By MIKE SALINERO | The Tampa Tribune
Published: October 19, 2011

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TAMPA —

A proposal to restructure the current makeup of the Hillsborough County Commission won enough support from commissioners today to go forward for further debate.

Commissioners voted 7-0 to hold a workshop later this year on changing the current board makeup of four single-member districts and three countywide seats, by adding another single-member district and reducing the countywide seats to two.

Commissioner Les Miller, the board’s only black member, proposed the change, saying it would bring government closer to the people.

The current system was set up in 1983 and was partly a reaction to a scandal that saw three commissioners jailed for taking kickbacks.

But Miller said the county’s explosive growth since that time — from 650,000 residents counted in the 1980 census to more than 1.2 million people now — has made the single-member districts unwieldy. The four current commission districts average 307,000 people. Adding a district would reduce the average population to 247,000 people.

“We need to have smaller single member districts so people can get closer to their commissioners,” Miller said.

Adding a district would also make it more likely that one district would tilt toward a Hispanic representative, Miller said. A coalition of Hispanic groups pressed the commissioner earlier this year to increase the Hispanic population in District 1, represented by Sandy Murman, to 36 percent. Commissioners rejected the idea.

Miller was supported by two board members who served with him in the Florida Legislature: Murman and Victor Crist. Murman noted that all 40 state senators and 120 House members serve geographic districts. She said she found the commission structure, with countywide seats, “odd.”

Crist said reducing the geographic size and population of commission districts would reduce the amount of money candidates would have to raise to run a campaign.

“I just appreciate smaller government because it gives greater access to your elected officials,” Crist said, “and frankly a process where it’s easier for the everyday person to run for office and get elected.”

Other commissioners expressed concerns. Kevin Beckner, the only other Democrat on the board besides Miller, said he appreciated the current structure because it allows voters to cast ballots for a majority of the board: the voter’s district representative and three countywide commissioners.

“By changing to that system, we’re looking at diluting the voice of the majority and the representation of the majority,” Beckner said.

Commissioner Mark Sharpe said a board dominated by district representatives could lead to a “Balkanization” of policy, with commissioners fighting so hard for their districts that they ignore the welfare of the county as a whole.

Commissioner Ken Hagan, who also expressed concerns, said he would second a motion to hold a workshop to discuss the matter further.

Restructuring the commission would require a referendum to amend the county charter. Managing County Attorney Mary Helen Farris said an ordinance calling for a referendum during the November 2012 election would have to be ready by May or June of next year.

By MIKE SALINERO | The Tampa Tribune
Published: August 17, 2011
Updated: August 17, 2011 – 10:30 PM

TAMPA 

 

Usually one of the calmer, more-demure Hillsborough County commissioners, Sandy Murman broke out of character Wednesday when a fellow board member suggested delaying an ordinance to shut down internet sweepstakes cafés.

Murman made the motion to ban the cafés, which she described as illegal gambling operations that feature computerized slot machines. The county sheriff’s office also supports a ban.

But Commissioner Victor Crist, raising the specter of lawsuits by the café owners, urged caution and suggested the county appoint a work group that included sweepstakes café owners to study the issue.

“I am totally surprised at what’s come out of your mouth,” Murman almost shouted at Crist, who served with her in the Florida Legislature. She pointed out that Crist had served for years on the state Senate Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations.

“You can’t sit at the table and try to work out a consensus with people that promote illegal gambling,” she said.

After long debate, Crist withdrew his motion and the board voted 7-0 to have the county attorney draw up an ordinance banning the cafés. A public hearing on the matter will be held sometime in coming months.

The cafés have proliferated in Hillsborough as adjoining counties have moved to shut them down. Murman said there are now 25 operating in the unincorporated areas of the county, and an unknown number in Tampa.

The businesses, which often locate in strip malls, sell internet time on computers. Patrons get phone cards that allow them to participate in sweepstakes contests that are just like playing a slot machine on a computer.

Chris Brown, a lawyer with the sheriff’s office, said the video sweepstakes games meet the state’s legal definition of slot machines, which are largely prohibited in Florida.

“They are illegal gambling,” Brown said.

