One on One: Jimmy Patronis

It was a tough year for the Florida Legislature. A slowing economy and fewer people moving into the state meant less money in the coffers, and that boiled down to needed cuts.

Unfortunatley, education suffered.  Bay County alone will see a 12 million dollar shortfall. Individual districts can make up some of that money by raising the millage rate. Lawmakers did dip into the state reserves to keep Health Care cuts from hurting residents.

District 6 Rep. Jimmy Patronis says it was a tough year, and he wished there was more that could have been done to avoid the cuts, but the money just wasn’t available. Patronis says raising the sales tax to make up for the shortfall wasn’t the answer either. Residents, he said, suffered with higher insurance payments because of severe hurricane seasons and just didn’t need to be paying more in taxes.
Florida lawmakers will take a 5% pay cut, the Governor and cabinet will not. Only state troopers among state employees will see a pay hike, 5 percent, in 2008-09.

To hear more about the cuts and the legislative session, click below.

Posted by on 05/08 at 07:23 PM
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I just wanted to say I feel that instead of cutting teacher positions, why not check into the “unnecessary” number of office personnel in the School Board offices? There are surely ways they could “cut-back” here instead of playing games with our children’s eduation.  I understand from reliable sources that “secretaries” have cell phones issued to them, of course it is under the guise of “use only for school related business"--and if you believe that is all they are used for you are hiding under a barrel......But tax money is paying for these phones. I just think it is ridiculous for our children to go lacking where their education is concerned by the cutting of teacher positions, when there are so many other ways to cut back--start in the school office positions, teacher aides, and school board office positions--one of the problems with America today is unnecessary paper work!!!!! Most of the time these people sit idle, talking on the phone or tending to personal business on county time.

Above comment posted by  on  05/09  at  10:59 PM
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