(news clips have not been kept updated - check
archives)
Old News
Speaker Feeney not
welcome at home
Election 2002:
Please let your readers know that they
have a choice in the Florida House District
38 race between Fred Brummer and Jim Martin.
Mr. Brummer has spent four years
supporting the Bushes in every anti-employee scheme. Check his
record.
Mr. Martin was an FDOT employee for the past 11 years and
quit his job to make things better. Please help him.
JM, 10/23/02
Food illnesses show sharp rise
Two sometimes-fatal food- borne illnesses are making hundreds more people in Central Florida sick this year compared with last.
9/24/02
Orlando takes up gay rights
After months of public debate, a City Council workshop, and 7,000 letters and phone calls to local leaders,it is unclear when -- or if -- a proposed gay- rights law will come to a vote in Orlando.
9/10/02
Nonprofit Housing Agency Nears Collapse
TAMPA - The yearlong implosion of the Tampa- Hillsborough Action Plan is nearly complete. Once a powerful voice for Tampa's black community, THAP funneled millions of government dollars into programs for the ...
9/5/02
Waste blights residents' lives
A South Apopka community survives amid a landfill, an incinerator and a sewage plant
8/4/02
Protect
treasure - The governor should name a group to protect the Wekiva and
build a road.-- Gov. Jeb Bush has before him a prime opportunity to
protect one of the state's premier environmental jewels, promote
responsible growth and solve one of Central Florida's most intractable
transportation woes. 7/29/02
Living
wage isn't commie thinking -- it's justice - We cannot continue to pay
working people so little without extracting a huge cost on our society. In
Central Florida, where one in four kids grows up poor, often with parents
working two jobs to survive, we see the consequences of our cheapskate
service and tourism economy. It costs our public schools more to help
those children, it costs the court and prison system more to deal with the
wayward ones, and it even costs businesses more in lower productivity and
higher turnover among those low-paid workers... ... Here's what the 1990s
corporate machinations wrought: Executive pay jumped 571 percent while the
average worker's pay rose only 37 percent over the same decade -- 34
percent in Central Florida. During that same time, the S&P rose 297
percent and inflation crept up by 27.5 percent, according to the Institute
for Policy Studies and United for a Fair Economy. 7/28/02
'Living-wage'
backers push for more
A day after Orange County adopted one of the weakest
"living-wage" policies in the nation, advocates vowed to
continue their fight to bring higher wages to low-paid government workers
throughout the region. 7/26/02
'Living-wage'
may lead to 66 raises
Study: More than 600 Orange County employees earn less
than $18,100 a year. 7/23/02
NASA
learns entire shuttle fleet has fuel-line cracks - CAPE CANAVERAL
-- NASA's newest shuttle was diagnosed Wednesday as having the same
potentially dangerous problem as the rest of the fleet: cracked fuel
lines. 7/11/02
Puffer
fish ban may be extended
State officials say they likely will lengthen a ban on catching and eating
puffer fish into October after a Brevard County fisherman was sickened by
the poisonous blowfish. State officials banned the taking of puffer fish
from the waters of several central Florida counties in April after 13
people became ill eating it. 7/7/02
Puffer
fish from Indian River lagoon poisons man
Despite repeated warnings and even a ban on eating puffer fish,
another fisherman has been poisoned after eating puffer fish caught in
the Indian River lagoon. 7/6/02
Medical
examiner feels pressure
The pathologist who ruled that an Orange County Jail
inmate died last year from forced methadone withdrawal is accusing county
officials of pressuring him to change his diagnosis. 7/4/02
Ghosts
of 2000 election haunt District 24 congressional race
ORLANDO — When Republican House Speaker Tom Feeney talks to GOP groups
about his likely Democratic opponent in Florida's District 24
congressional race, one subject always comes up. "The 2000
presidential election," Feeney said. Like it or not, the probable
matchup between Feeney and Democratic attorney Harry Jacobs is going to be
haunted by the ghosts of that election.7/1/02
Orlando:
Growing to pieces
The city often annexes plum land, aiding its tax
base but shortchanging some older areas. 6/23/02
'Living
wage' debate hits Central Florida-- When Orange County Chairman Rich
Crotty took the stage at his State of the County speech last week, he
talked about Central Florida's desperate need for higher-paying jobs.--
He didn't say anything about Rayshell Foster.--
Foster isn't high-paid at all. At $8.11 an hour, she makes just $16,868 a
year. That's less than the federal government's definition of poverty:
$18,100 a year for a family of four.--
Yet Foster -- a wife, mother of four, 40-hour-a-week employee and aspiring
homeowner -- works for Crotty. 6/14/02
|
Despite meeting for its third special session since the regular session ended
March 22, the Florida Legislature has yet to approve a state budget. That's not
a sterling resume for any legislature, much less one with Republican majorities
in both the House and Senate and a Bush brother in the governor's office.
