Last week (3/11) I sent a communication titled: IT IS TIME TO MAKE CONTACT – SMASH Florida College Tuition Subsidies for Illegal Aliens UPDATE THE FOLLOWING IS WHAT HAPPENED IN TALLAHASSEE on Thursd…

[Leanne King]

Last week (3/11) I sent a communication titled: 

IT IS TIME TO MAKE CONTACT – SMASH Florida College Tuition Subsidies for Illegal Aliens

UPDATE

THE FOLLOWING IS WHAT HAPPENED IN TALLAHASSEE on Thursday, the 13th.

NO TUITION FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS
Tell Fla. State Officials to Oppose In-State Tuition for Illegal Aliens

You can find the original message in the blog section of the website under the DISCUSSION tab

March 13 was a Bad Day in Tally for FL Colleges *2

Thursday, March the 13th, 2014 was a Bad Day in Tallahassee for Florida Colleges for two reasons;

1. Governor Rick Scott declared his support for SB1600, the Senate version of College Tuition Subsidies for Illegal Aliens.       

   Keep calling Governor Scott at 850-488-7146 and tell him he has flip flopped on immigration and that he should not sign any bill that comes to his desk.    

2. The Florida House Appropriations Committee passed HB851 on March 13, 2014 by a vote of 19-7:

AGAINST HB851
(Against displacement of legal students.
You should thank them.)

Albritton, Ben [R] [phone]

Corcoran, Richard [R] [phone]

Grant, James W. "J.W." [R] [phone]

Hudson, Matt [R] [phone]

Ingram, Clay [R] [phone]

McBurney, Charles [R] [phone]

Steube, W. Gregory "Greg" [R] [phone]

FOR HB851
(For displacement of legal students.
You should blast them.)

Baxley,Dennis K. {R} [phone]

Coley, Marti [R] [phone]

Crisafulli, Steve [R] [phone]

Cruz, Janet [D] [phone]

Fresen, Erik [R] [phone]

Fullwood, Reggie [D] [phone]

Gibbons, Joseph A. "Joe" [D] [phone]

Gonzalez, Eduardo "Eddy" [R] [phone]

Hooper, Ed [R] [phone]

Jones, Mia L. [D] [phone]

McKeel, Seth [R] [phone]

O'Toole, H. Marlene [R] [phone]

Pafford, Mark S. [D] [phone]

Patronis, Jimmy [R] [phone]

Rogers, Hazelle P. "Hazel" [D] [phone]

Rouson, Darryl Ervin [D] 850) 717-5070

Stafford, Cynthia A. [D] [phone]

Williams, Alan B. [D] [phone]

Young, Dana D. [R] [phone]

With passage thru the Florida House Appropriations Committee the Bill is ready for a full HOUSE VOTE and then we can expect the Senate to begin moving on this issue.

ACTION

It is time to contact your House Representatives ( Contact information at the end of this message.) and tell them NO on the passage of this bill. Information is provided below to assist you in your message.

Talking Points are provided below to add to your message

The bottom line nationally is that illegal immigration continues to hurt American families, take away jobs and depress wages of fathers and mothers who desperately want to support their children without going on welfare.

The bottom line here in Florida is HB851/SB1400 will cause an unknown number of legal students to be displaced from college by illegal alien students. There is absolutely no estimate of the fiscal cost of college tuition subsidy for illegal aliens. There will not be any real discussion on the negative aspects of college tuition subsidies for illegal aliens unless citizens make the case against the displacement of their children's College Dream.

FLIMEN: FLoridians for IMmigration ENforcement.  Is a group of concerned Floridians advocating for immigration enforcement.... You can visit their site at www.FLIMEN.ORG

FLIMEN can provide information but it will take irate citizens to stop this travesty to legal students!
Please call officials, write letters to papers and raise the issue at political meetings!

Excellent Read (Short)
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2014/03/immigrant-tuit...:

THE VOTE

"The 19-7 vote was closer than some observers expected."

FLIMEN Note: The quote below deals with the creation of deceitful legal language in an attempt to bypass the federal law against giving reduced rates to special groups but not to all US citizens. In other words, instead of legally granting in-state tuition rates the Florida Legislature and Governor will in effect be giving scholarships to illegal aliens which will be called "partial tuition waivers".
"On Thursday, Senate Education Committee Chairman John Legg said he and Latvala were working on revisions to the proposal. For example, instead of allowing undocumented students to be considered "residents for tuition purposes," the bill would grant partial tuition waivers to undocumented students."

FLIMEN Note: The quote below seems to be mostly folly. If Senators Legg and Latvala don't want legal students to be displaced then they should have the guts and principles to oppose SB1400. The only other solution would be for Senators Legg and Latvala to raise an unknown amount of taxes from an unknown source to fund an unknown number of college slots that will be taken over by an unknown number of illegal alien students.
"Legg and Latvala were also working on language that would make sure no Florida residents were displaced by undocumented students."

