Florida House stalls Right to Speak bill
03/08/2012
Crowley Political Report will be the first to admit - it is a shame that legislation like this is necessary in the Sunshine State.
Dark clouds hover over any number of public meetings where officials find the idea of allowing the public to speak to them a terrible inconvenience.
On behalf of the public, Crowley Political Report apologizes. We would suggest, however, that if allowing the public to speak to you is bothersome, it may be time for you to return full time to the private sector.
Now let's be frank, most government bodies allow folks to speak at their meetings. But from time-to-time, citizens are blocked from exercising what Crowley Political Report foolishly thought was an already a well established right in those documents called the U.S. Constitution and Florida Constitution.
Apparently not. So state Sen. Joe Negron offered up Senate Bill 206, that would put into Florida law the right for people to speak before boards and commissions subject to the Sunshine Law.
The Senate wisely passed this bill - unanimously. Thank you, Sen. Negron.
Now, the legislation sits in the House. The clock is ticking. We are a day away from the end of the 60-day legislative session.
House Speaker Dean Cannon can fix this. He needs to get SB 206 to the floor. And he needs to encourage his members to pass it. He owes it to every Floridian who deserves the right to be heard by their government.
Comments