So what was Speaker of the House Tom Feeney concentrating his efforts on Monday?
It wasn't passing a budget. Word Around The Clock is Feeney was giving some
long-distance tongue lashings to members of the Oviedo City Council. Four of the
five council members and the town's former mayor endorsed Seminole County
Commissioner Daryl McLain in his bid for the newly created 24th Congressional
District.
Since Feeney and his lieutenants drew the district specifically for him, the
Speaker is privately miffed that McLain is challenging him in the Republican
primary. Then along comes a four-fifths majority of the Oviedo council members
to pour salt in the wound. Oviedo is where Feeney calls home, at least since
1996 when he moved into the district to run for the house seat following Rep.
Marvin Couch's resignation.
....mw, 5/20/02
More articles on Feeney: (see also Daytona
Beach NewsJournal)
TALLAHASSEE -- Despite repeated claims that he
never used his influence to
benefit his client, House Speaker Tom Feeney
arranged at least one meeting
between state officials and an Oviedo computer
firm that was having trouble
with its state contract.-
E-mails obtained by The Daytona Beach
News-Journal through the state's
public records law contradict statements made by
the Oviedo Republican to
the state Ethics Commission, which cleared him of
ethical missteps
surrounding his ties to his client, Yang
Enterprises.-
Yang's dealings with the state have been at the
heart of an ongoing dispute
over questionable invoices in its $8 million
technology contract with the
Florida Department of Transportation...10/13/02
State helped Feeney's client
The speaker asked to see a glowing letter written on behalf of his client.
-- When a Florida Department of Transportation employee bad-mouthed an Oviedo computer firm to a potential client, House Speaker Tom Feeney got involved.--
After Yang Enterprises learned that the bad review could threaten their hopes of getting a state contract in Maine, the company had demanded the DOT write a letter to counteract the negative comments. But before the letter was mailed, Feeney, whose position made him the second-most-powerful person in Florida government for the past two years, asked to see a copy.--
His action has since raised ethical questions because the company was a client of Feeney's law firm and had paid the speaker to lobby local governments on its behalf. It is a violation of state law for an elected official to use his public position for personal gain, although it's unclear whether requesting to review the letter could be considered illegal.
10/9/02
Political ad riles Oviedo firm
- The new ad, paid for by his Democratic opponent for U.S. House District 24, Harry Jacobs of Altamonte Springs, touches on Feeney's moonlighting as a lobbyist for Yang Enterprises with Orange County government while he was running the state House in Tallahassee.--
The ad charges that Feeney improperly used his position to intervene in a $8 million contract dispute between the company and the state Department of Transportation. The dispute is the subject of a state Commission on Ethics complaint filed by a Volusia County Democrat. State ethics investigator Virlindia Doss found "no probable cause" to suggest Feeney violated state ethics rules, though the case will formally be heard later this month.
10/8/02
Close race for new seat a surprise
DAYTONA BEACH -- Harry Jacobs is amused to hear people refer to the 24th Congressional District as "the Feeney seat."
10/7/02
Feeney
donations travel far --According to a recent report, Feeney gets more cash
from in the 32312 ZIP code in Tallahassee than anywhere else. - Other
Tallahassee ZIP codes come in 4th, 5th and 7th place on his top 10, according to
the Web site www.opensecrets.org
-- a splendid site for those who want to know who is lining whose pockets.
9/26/02
Political
pitches reflect those of donors
A handful of donors to House Speaker Tom Feeney's early congressional campaign
later benefited in the state budget or had their interests promoted by the
Oviedo Republican during the last legislative session, an examination of
campaign finance reports and budget documents shows.7/28/02
The
kingmakers
Daryl McLain was out of the loop. It didn't take long for the
Republican Party to whip him back into line. 7/13/02
Panel
seeks return of worker who quit in DOT controversy
A state human relations panel is going to court to seek the reinstatement of a
worker forced to resign from the Florida Department of Transportation in the
wake of controversy over a computer contract between DOT and a legal client of
House Speaker Tom Feeney. 7/12/02
Seminole
official won't rival Feeney
Seminole County Commission Chairman Daryl McLain said
Monday he is withdrawing from the race for a new congressional seat at
the request of the Republican Party. 7/09/02
Feeney
hit with conflict of interest complaint
ORLANDO — A top Volusia County Democrat filed an ethics complaint Thursday
against Republican Tom Feeney, alleging he used his influence as Florida House
Speaker to shield a legal client from an investigation. The complaint was filed
with the Florida Ethics Commission in Tallahassee by Richard Martinez, vice
chairman of the Volusia County Democratic Party. Martinez lives in District 24,
the new congressional district that Feeney helped create and is running in this
election. The new district covers parts of Brevard, Orange, Seminole and Volusia
counties.6/14/02
Feeney
accused of conflict of interest
House Speaker Tom Feeney is accused of interfering in an investigation of a
client of his law firm.6/14/02
Florida
House Speaker refutes allegations
In response to the Sunday article in the Daytona Beach News-Journal
("Feeney's role in contract dispute questioned.") 6/12/02
Tangled
ethics: Yang controversy spotlights loopholes
On Nov. 21, House Speaker Tom Feeney was getting ready for a special session to
cut more than $1 billion from the state budget - including $20 million from the
state Department of Transportation.6/11/02
Feeney's
hide-and-seek undercuts his defense
Blacking out numbers of key phone calls. - The question, all along, has been
whether House Speaker Tom Feeney, R-Oviedo, had a state employee working on his
campaign for Congress on state time. Since his campaign seems to be running
better than the state, it's a reasonable question.
