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    Cut Spending Now!

    Cut Spending Now!

    April 22, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Image of the Florida State Flag with Dollar Bills in the Background

    John Hallman Announces the “CutSpendingNow” Project.

    April 22, 2020

    Because of the coronavirus shutdown of our economy in Florida, economists are projecting a dramatic drop in state revenue, such as the sales tax which is one-third of the revenue legislators have when crafting a budget. Reduction in cars on the road is reducing state gas tax revenue. Last month the Florida Legislature passed a record spending budget of a little over $93 billion. It is obvious that there will not be enough revenue to fund the budget. The question is what will the Governor and Legislature do to address the shortfall that is projected to be approximately $3 billion over the next two years? The Republican Liberty Caucus of Florida believes this is an opportunity for the Legislature to seriously look at spending reductions and we are forming the “CutSpendingNow” project to advocate for needed spending cuts. We will start by asking the right questions.
    As we scrutinize the state budget in search of savings opportunities, three crucial questions will be asked of all government functions:
    1 Should the government be doing this at all? (If it is something that can be done effectively by the private sector, then the state government should not be wasting resources and energy doing it.)
    2 How can it be done better and cheaper?
    3 How can we apply technology to enhance services and
    cut costs?

    The Florida Legislature needs to understand that when the economy is strong and revenues are plentiful does not mean spend it all. As we experienced in 2008 and now in 2020, the economy can tank.

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    STOP SB 728 – WORSE THAN RED FLAG LAW!

    STOP SB 728 – WORSE THAN RED FLAG LAW!

    March 12, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Legislative Report
    John Hallman
    February 24, 2020

    Tallahassee Alert
    Stop SB 728-Worse than Red Flag Law!

    SB 728, the Senate companion bill to HB 311(threats), will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, March 3rd.
    We are now in the last two weeks of the 2020 Legislative Session in Tallahassee. Monday and Tuesday will be the last chance for bills to be heard in committee. The remainder of the two weeks will be full-floor votes in both chambers with House and Senate Leadership negotiating which bills will get passed and sent to the Governor. Of course, budget negotiations will take up much of their time.

    Regarding gun bills, unfortunately, HB 311 (Threats) passed the House Judiciary Committee last week 16-1. Republican Representative Mike Hill was the only legislator with the courage and principles to vote no on HB 311.

    It is obvious that both House and Senate leadership want this legislation passed so they can proclaim they did something on gun violence. This is being done to appease the anti-gun rights crowd.

    Rep. Ralph Massullo is the sponsor of HB 311 and last fall he was interviewed by the Citrus County Chronicle. When asked if the Red Flag law was already addressing threats, Massullo said: “HB 311 would take that a step further.” “We need to start acting on those red flags,” he said.

    The bottom line is that SB 728 is the Red Flag law on steroids. A very low bar to prove someone is really a danger and not just take their guns for 12 months under the Red Flag law, but FOREVER.

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    ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

    ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

    March 2, 2020 by John Hallman in

    We support the idea that the state will have to purchase conservation land to protect the clean water supply and for flood and storm protection. But, how much of Florida land should be held in conservation with 30% of Florida already held in conservation by the Federal, state and local government? The annual debt service alone on Florida Forever bonds is already at approximately $145 million per year and the state must budget more money for maintenance.  Also, land purchased for conservation is taken off the property tax rolls, which forces local governments to raise property taxes.

    In Florida, the state purchases land for “conservation” through the Florida Forever Trust Fund. Florida Forever funds come from the sale of bonds that loan money to the state. The bonds are then paid back by revenues generated through documentary stamp taxes levied on real estate documentation and transactions.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals

    We oppose a $100 million annual automatic recurring appropriation to Florida Forever.

    We support the state selling land no longer needed for conservation.

    CORPORATE WELFARE POLICY

    CORPORATE WELFARE POLICY

    March 2, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Corporate Welfare is defined as any government program or spending that provides unique benefits or advantages to specific companies, such as direct grants, loan guarantees, and tax breaks. The policy of granting “economic incentives” to selected hand-picked companies, gives them an advantage over their competitors. This advantage, granted courtesy of the political class, will help determine which businesses succeed or fail in the marketplace. Many of these subsidized businesses never create the jobs they promised and many of these subsided businesses have gone bankrupt. This is our money that we will never get back.

    Corporate Welfare creates an uneven playing field by giving selected businesses and industries special advantages. Corporate subsidies put businesses and industries that are less politically well-connected at a disadvantage and creates an incestuous relationship between business and government. All too often, the firms and industries that contribute the most to political campaign coffers are the largest recipients of government handouts.

    A free market, without government meddling, directs resources to where they are in greatest demand and cheapest to employ. Corporate Welfare only distorts prices and resource allocation. A politician picking certain industries is arrogant on their part, businesses need the flexibility to meet customer needs and wants, mandating solar panels and ethanol could waste capital when there may be a much more affordable and efficient alternative energy source in the future. What industry serves society best today may not be the best in the future.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals:

    We support the repeal of Visit Florida state funding.

