EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS MESSAGE

A copy of this letter is being sent to the following individuals:

1. Governor Jeb Bush
2. Mr. Charles Bronson, Commission of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs
3. Ms. Marion Hammer, past President of the American Rifle Association, current
                       President of Unified Sportsmen of Florida
4. Mr. Gene Bryan, Director, Division of Licensing
5. Representative Johnnie Byrd, Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2004 session
6. Newsletters of all 493 licensees

It is my fervent hope that this letter will accomplish two goals; to inspire 493 licensees to get involved and to send a special message to Representative Byrd for the contemptible manner in which he ignored his constituents while acting as House Leader.

Let me say in the beginning that, like our President, George W. Bush, I consider myself to be a staunch, compassionate conservative.  I also believe that our legislative leaders are elected to serve the legitimate needs of the public, of which we, as 493 licensees are a part.

Our proposed legislation for the 2004 session (HB595 ), did not become a reality this session.  This bill “died” in “messages” and this article attempts to explain what happened, why, and who was responsible.

Some of you are aware that several individuals began preparing for the introduction of this legislative package some 4 years ago.  This proposed legislation was designed to accomplish 3 primary goals:

1. To expand the definitions of collateral to be recovered that requires licensure under Chapter 493, a process which directly addresses public safety.
2. To eliminate the totally unnecessary, and very costly current requirements for the $300,000 liability insurance coverage.  This one change would have saved licensees thousands upon thousands of dollars by eliminating a duplicitous insurance requirement .
3. To “level the playing field” in the collateral recovery profession by requiring all individuals who perform these services to be trained and licensed as prescribed by Chapter 493, which also directly addresses the public safety.

Many hours went into developing proper language to insure that the health, welfare and protection of the public was properly addressed and that both houses of the legislature would be receptive to our proposals.  Many more hours were spent acquiring good legislative sponsors in both houses.

In addition, this proposed legislation was an agency bill, signed by our “boss”, Mr. Charles Bronson, Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services.  Our most sincere appreciation to Commissioner Bronson for his legislative acumen.

Our proposed bill passed through every legislative committee of both houses without one dissenting vote.   All those important legislative committee members reviewed this legislation, saw that it was in the best interests of the public safety and the 493 professions, and did their duty.

In the Senate, a very minor, but important and sensible amendment was added that simply expanded the definition of industrial equipment. 

The process from there was for the bill to go to “messages”, meaning it would should have gone very quickly back to the House of Representatives for final acceptance, then to Governor Bush’ s desk for his signature.

That didn’t happen.  Our bill remained in messages from April 21^st until April 30^th, the end of the 2004 legislative session, where it died.

Why? What happened to a bill that had unanimous support in both houses and was a “slam dunk” for final passage?

The answer is one man, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Johnnie Byrd.  Mr. Byrd seems to have forgotten that he was elected to serve the people of Florida, not Mr. Byrd.  His obvious egotistical arrogance and his illusion of self importance in setting his own personal agenda as Speaker of the House was, in my opinion a shameful display of “power grabbing”.

Mr. Byrd refused to allow our bill, along with dozens of other bills that had been approved to come before the House of Representative for a final vote.  Like a spoiled child who refuses to play with other children when they won’t let him win every time, Mr. Byrd thumbed his noses at those he promised to represent, the hard working men and women who struggle every day to feed their families as 493 licensees.

Because his own personal agenda was not accepted by his fellow legislators, Mr. Byrd simply closed the door to his constituents by refusing to allow these bills to have a final vote.  You see, the Speaker of the House, along with the President of the Senate have that power.  They determine which bills will be heard and voted on for passage or defeat.  By refusing to allow a bill to come to the floor for a vote, it simply “dies”.

There is nothing further we can do about this legislation until next session, when Mr. Byrd will no longer be the Speaker.  Mr. Allen Bense, of Panama City will be the Speaker for the 2005 session. Mr. Tom Lee, of Brandon will be the next President of the Senate.  After diligent research, I am happy to report that both these gentlemen enjoy excellent reputations for their fair and equitable public service.  We welcome them and hope to work closely with them to bring our proposed legislation to fruition.

Although there is nothing further to be done on our legislative package until 2005, there is something we can do about Mr. Byrd.  As some of you may know, Mr. Byrd is running for the U. S. Senate seat being vacated by Senator Bob Graham.  And that is the other reason for sending you this letter.  We 493 licensees have a most unique opportunity here.

There are in excess of 100,000 of us who are licensed under Chapter 493, and this does not include our spouses, our children who are eligible to vote, our friends and acquaintances.  There are also several hundred thousand concealed weapons licensees regulated under the same agency that regulates our professional activities.  THAT’S A LOT OF PEOPLE!!  THAT’S A LOT OF VOTES!!

We can, all together, send this message to Mr. Byrd.  If you cannot fairly and equitably represent your constituents while serving in the Florida House of Representatives, how could you possibly think we would depend on you to represent us in the United States Senate?

So, there you have it my brother and sister licensees.  The ball is now in our court.  We have the power now, not Mr. Byrd.  Will we use it?  I can tell you that Mr. Byrd is counting on your ignorance of the political process and your short memory.

In closing, let me say in all seriousness that I did not write this letter out of anger, but out of a sense of responsibility to my brother and sister 493 licensees and as a member of the PIRSAC.  Mr. Byrd, for his own self serving reasons chose to ignore the wishes of his constituents and his fellow legislators, and I believe he should be held accountable.  What about you?         

         Be Safe,    
        Joe Taylor Recovery Industry Representative to the PIRSAC Board