Five days before the special Legislative session called for by Governor Charlie Crist beckons, there are conflicting signals coming from lawmakers about whether there will be a substantive discussion on renewable energy.
In the days since Crist called for the session to be held to discuss putting a constitutional amendment on the November state ballot that would let citizens decide whether to ban offshore drilling in state waters, lawmakers have been discussing using the four days to discuss other pressing matters, such as changing laws to help Panhandle area citizens deleteriously affected financially by the Gulf oil spill crises, and matters that have suddenly become urgent, like dealing with undocumented immigrants.
(Speaking of which, it's interesting to note that Hillsborough County Commissioner Jim Norman, in a race against one of the proponents of such legislation, Representative Kevin Ambler, echoed criticisms that opponents of the new fad in copying Arizona's law, according to the St. Pete Times:
Norman said if Ambler really cared about the issue, he would have addressed it during has eight years in the House instead of in the final days of his tenure.
"This is all about sensationalism and politics," he said.)
But what about discussing an issue that surely goes hand in hand with discussing banning offshore drilling, looking at other ways to generate alternative forms of energy in the Sunshine State?
This article appears in Jul 15-21, 2010.