LWVOC Blow By Blow Blog

Just when you think....

By Ann Hellmuth

I'm always amazed at how quickly life can change. A casual remark, a phone call, a meeting, a trip to the doctor.

On Tuesday i had my regular checkup with our family doctor and happened to mention that my husband had a bad cough. "Get him in here right away," my doctor ordered. "He needs to be checked."

The reason for the concern is that last year my husband was treated for Stage 3A non-small cell lung cancer. He had intensive radiation and chemotherapy, sometimes simultaneously. One thing led to another and he suffered a major heart attack, which left him with aortic stenosis. But after a few months the cancer was supposedly vanquished, he was building his strength at cardio rehab and seemed better than he had in years. The doctors were even talking about being able to operate on the heart.

At the end of August, my husband headed to Germany to celebrate his sister's 81st birthday. He got back last weekend.

On Wednesday, after I delivered the doctor's orders to get in there quick, he saw our doctor, had a chest x-ray, which showed problems, and on Thursday morning had a CT scan. At 6 p.m. Thursday a nurse called to say the CT scan showed a 5 mm node in the place where the cancer was before. He needed to see his oncologist.  We are now facing a Catch 22 situation. The heart condition could prevent fullout treatment on the lungs and the lung treatments could affect the heart.

Back to Google to try and find out what everything means. On the plus side the node is small. Meanwhile, being League president will help me keep focused on other things. Hope to see you all at the Oct. 12 Hot Topics on the high price of domestic abuse.

 

 

State Sen. Dan Gaetz lays out redistricting plan

MEMO RECEIVED TODAY FROM SEN. DAN GAETZ

     Having completed our statewide listening tour, the Senate Committee on Reapportionment is ready to proceed to the next step in the redistricting process. At our upcoming interim committee meetings members will be discussing region-specific scenarios for drawing State Senate, State House, and Congressional districts in Florida. These scenarios are based on the public suggestions and maps we received during the hearings held this summer.

 Because of your position as a leader in your community, I want to take this opportunity to share additional details about our schedule and procedures that will guide us through the process.

     November 1 will be the deadline for the public, interest groups, and senators to submit maps for consideration by the Committee. Chairman Weatherford and I have once again appealed to interest groups, particularly those representing minorities, to be specific and timely with their proposals for district boundaries.

• Senate Reapportionment Committee meeting notices will be published seven calendar days prior to the meeting and will indicate particular plans on the agenda for the meeting. Maps, statistics, and downloads for plans may be accessed by going to the Submitted Plans page on the Senate Redistricting website. Time will be provided at each Committee meeting for public comment and testimony regarding scenarios described by professional staff or plans proposed by the public, interest groups, or senators.
• During Committee meetings, senators will consider plans proposed by the public, interest groups, or senators and the merits of drawing district lines one way or another. Based on our collective guidance, professional staff will develop proposed committee bills containing complete statewide maps for congressional and state legislative districts before November 30. In order to reach our goal of being in a position to vote to introduce the proposed committee bills at our meeting the week of December 5, the Committee will follow the schedule outlined below.
  • October 5 the Committee will discuss scenarios for drawing congressional and state legislative districts in northwest Florida based on suggestions and maps submitted by the public, interest groups, and senators.
  • The week of October 17 the Committee will discuss scenarios for drawing congressional and state legislative districts in northeast and central Florida based on suggestions and maps submitted by the public, interest groups, and senators.
  • The weeks of October 31 and November 14 the Committee will discuss scenarios for drawing congressional and state legislative districts in southeast and southwest Florida, respectively, based on suggestions and maps submitted by the public, interest groups, and senators.

As the Chairman of the Committee on Reapportionment, I have encouraged the adoption of a policy that will prevent last-minute material changes. In committee, amendments filed less than 48 hours before noticed meeting times will not be heard, regardless of sponsorship. Additionally, I am asking the Rules Chair to adopt a similar policy for the Senate floor in order to keep this process open and transparent. Doing so will give members and the public an ample opportunity to question, consider, and debate the impacts of amendments.

Although the Committee has already conducted 71 hours of public hearings at 26 locations during which 1,700 citizens have testified, the Committee intends to continue its open and interactive process of engaging the public. Citizens and interest groups are encouraged to access frequently updated materials on the Senate Redistricting home page, attend interim meetings, testify, draw and submit maps, send critiques or suggestions to the Committee via [email protected], or communicate with their own Senators directly. If you cannot attend the committee meetings they can be viewed online on the Senate’s Media Page or The Florida Channel’s Redistricting Video Library.

 The committee professional staff is also investigating the feasibility of teleconferences or tele-town hall meetings to get additional public involvement prior to the Committee reporting committee bills to the Senate. Such a teleconference or tele-town hall meeting would be scheduled sometime after the week of December 5.

 Your interest and input are appreciated. Please continue to stay involved in whatever way you can.