FLIMEN Note: The quote below deals with a core issue that is seldom discussed. Senator Baxley naively accepts the premise that residency is more important than citizenship, a trend that is becoming commonplace especially among Democrats. Senator Baxley, aren't you saying that the rule of law, legal students and citizenship are trumped by residency? Michael Cutler correctly has declared that USA is already in a state of 'immigration anarchy.' When residency trumps legality and citizenship, aren't we heading faster in that direction?
"I struggled voting for this," said Baxley, who represents a conservative district in Central Florida. "But if you live in Florida, you should pay in-state tuition."

http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/blog/florida-republicans-democrats...:

FLIMEN Note: The quote below deals with the Democratic reaction to Governor Scott's support of SB1400. Governor Scott, if your position is interpreted as pandering which it will be given your millions in pro-enforcement campaign ads, won't the benefits of pandering accrue mainly, if not only, to the biggest panderer and might significant numbers from your angry base go fishing on election day?
"For three years, Rick Scott hasn't been treating young, undocumented immigrants like people -- now, he's treating them like political pawns," said Florida Democratic Party Chair Allison Tant.

http://www.thefloridacurrent.com/article.cfm?id=36822544:
FLIMEN Note: Wow, congratulations Rep. Jamie Grant for fully understanding the issue and for voting to protect the rightful college slots of legal college students!!
"Of the House bill, Rep. Jamie Grant, R-Tampa, said he voted no because the bill needed some work.

"There are a finite number of seats in a state university; there's some with a finite number of seats for in-state tuition," Grant said. "When I look at people at home - the people who sent me up here, how do I look at them and say in the most surgical manner possible balance both sides of those concerns to make sure that every child does have an opportunity that we're describing.""

http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2014/03/13/the-gop-and-rick-scott...:

"It's not entirely clear what Scott is up to, but this has the feel of an election-year conversion that is more likely to anger right-wing opponents of immigration than it will entice Hispanic voters to vote for him. If so and if Scott winds up losing to the former Republican-turned-independent-turned-Democrat Crist, then it is likely that conservatives will blame it on the governor's lack of principles rather than on faulty policies."

"Given the desire of conservatives to turn out to send a message to Washington against President Obama and especially ObamaCare, perhaps it's smart politics for Scott to risk a backlash from conservatives. But his decision to break down and start mending fences with those who want a softer approach to illegal immigration has an air of desperation about it."
Appropriations Committee Video Link:
http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/VideoPlayer.aspx?eventID=2443575804_2...

FLIMEN Note: Waste of time as there was no real debate on the issue because Republicons wimped out. Rep. Nunez trashed opponents of her bill (13:47) as a "boisterous minority" who spread "false and misleading information." She claimed the issue was "not about immigration."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talking Points:

* State you oppose HB851/SB1400 because it provides more benefits for illegal aliens while immigration laws are still so blatantly not enforced.

* Ask the Representative, Senator or Governor how many legal students will be displaced illegal alien students. Throw out some numbers like 5K, 50K, 100K.
The answer is unknown because Staff Analysis states "The fiscal impact is indeterminate as it is difficult to identify the number of students who meet the criteria outlined in the bill."
* Ask the Representative, Senator or Governor how much it will cost to subsidize college tuition for illegal aliens. Throw out some numbers like, $50 million, $500 million, $1 billion.
The answer is unknown because Staff Analysis states "The fiscal impact is indeterminate as it is difficult to identify the number of students who meet the criteria outlined in the bill."

FLIMEN Note 1: HB851/SB1400 also includes two other provisions that FLIMEN does not necessarily oppose but when a bill contains provisions as egregious as HB851 then it makes sense to oppose the entire bill. FLIMEN does not object to in-state tuition rates for citizens (via birthright citizenship) or veterans but strenuously objects to in-state tuition for non-citizens ("undocumented immigrants").

FLIMEN Note 2: The Staff Analysis clearly states that federal law prohibits reduced tuition rates for any group unless reduced tuition rates are extended to all US citizens. The deceitful wording of the HB851/SB1400 as well as tuition policies of several Florida state-funded colleges use deceitful wording in an attempt to bypass federal law.

