Recent editorials from Florida newspapers:
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Sept. 18
The Miami Herald on Hurricane Irma recovery:
A week after Hurricane Irma slapped us, are we back to normal yet?
Well, no.
And for a large swath of the lower Florida Keys, our neighbors on the West Coast of Florida and in the Caribbean, normal will be a foreign concept for a long time.
In Miami-Dade, the storm’s impact - knocking out our must-have electricity, cable and cell service - is still being felt from Aventura to Homestead. One hundred schools have sustained damage. Their reopening dates remain up in the air.
And even though Irma did not hit us directly, the storm uncovered the weaknesses in our preparedness, and also the strengths. Here’s our take on the good, the bad and the ugly.
Shelters: It all began with evacuation orders for as many as 660,000 residents and the opening of Miami-Dade shelters at public schools to accommodate them. As the need grew, more shelters were needed. Early coordination between the county, the Red Cross, and school staffs hit some snags. The Red Cross said they were only contracted to run eight shelters; Miami-Dade ended up opening 43 shelters and housing a total of 31,438 people and 807 pets - a massive, impressive undertaking. But let’s straighten this snag before the next storm. When people are running for safety, they rightly expect to find adequate shelter and a friendly face to make them feel safe. And miscommunication aside, those volunteers from the Red Cross and schools performed a true service to the community.
Electricity: For those of us with power, Florida Light and Power is a hero. For those us still without, not so much, especially since FPL has had to walk back its promise to restore power to just about every household and business by night of Sept. 17. However, it informed the public that South Dade won’t be “empowered” until Sept. 19. Although the company should not have risked raising the expectations of the hot and sweaty, only to dash them, the crews driving around doing the dangerous dirty work are worthy of a major dose of gratitude.
Bulk waste pickup: Getting back to normal means getting rid of the visual and psychological blot of downed trees, branches, and debris on the swales and public corridors. It’s tedious, time-consuming work, but the county and cities must pick up the pace. Our neighborhoods should be invaded by trucks with wood chippers - now. And looking ahead: From safety and economic standpoints, it’s time for the county and municipalities to consider requiring mandatory tree trimming in advance of hurricane season.
Gas stations: Finding a station with gas or the electricity to pump it was a big problem. The state requires some gas stations to install “transfer switches” that let the pumps run off generators. But the rules apply only to stations built after 2006, and to older stations if they have 16 or more pumps and are within half a mile of an evacuation route. That’s not good enough. There simply were not enough gas stations running on generators after the storm. Lawmakers need to come up with a real solution.
Nursing homes: In addition to gas stations, Irma handed the legislature a slew of issues it must address in the next session. Top of the list: In light of eight deaths at a Hollywood nursing home, all similar facilities should be required to have generators sufficient to power their air conditioners. It’s no-brainer legislation that - to lawmakers’ shame - went nowhere after Hurricane Wilma in 2005. They need to get the do-over right, this time.
Online: https://www.miamiherald.com/
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Sept. 22
The Tampa Bay Times of St. Petersburg on the state housing agency:
Once upon a time, the federal government created a program called the Hardest Hit Fund. Its goal was admirable, and its mission important. The fund was designed to aid Americans in danger of losing their houses after the Great Recession had wreaked havoc on the economy. Unfortunately, the folks in Washington erred in one respect. They trusted Florida to get that money into the hands of people who needed it most.
It is difficult to overstate how cynically and incompetently Florida officials have mishandled money that was meant to be a lifeline for people in crisis. As pointed out last month by Tampa Bay Times senior correspondent Susan Taylor Martin, a recent special inspector general report criticized the state’s housing agency for spending more than $100,000 of funds on employee bonuses and other perks.
From the time more than $1 billion in aid started flowing into the state in 2010, Florida has delayed, distorted and otherwise bungled the effort’s clear mission. One of the original five states targeted in a program that eventually grew to 18, Florida was always woefully behind its neighbors in disbursing money. It began when state officials soft-pedaled the news that this help was even available. Then, as foreclosures were surging and housing values were dropping dramatically, Florida decided it needed to run a three-month pilot program in a single county. Those three months turned into six, as more and more people across the state lost their homes.
Martin’s reporting for the Times in March 2013 revealed Florida was trailing every other state in rescuing distressed mortgages, and when money was awarded it occasionally went to felons, tax evaders and people with a history of running up mountains of debt. By April of that year, the U.S. Treasury Department had opened an investigation into Florida’s handling of funds.
By the fall of 2013, Florida began to focus on residents who were upside-down on their mortgages due to falling house values. A rush of 25,000 residents applied for the program that would help pay down principal balances. Four months later, Florida had assisted a total of 750 homeowners, or 0.3 percent.
The coup de grace came when Florida, because it had distributed a lesser percentage of money than other states, could only apply for a smaller portion of funds available in 2016. Except the state didn’t bother to apply, meaning Florida lost a potential $250 million. This for a state that had one of the highest totals of foreclosures in the nation.