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A news-filled day

By Ann Hellmuth

So many stories of interest in today's Orlando Sentinel. I haven't finished breakfast because I've been so busy pulling down stories to share with you all and linking them on Facebook.

For me personally the biggest jolt came when I read that columnist Mike Thomas is leaving the Sentinel after nearly 30 years. Mike and I worked together on many major stories over the years dating back to 1987 when I was the State Editor and he was in the Tampa bureau. His copy was an "easy edit" but if you wanted to change something you'd better have a good reason. I wish Mike well in his new career with the Orange County school district.

Another story that hit home was David Damron's story on tonight being the last meeting of the Orange County Redistricting Advisory Committee. As a member of the committee I've been spending hours poring over maps and trying to decide the best way to redraw the six districts based on Census 2010 figures. Last week's meeting ran into the wee hours. Tonight RAC chairman Derek Bruce has scheduled public comment at the start of the meeting before we decide which proposal (or proposals) to send to the commission members, who have the final word. http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2011/09/final-rules-for-oranges-heated-redistricting-process-revealed.html

City Hall reporter Mark Schleub captured the challenges of redistricting with a story on how the City of Orlando's Redistricting Advisory Committee may end up diluting black voting power because of an exodus of black voters from District 6 and District 5. A plan to be considered next week would leave District 6 with a black population of 42.7 percent. 

Report on Sunshine Law workshop

By Michele Levy
LWVOC 1st Vice President
     Barbara Peterson of the First Amendment Foundation kicked off a Sunshine Law workshop Monday citing Florida Constitution and the right it gives Floridians to access, inspect or copy any official record and to attend all public meetings.
     The workshop, held at the Orlando Sentinel, was co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters Florida. Members attending included State president Deirdre Macnab, former LWVOC President Charley Williams, board members Michele Levy, Sandra Powers, Laurie Wack and Sara Isaac. LWVOC President Ann Hellmuth stopped by before heading to UCF where she spoke about redistricting. Among the nearly 50 participants were League members from throughout the State and a number of Orlando Sentinel reporters.
     Peterson said that under the Sunshine Law all meetings of public agencies must be open to the public, reasonable notice must be given and minutes must be take.
     Workshop participants went over some scenarios and discussed evasive procedures and when the Sunshine Law does not apply. One example cited was the long-running Keesler vs. Comm.Maritime Parks case filed by two Pensacola activists who argued that a branch of Pensacola City government violated the Sunshine Law by refusing to let members of the public speak at its open meetings. The First District Court of Appeal affirmed a lower court ruling holding that while the Sunshine Law requires meetings to be open to the public, the law does not give the public the right to speak at the meetings. The case is still on appeal.
      Peterson outlined exemptions to the constitutional right of access and a pending case in the Third District Court of Appeal, which might contradict the Keesler ruling. She also discussed sanctions for being in violation of the Sunshine Law, key definitions, response time and reasonable fees for public record requests.
     There were questions about the apparent deletion of Gov. Rick Scott's emails during his transition period, but Peterson was careful to stress that the issue is still being litigated.

Orange Commissioner Ted Edwards changing vote

Just got notification from Commissioner Ted Edward's office that he intends to rescind his vote to tie a referendum on whether to offer property-tax breaks for expanding high-tech businesses to the presidential primary.

Download Noticeofmotiontorescind092611.doc

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Don't tie local referendum to presidential primary

The process adopted by Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs and members of the County Commission to tie a referendum on whether to offer property-tax breaks for expanding high-tech businesses to the presidential primary is unfair to the electorate ("Done deal: GOP will decide local tax cut," Orlando Sentinel editorial, Thursday).

Whether the primary is held in January or March, it can be safely predicted that mainly Republicans will turn out to select from a line of presidential candidates. President Obama will not be seriously challenged, and Florida is a closed primary state.

It would be fairer to hold the referendum vote in August when both Democrats and Republicans will be having state primaries (as Commissioner Tiffany Moore Russell suggested) rather than virtually excluding independent voters and stacking the deck against those who may not support the tax break.

The League of Women Voters of Orange County is committed to ensuring that as many people as possible exercise their right to vote. We call on Jacobs, who has always been committed to ethical government, and the County Commission to schedule the referendum for August, guaranteeing the greatest public participation.

Ann Hellmuth President, League of Women Voters of Orange County

All about Voter Services

By Charley Williams
State Voter Services Chair
 
Voter Services is one of the most important League functions. Here are some of the things it does:

• Produces the Orange County Voter Guides for the Aug. 14 Florida primary and the Nov. 6 general election. The August primary will be the first election to use the new redistricting boundaries.

• Moderates and coordinates requests for the LWVOC to participate in candidate forums.
• Makes sure our Adopt-a-Precinct team has the support it needs for their marathon 17-hour days (coffee, snacks etc.).
• Implements a distribution plan for the LWVOC and LWVFLA special edition of the Voter Guide, which profiles candidate running for statewide office as well as the pros and cons of constitutional amendments.
• Supplies our Speakers Bureau (led by Adrienne Katz Katz)) with the latest updates on election law changes.
• Encourages all voters to update (name, address etc.) their voter record THIS YEAR to be ready for 2012. It is simple. Call Orange County Supervisor of Elections and you’ll be covered for all three elections next year.

