Driven by Byrd, House may end up in the ditch

MORGAN

© St. Petersburg Times
published March 29, 2003

The Florida House of Representatives is becoming an island that talks only to itself.

House Speaker Johnnie Byrd, R-Plant City, is sunny and bright and filled with platitudes like "living within our means" and "it's been a great day in the state of Florida."

Over in the Senate, the talk is all gloom and doom. Senators view Byrd as hypocritical and extremely paranoid. They believe Byrd doesn't trust his own members and note that he keeps his plans very close to his vest.

Senate President Jim King says he occasionally talks on the telephone with Byrd, but the conversations include little of substance. He says Byrd merely tells him "it's a beautiful day in Florida." There appears to be no communication between other leaders of the two chambers, a situation that we all will regret along about May 2, the day the Legislature is supposed to adjourn.

Without communication about where they agree and disagree, it's hard to see how they can complete work on major issues and get out of Dodge. We are nearing the halfway point of a 60-day session and every single issue of substance is in the ditch.

Only one bill of any substance has gone to the governor, one that allows the governor and the now smaller Cabinet to vote on major issues.

Only five other bills, none of any substance, gained final approval in both chambers.

They cannot even agree on what voters meant when they overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment that bans smoking in public places. They are at serious odds over the state budget, medical malpractice reform and dozens of other issues that need to be resolved.

Byrd talks about "a member-driven process" and insists he is spreading power around to include everyone.

But some House members are quietly grumbling. The level of fear around the place, however, keeps the grumbling from getting too loud. They say they didn't realize that "member-driven" meant Byrd would be the only member driving and the rest of the House would be corralled in the back of a moving van unable to see where they were going.

We may be seeing what happens when term limits produce a House filled with newcomers that must go against a Senate filled with veterans. This year 90 members of the House have three years or less in office and almost everyone in the Senate has previous service in the House.

Byrd says the Senate is accustomed to doing things "the old way," with gamesmanship and posturing, while the House is acting responsibly.

King and his leadership team say Byrd is hypocritical, "saying one thing and doing another."

King, a Jacksonville Republican, says this year's budget and the planned raid on trust funds for operating money "is like juggling grenades" that will land the state in more trouble next year.

And King suggests he may be holding a trump card in a redistricting bill that the House needs, but concedes that the bill could be taken up next year, too.

A federal court ordered lawmakers to pass a new redistricting bill that would amend the districts of several House members. Byrd says he's still researching what would happen if no bill passes.

King says the only conversation he's had with Byrd dealing with a substantive issue was a call Byrd made to ask if King was really serious about holding up the redistricting bill to coerce agreements on other issues.

"I didn't comment," King said. He did admit chortling a bit.

The governor seems to be staying out of the fray.

King credits Lt. Gov. Toni Jennings with teaching Bush "to let the Senate be the Senate and the House be the House."

"I know Jeb well enough to know he has to be lathered up by now," adds King.

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