So, no, the news that Florida’s housing agency recklessly spent $100,000 on employee perks last month was not shocking. It is just further evidence that this state, in the midst of a housing crisis unprecedented in several generations, mishandled a rescue mission that would have stabilized the economy sooner and saved the homes of thousands of Floridians.
Online: https://www.tampabay.com/
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Sept. 22
The Sun Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale on how the state legislature could review utilities’ performance during and after Hurricane Irma:
The Florida Legislature could help the state better prepare for hurricanes. The Public Service Commission could critically review how utilities performed during and after Hurricane Irma. But that will happen only if the Legislature and the commission acknowledge and learn from their own failures.
House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, has formed the Select Committee on Hurricane Response and Preparedness. It includes three Broward County Democrats: Kristin Jacobs, Jared Moskowitz and Richard Stark, an insurance agent. The Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities, will examine power failures and how long it took to get the lights back on.
We see early problems with the House committee.
A spokesman for Corcoran said witnesses would not be asked to testify under oath. The committee is supposed to be more fact-finding than investigatory, and witnesses in Tallahassee rarely are sworn in. However, blame shifting already has begun. The state needs truth, not evasion.
In 2003, the Legislature was debating medical malpractice reform. Amid all the claims and counterclaims about a cap on non-economic damages, the Senate Judiciary Committee took testimony under oath.
Suddenly, we learned that the largest malpractice insurer would be fine even without the cap. Malpractice rates weren’t driving doctors out of Florida. And there was no epidemic of frivolous lawsuits. The committee chairman said, “I feel as though all of the facts have not been forthcoming until the witnesses were placed under oath.”
Another problem is the schedule. The spokesman said Corcoran wants recommendations from the committee in time for the legislative session, which begins on Jan. 9. But the committee won’t meet until the second week of October.
Such an ambitious timetable might be possible if the committee had adequate resources. But the spokesman said the committee would have a staff director only, not new, dedicated staff members.
Credible recommendations depend on tools such as data collection. The committee could compare Irma with the storms of 2004 and 2005. Did some problems repeat themselves? Could tougher building codes help? Should the state allow rebuilding in especially vulnerable areas? What about better tree trimming? What else?
We fear this committee could end up like Gov. Rick Scott’s hospital commission, which he announced with great fanfare in 2015. The commission held meetings around the state, but ultimately faded away after having no impact on costs. That’s because Scott largely formed the commission to shift attention from the hospital financial crisis he created in fighting the Obama administration.
Now, Floridians are demanding answers on why so many people lost power after Irma and why 11 people in the care of a Hollywood nursing home died needlessly. If the House committee rushes out a report, it could be more political than productive.
Finally, the Legislature’s recent record on regulation and oversight is terrible. A 2006 bill to require generators at nursing homes died after industry resistance, an assertion the industry now disputes. But if nursing homes didn’t resist reform, why don’t all nursing homes have backup generators that can power air conditioners?
Fortunately, there’s a backup option. Once investigators determine whether to file criminal charges in the Hollywood deaths, Broward County State Attorney Mike Satz could empanel a grand jury to craft recommendations that could apply statewide. If the Legislature fails to address the systemic failures that led to those 11 deaths - including its own role - Satz should do so.
Similarly, the Public Service Commission approaches its review of Florida Power & Light and the other utilities with a record of industry favoritism. Since late 2012, the commission has ruled favorably on every FPL request that separates money from ratepayers.
Two questions matter most for the commission: Why, absent trees that took down lines, did customers in South Florida begin losing power even before Irma’s winds hit hardest? And why was FPL’s communication regarding power restoration so bad after so much hype?
FPL executives say the company has invested $3 billion since 2006. But shouldn’t the company be able to assure customers that the grid can withstand tropical storm force winds with the occasional low hurricane gust?
After the 2004 and 2005 storm seasons, FPL asked the PSC to bill customers for the entire $1.6 billion repair and hardening cost. A commission that believed in balancing the needs of industry and customers gave the company $1.1 billion.
Today’s commission granted FPL’s request for $318.5 million in costs related to last year’s Hurricane Matthew, even though it has yet to hold a final hearing. The Office of Public Counsel thus hasn’t been able to decide whether all the costs are justified.
FPL likely will file its first Irma cost-recovery request in the next 90 days. How much it can bill customers could depend on the commission’s review of the company’s post-Irma performance.
Utilities have controlled the choice of commissioners since FPL lost a big rate case in January 2010. Former Florida Comptroller Robert Milligan, the most qualified and unbiased applicant for three recent openings, didn’t even get an interview. FPL is one of Gov. Rick Scott’s biggest political patrons.
So forgive us for being skeptical about the prospect of consumer-friendly results from the Legislature and the Public Service Commission. Still, we hope to be pleasantly surprised.
Online: https://www.sun-sentinel.com/
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