    We support repealing Major Sport Team Subsidies.

    We oppose Film Industry Subsidies.

    TERM LIMITS POLICY

    TERM LIMITS POLICY

    March 2, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Experience has shown us the longer a person stays in office, the deeper they sink into bureaucracy and become disinterested in the everyday concerns of the citizens whom they are elected to serve. Their interests turn instead to special interest groups that fund their campaigns. Once a member of Congress has demonstrated they are reliable to special interests, the financial contributions come pretty much automatically. Such contributions are a good investment for lobbyists and over 80% of incumbents are regularly re-elected.

    Term limits will remove the corruptive special interest influence on incumbents and encourage new faces and fresh ideas. We need to return to electing citizen legislators who can better relate to the concerns of their constituents and bring real-world experience to Congress.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals

    Eight years is enough! We oppose increasing the current 8-yeat term limit on the Floria Legislature, Governor, and Cabinet. We support eight-year term limits for every office at every level of government.

    RED LIGHT CAMERA POLICY

    RED LIGHT CAMERA POLICY

    March 2, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Red-Light Cameras were first authorized by the Florida Legislature in 2010.  Many municipalities in Florida are using red-light cameras at various intersections to reduce intersection accidents. A 2018-19 report by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles using 6 years of data at intersections using cameras showed no safety benefit. Many local elected officials want to keep using the cameras for revenue.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals

    We will support legislation that would repeal the authorization for and prohibit the use of Red-Light Cameras in Florida.

    RIGHT TO PRIVACY POLICY

    RIGHT TO PRIVACY POLICY

    March 2, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Article I, Section 12 of the Florida Constitution embraces the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that protects the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures. Article 1, Section 23 of the Florida Constitution guarantees every citizen’s right to privacy and to be free from unreasonable government intrusion into their persons, homes, businesses, and property.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals

    We support legislation that requires investigators or law enforcement officials to secure a warrant issued by a judge before accessing phones, phone records, or other electronic devices of Florida citizens.

    EDUCATION POLICY

    EDUCATION POLICY

    March 2, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Parents should have the ability to choose all available types of schooling, including public, private, and home schools to ensure their children receive a quality education. School choice is the best way to hold schools accountable. Competition makes schools more responsive to parents and improves educational outcomes for students. School choice breaks up the current bureaucratic monopoly controlling our education system and places the power squarely into the hands of the people to whom it belongs: parents.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals

    Not all students are college-bound. We support the expansion of state-of-the-art career, technical, and vocational education programs for these students.

    We strongly support school choice and home school programs that empower parents to have more control over the kind of education that works best for their child.

    GOVERNMENT REGULATION POLICY

    GOVERNMENT REGULATION POLICY

    March 2, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Regulations are supposed to protect consumers, but all too often, special interest and their lobbyist pressure legislators to pass regulations that are not for consumer protection, but rather to prevent competition from small businesses. These regulations reduce competition, suppress innovation, and hurts consumers by paying higher prices due to the cost of compliance with the regulations.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals

    We support free-market solutions to increase health care access and lower health care costs for consumers.

    We support the reform of Florida’s occupational licensing requirements.

    We support reform of Florida’s three-tier system of regulation over the production, distribution, and sale of alcoholic beverages.

    TAX & BUDGET POLICY

    TAX & BUDGET POLICY

    February 20, 2020 by John Hallman in

    Milton Friedman once said that “spending is taxation” and to achieve lower taxes, we believe that lawmakers should live under spending restraints in the same manner that families and businesses do by forcing lawmakers to set priorities and cut wasteful spending.

    Government spending displaces private-sector activity. Every dollar that the government spends means one less dollar in the productive sector of the economy.  We believe that taxpayers work hard for their money and it belongs to them, not the government. According to the National Association of State Budget Offices, between 2012 and 2017, state government spending in Florida increased by 31%, making it the 8th fastest growing yearly budget. The median state spending increase was 18%. State budgets continue to grow faster than population growth and inflation. Amy Baker, the state chief economist continues to warn that Florida’s budget has a structural imbalance and that any downturn in the economy would put the budget into deficit. If the Florida Legislature does not take seriously reducing the size of the budget, they may be forced to raise taxes. High or increasing taxes retard new business formation and expansion, thereby slowing job creation and wage growth.

    RLCFL Legislative Goals

    We support an exhaustive budget review process to find and eliminate duplicative programs, unnecessary programs, and wasteful spending practices. Under no circumstances would we support increased taxation to eliminate any future deficits should they arise.

    Florida is one of only two states that impose a sales tax on commercial leases (Arizona, which allows local governments to impose a similar tax, being the second) This sales tax has been reduced from 6% in 2017 to 5.5%, effective in January 2020. We support completely eliminating this unnecessary tax.