If the answer is "yes," state laws must have been broken.
The answer could be under black ink that covers some of the calls on telephone
records that Mr. Feeney had said, at various times, don't exist and aren't
anybody's business. 6/8/02
Democrats
add to Feeney complaint
Florida Democrats amend their federal elections complaint against House Speaker
Tom Feeney.5/23/02
Feeney
files on state computer
An aide to the Florida House speaker has campaign documents on her state
computer. TALLAHASSEE -- The state computer belonging to a top aide of House
Speaker Tom Feeney held a list of prominent GOP donors as well as travel
schedules for Feeney linked to his congressional campaign.5/22/02
Feeney
confidant for ethics panel? TALLAHASSEE -- Who better to name to the
state Ethics Commission than somebody already facing ethics charges?--
So went the logic in the office of House Speaker Tom Feeney, R-Oviedo, where a
memo contained on the computer of former aide Bridgette Gregory suggested naming
Feeney confidant Steve MacNamara to the panel that found probable cause that he
failed to register as a lobbyist while helping a client build a cement plant
along an environmentally sensitive river.--
Feeney spokeswoman Kim Stone said Tuesday the suggestion was not to be taken
seriously. 5/22/02
House
speaker sued for records access
Two newspapers want Tom Feeney to turn over cell phone records from a contract
now paid by the Republican Party.5/18/02
Lawsuit
pursues phone records - TALLAHASSEE -- The Orlando Sentinel and Tampa
Tribune sued Thursday to obtain the records of cellular telephones provided to
House Speaker Tom Feeney's statehouse staff by the Florida Republican Party.
5/17/02
Speaker
of Florida's House pays taxes late on own house
Florida House Speaker Tom Feeney was late paying his 2000 and
2001 property tax bills in Seminole County, according to tax collector records.
Florida
House speaker late to pay two years' property taxes
SANFORD — Florida House Speaker Tom Feeney, a key architect of Florida's
estimated $50 billion budget, was late paying his property tax bills two years
in a row, according to tax collector records. The Republican from Oviedo owns a
home in the city's Carillon subdivision assessed at $171,746. He paid $2,952.11
on Thursday, more than a month after the March 31 deadline.
|
State
flunks 68 schools
Orange County's school grades were among the
worst in the state, with 11 schools earning F's.6/13/02
First
Eastern Equine Encephalitis case in Volusia County
TALLAHASSEE — State officials confirmed Wednesday that a horse euthanized in
Volusia County with encephalitis symptoms had Eastern equine encephalitis, the
first case in that county this year. The 9-year-old mare showed symptoms of the
disease April 25 and was diagnosed with the disease two days later.6/13
Water
levels hit record lows: Summer rain predictions mixed
Water levels in two Central Florida lakes fell to record lows at official
monitoring stations in May and groundwater levels dropped 2.5 feet in Volusia
County.6/13/02
Bush
cuts rail project
A law that could help build a long-proposed Apopka civic
center received the governor's signature last week, but money for a rail spur in
Ocoee that could ease highway congestion got the ax. 6/11/02
Striking
workers at hotels at Disney World agree to contract
Striking workers at two hotels on Walt Disney World property approved a contract
Sunday that will allow many of them to return to work. Teamsters Local 385, the
union representing housekeepers, laundry workers, seamstresses and public area
attendants at Walt Disney World's Swan and Dolphin hotels, declared the strike
two weeks ago in one of the rare labor disputes in Orlando's tourism industry.