Schroeder reports on European Women's Congress

By PAT SCHROEDER

Former Congresswoman Connie Morella, a Republican and I were invited by the State Department to represent the United States at the Third European Congress of Women in Warsaw, Poland. The Congress started three years ago and had won a mandate that 35 percent of candidates for office must be women.

The first election under this new law is Oct. 12. You can't imagine the energy and excitement in the Hall. Over 8,000 women came to the Palace of Culture, a gift to the Polish people from Stalin. The Palace is huge, but not big enough. Overflow rooms with closed circuit TV were used. Next year they are moving the event to the stadium! Each region wore some distinguishing item such as a tee shirt, hat or sash. It was beyond colorful.

The Congress met for two days. We talked to so many candidates and spoke on many topics. Connie and I were in the Congressional Women's Caucus together. It was the largest bipartisan caucus in the U.S.Congress.

Obviously, the Poles were very interested in how we worked across party lines to pass so many pieces of legislation for women and families. Sadly, our caucus was seriously weakened by then House Speaker Newt Gingrich. We told them to expect their male colleagues to be very threatened by women meeting across party lines! Who knew we looked so "revolutionary!"

Their Women's Congress has been working on a list of issues they want their government to address. There are 200 items on the list. Some have been passed, like the 35 percent rule. The issues look very much like the ones American women work on, domestic violence, child care, elder care, health issues, equal pay and opportunities and so on.

It was a real honor to represent the U.S. at such an event and I felt like I was back in the 60's and 70's in our country when we were so optimistic and full of hope. Our women's movement has stalled by comparison and I longed for the good old days of sisterhood!

Former U.S. Rep. Pat Schroeder, D-Colo., is a member of the LWVOC.

Hope to see you there

Join us at the University Club of Winter Park on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. when LWVOC Board member Sister Teresa McElwee will participate in THE GREAT LECTURE SERIES: “Dream Act or Nightmare?”

Will a comprehensive solution be found for our broken immigration system? A team of presenters, from the Hope Community Center of Apopka, will share stories of some young people who are working hard to get the Dream Act passed. Please join us as we explore the realities of a tough anti-immigrant climate, especially for our young adults. Presentation of short award-winning film titled ILLEGAL DREAMS created by a Rollins College student.

Light refreshments. Chair: Frank Paul Barber.

 

SAVING LIVES ONE CALL AT A TIME

By Ann Hellmuth
LWVOC President

“You take one, Carol. Ann you take two, I’ll take three.” The floor-assignments came from Harbor House team leader Dr. Monica Mendez.

On command, board member Carol Davis and I began placing fliers on the door handles of scores of apartments in the sprawling complex off Kirkman Road.

The aim was to tell victims of abuse how and where to get help.
Monica, 33, a criminologist and specialist in domestic abuse, told us that a pilot project in Pine Lakes, had resulted over time in many more women calling and seeking help.

Harbor House CEO Carol Wick explained that tough economic times had caused an increase in abuse cases, at a huge personal and economic cost.

The Orlando Police Department is cooperating with Harbor House on the “It Takes Courage” project and Police Chief Paul Rooney was at Valencia College West Campus to help kick off the walk.

As we moved through the apartment complex an Orlando Police Department cruiser driven by Officer Robert Buffington glided alongside. No one was taking any chances.

“We called here all the time,” Buffington said. “These are high crime areas. It’s quiet now because it is early.”

A second team of Harbor House workers and volunteers briskly worked the other side of the street.
At each stop Carol, Monica or I would call out our floor assignments, alternating the runs to the top. We met few people, and those who did venture out looked vaguely astonished at the sight of us running up stairs and stopping at doors.

Mendez, manager of prevention, Project Courage and community engagement for Harbor House, said that if only one person sought help the campaign would be worthwhile.

After about an hour our two teams had stopped at nearly 350 apartments and it was time to move on. After a stop for gas and cold drinks, we followed Buffington and his cruiser to another large complex a few miles from the Millenium Mall.

Once again we assigned floors. This time some buildings had a fourth floor but also an elevator. We rode it up and walked down.

After an we ran out of fliers. One member of the other team wassuffering from knee pain and could hardly work. We were covered in perspiration, thirsty but elated. Monica estimated that our morning’s efforts had resulted in about 800 apartments getting the domestic abuse information.

Driving home Carol and I agreed that it was a morning well spent. We felt we had made a difference and were proud to represent the League of Women Voters of Orange County.

Be sure to attend the Oct. 12 Hot Topics at the Sorosis Club, 501 E. Livingston Street, Orlando, when Carol Wick and Police Chief Mooney will talk about their project and the huge cost domestic abuse inflicts on victims and taxpayers. Channel 6 anchor Lauren Rowe will moderate.