan was implemented, but it may have done more harm than good. People took advantage of the tax break and stocked up on gas, disrupting supply and demand. Some gas stations cheated and didn’t lower prices as much as they should have. Despite those pit falls, the biggest issue this year may be the failing budget.

“It’s tougher in a year like this. I understand that. I appreciate that. What’s tougher on Tallahassee is tougher on Florida Families,” said Crist.

In 2004 gas prices were lowered 8 cents a gallon. Families saved about two buck a tank and the state lost 60 million dollars. Tuesday Presidential Candidate Senator John McCain called for a summer long ban on federal gas taxes.

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The parents of a murdered teenager are a step closer to being awarded 1.7 million dollars. In 2004, 14 year old Jaime Gough was reportedly killed by a classmate at a Miami-Dade middle school. Wednesday the state Senate approved a claims bill for the Gough family. The victim’s father George Gough said while he’s happy with the vote, it’s not an easy process.

“My son is not here anymore. Going through all this hurts, it hurts. I just have to hold my head up for my son,” said George Gough.

The House has yet to take up the bill.