The contract covers 400 of the hotels' 2,000 workers. 6/10/02
High
school classes crowded as Board cuts 'core' jobs
Volusia County high school students can expect to find larger classes when they
return Aug. 12 from summer vacation.6/10/02
Daytona
Beach commission moves to control special events
More control over tourism-based special events has officials here promoting
year-round business and increasing police involvement in regulating noise,
traffic and unruly behavior. From February to early April, this beachside town
of 65,000 people is invaded by hundreds of thousands of visitors attending
Biketoberfest, Bike Week, Spring Break and Black College Reunion.6/10/02
Critics:
Winter Park favors parking over people
An agency created a decade ago to help the city's foundering
west side is considering spending as much as $500,000 to expand a parking garage
on the city's tony Park Avenue, city planning officials said.5/23
Lost
Jewels
Within a decade, area lakes and wetlands could be drying
up.5/6/02
Wither
the springs
Raindrops that fell on Florida during the times of the Egyptian
pharaohs, the Trojan War and the founding of Rome only now are gushing forth
from the mouths of the state's springs.
Polk
County suffers through outbreak of hepatitis A
For more than six decades, John's Restaurant was an institution in this quaint
rural town, drawing generations of steady customers with its good food and
friendly atmosphere. Then in February, a 29-year-old woman died of liver failure
after eating a meal of chicken wings and cheese fries from John's.
Blowfish
poisonings rattle science world
First, they felt a tingling in their lips and tongues. Then it
spread to their faces, arms and legs. They were drowsy and nauseated. One of
them had to be put on a ventilator for days.
Backroom
dealers-- Once again taxpayers don't know what
lobbyists told two commissioners.
Consulting
firm hires familiar face at City Hall
The company that hired away one of Orlando's top government
officials has received more than $1 million in city contracts over the past
eight years -- all of it from agencies and projects that he led.
Fruit
trees in Brevard test positive for canker-- Florida's long and
discouraging battle with citrus canker worsened this week with the
discovery of the virulent Asian strain of the crop disease in Brevard
County, one of the state's prime grapefruit-producing
counties.--
Brevard is the 10th county, and the most northern along the Indian
River citrus region, to face an outbreak of the bacterial disease in
the current eradication campaign. The disease does not harm humans,
but it ruins fruit and is widely considered the worst threat to the
state's $8-billion-a-year citrus industry.
Cirent
will leave anyway
Between 1995 and 1999, state and local officials
created an incentive package full of tax breaks and public money the
likes of which Central Florida had never seen -- all for a company
that announced this week that it is leaving town.
Hood
seeks state investigation of cover-up claim
Orlando Mayor Glenda Hood asked the Florida
Department of Law Enforcement on Wednesday to investigate a City
Council member's allegation of a cover-up at City Hall.
Others
feast on tourism tax bounty
Day 2 of the Sentinel's five-day series shows while tourism generates
loads of tax dollars, only a fraction of it stays in Central Florida.
Leaders
seek out regional solutions
About 200 leaders from throughout Central Florida
gathered Thursday in Kissimmee, vowing to solve virtually all of the
region's woes -- from crowded and low-performing schools to clogged
roads and an economy dominated by low-paying jobs.
Census:
Many love area, then leave it
Between 1999 and 2000, an estimated 174,000 people moved to
metropolitan Orlando from other parts of Florida, the nation and the world,
according to new census figures released today.
Hickory
Point signs warn of toxic algae - TAVARES -- The Lake County Water
Authority is warning swimmers about potentially dangerous toxic algae
found in water at the Hickory Point recreation complex. 11/1
Menace
lurks hidden in lakes - Dangerous amounts of toxic algae -- one
sample showed 354 times the level considered safe -- infest popular
Central Florida lakes where people spend weekends swimming, fishing
and skiing. - Twenty of the 23 lakes tested in a joint investigation
by the Orlando Sentinel and Central Florida News 13 turned up enough
of the toxic algae to cause vomiting, bloody diarrhea, trouble
breathing, skin rashes, mouth ulcers, blisters and eye irritations in
people who play in the water. 8/26
Billionaires
benefit from Hood's legacy - ...The beneficiaries of Glenda's
largess are the Pritzker family, billionaire owners of the Hyatt
chain. The Pritzkers bought the Baldwin Park site for $6,900 per acre,
close to what you would pay for good muck land in the Everglades.--
You'd think that would be enough of a giveaway. But Glenda threw in
$13.5 million in impact-fee credits, another $12.6 million for parks
and about $20 million in low-interest loans. The Pritzkers also got
$76 million in tax-free bonds....
As
you can see, this and the other regional pages are only suggestions /invitations
of what could be. If you know of an individual or group that would like to
attend to this page or know of any sites that this page can link to please contact
us. thanks.
(Top) (Home)