But the cafés have persisted because of the ambiguity of state gambling law, Brown said. The law’s loopholes make it difficult to successfully prosecute café owners, who often fight back with civil lawsuits.

Defenders of the cafés say they are no different than the sweepstake cards that some businesses give to customers who buy something.

Jacksonville attorney Kelly B. Mathis, representing a not-for-profit called Allied Veterans, said Brown mislead the commission about the legality of the cafés.

“No judge has ever held that they are illegal, that they’re slot machines,” Mathis said after the meeting. Mathis said the veterans group, which operates about 40 internet cafés in Florida, would welcome “reasonable regulation.”

Commissioner Mark Sharp asked whether the board should wait to see if the Legislature passes clarifying legislation to the gambling statute next year. But Commissioner Kevin Beckner, citing the Legislature’s failure to deal with personal injury protection insurance fraud, nixed the idea.

“We need to protect our own community and not wait for Tallahassee to act,” Beckner said. “We have that responsibility as legislators up here to do what we feel are in the best interest of our community.”

Times: Parks Budget scales back programs

Commissioner Murman quoted in this Times article on Parks budget:

Hillsborough commissioners approve controversial scaling back of after-school programs

By Bill Varian, Times Staff Writer

In Print: Thursday, July 28, 2011

http://www.tampabay.com/news/localgovernment/hillsborough-commissioners-approve-controversial-scaling-back-of/1182693

TAMPA — A divided Hillsborough County Commission voted Wednesday to dramatically scale back after-school parks programs, a budget cut that has drawn spirited condemnation from parents.

But commissioners left open the prospect of revisiting the issue, planning to talk next month about whether they can keep the programs operating at more parks than were approved Wednesday.

“I think we’re probably far away from a resolution on this,” said Commissioner Sandra Murman, saying she thinks a broader board discussion on how it serves children is needed.

The vote came as commissioners met to make some of the main unresolved budget decisions needed to set a tentative property tax rate for next fiscal year. Commissioners agreed to shave a tiny fraction from the current rate, reducing the county’s portion of the tax bill on a $200,000 home with a $50,000 homestead exemption by 72 cents.

The rate tentatively set for unincorporated areas is about $10.76 for every $1,000 of taxable value. Commissioners can lower the rate before September when they pass a final budget, but can’t raise it.

The parks dispute has represented one of the thornier decisions on their plate as they wrestle with a $3 billion budget.

For now, the commission vote means that after-school programs operating at 42 county parks will be consolidated at 11 regional recreation centers. The vote was 4-3, with Commissioners Ken Hagan, Les Miller and Victor Crist opposed.

Prevailing commissioners said the county can no longer afford the $7.5 million service that has seen its enrollment dwindle since fees were introduced in an attempt to recoup costs.

Hagan said he agreed. He nevertheless is floating a proposal to keep the programs operating at 30 parks. He also wants to see an analysis of whether fees could be lowered to draw more kids and bring in more paying customers.

“It would be fiscally irresponsible to ignore the reality,” Hagan said. “I think we can do better.”

Under the plan approved Wednesday, children who don’t live near one of the regional parks would be encouraged to use the HOST program, an after-school program offered at more than 130 elementary and middle schools. It costs the same as the county service, $48 per week for each child with discounts available to low-income families.

The county used to offer its after-school programs for free. When property tax revenue began declining in recent years, county officials targeted the programs for elimination as a luxury they could no longer justify.

Parents rallied on their behalf, agreeing to fees that were implemented and then increased. Enrollment declined from a high of 6,200 in 2007 to 1,800 currently, with average weekly fees collected per child at $23 after low-income discounts.

At a public hearing last week, the after-school program was the prevailing topic. Among other things, speakers argued that the county service, with multiple structured offerings from athletics to crafts and tutoring, is far superior to the school district’s HOST program.

Gwen Luney, an assistant superintendent for Hillsborough County schools who oversees the program, noted it has 8,000 children enrolled. She said supervised outdoor activities are offered as well as homework assistance and access to school media centers.

“We try to make sure we work with every parent … to give (them) a safe, wholesome opportunity for their children,” Luney said.

Bill Varian can be reached at (813) 226-3387 or varian@sptimes.com.