March 14, 2014

FLORDIA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 

District 11 Rep. Janet Adkins (Nassau & Part of Duval)

 Phone [phone] or [phone] or [phone]

313 House Office Building, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

905 S. 8th St., Fernandina Beach, FL 32034 or

11 North 3^rd St., Jacksonville Beach, FL 32250, Email to [e-mail]

 

District 12 Rep. Lake Ray (Part of Duval) Phone [phone] or [phone]

402 House Office Building, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

1615 Huffingham Rd., Suite 1, Jacksonville, FL 32216, Email to [e-mail]

 

District 13 Rep. Reggie Fullwood (Part of Duval) [phone] or [phone]

1401 The Capitol, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

101 E. Union St., Suite 402, Jacksonville, FL 32202, Email to [e-mail]

 

District 14 Rep. Mia Jones (Part of Duval) Phone [phone] or [phone]

316 The Capitol, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

3890 Dunn Ave., Suite 901, Jacksonville, FL 32218, Email to [e-mail]

 

District 15 Rep. Daniel Davis (Part of Duval) Phone [phone] or [phone]

204 House Office Building, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

4000 St. Johns Ave., Suite 13D, Jacksonville, FL 32205, Email to [e-mail]

 

District 16 Rep. Charles McBurney (Part of Duval) Phone [phone] or [phone]

222 The Capitol, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

76 South Laura St., Suite 200, Jacksonville, FL 32202, Email to [e-mail]

 

District 17 Rep. Ronald Renuart (Part of St. Johns) Phone [phone] or [phone]

204 House Office Bldg., 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

814 A1A North, Suite 307, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082

Email to [e-mail]

 

District 18 Rep. W. Travis Cummings (Part of Clay) Phone [phone] or [phone]

1102 The Capitol, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1300 or

580 Wells Rd., Suite 2, Orange Park, FL 32073, Email to [e-mail]

 

Dist 24 Rep. Travis Hutson (Flagler, Part St Johns/Volusia) Phone [phone] or 386 446-7644

1102 The Capitol, 402 S. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399 or

4875 Palm Coast Parkway Northwest, Unit 5, Palm Coast, FL 32137,

Complete email form at: http://www.myfloridahouse.gov  for Rep. Hutson

For Representatives not listed above:

Find your Florida State Representatives here:

http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Representatives/representati...

There are four more action items coming over the next few days. I do no predict any slowing of our work..

Thank you for your continued support on this and all issues.

God Bless You and May God Bless Our America.

Leanne

[Leanne King]

These leaders need convincing, or a reminder, that giving the same tuition to illegal immigrants as we do to our military is not acceptable.
Senator John Thrasher [e-mail]
Senator Latvala [e-mail]
Rep. Doug Broxson [e-mail]
Rep.Matt Gaetz [e-mail]
Governor Rick Scott [e-mail]

[Leanne King]

UPDATE....3/19  More calls are needed and if you have facebook get to their pages and tell them what you think.

Immigrant tuition proposal barely passes Senate Education Committee
The immigrant tuition bill narrowly won the support of the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday –- but significant challenges remain ahead.
The proposal, which would allow some undocumented students to pay in-state tuition rates at Florida colleges and universities, received a favorable vote after Education Committee Chairman John Legg and bill sponsor Sen. Jack Latvala made a number of revisions.
Among the changes: the removal of language allowing undocumented students to be considered “residents for tuition purposes.” The bill now seeks to grant partial tuition waivers to undocumented students.
The change was important, Legg explained last week, because it will prevent undocumented students from receiving benefits other than tuition.
Another revision will lock in the current in-state residency percentage so undocumented students do not push out Florida residents.
Latvala acknowledged that the debate was still politically charged.
“This was a difficult decision for me to make to sponsor this bill,” Latvala said. “As a Republican who has an election this year, I have all of the same issues that other members of my party have. I have a lot of emails, a lot of Facebook comments from people who don’t agree with me.”
But he noted that the parents of undocumented students are Florida taxpayers.
“These parents pay the same sales taxes, the same gas taxes and many of the other taxes that we who have students who qualify for in-state tuition, pay” Latvala said. “It’s time to end that disparity. It’s time to provide that equity for all of our Florida high school graduates.”
The 5-4 vote was closer than Latvala expected.
Supporting the proposal: Democratic Sens. Dwight Bullard, of Miami; Bill Montford, of Tallahassee; and Maria Lorts Sachs, of Delray Beach. Republican Sens. John Legg, of Trinity, and David Simmons, of Altamonte Springs, also voted favorably.
Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, voted against the measure.
“This body just passed tuition for military veterans,” Brandes said. “These people have gone above and beyond, have sacrificed for our country. Now, we are debating giving the same reward and the same treatment to undocumented students who have not reached that same high bar.”
Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, a Ft. Myers Republican who is running for U.S. Congress, did not speak up, but issued her reasons for voting against the measure in statement.
“I oppose forcing law-abiding Florida families to subsidize the tuition of those whose families’ first act in the U.S. was breaking our immigration laws,” Benacquisto wrote. “SB 1400 creates incentives for illegal immigration and I will vote no when it comes to a vote in the Senate Education Committee this morning.”
Two other "no" votes came from Sens. Bill Galvano and Sen. Kelli Stargel.
Galvano's vote presents a problem for the bill's supporters.
Galvano chairs the Senate Education Appropriations Subcommittee, where the bill is supposed to head next. After the meeting Monday, Galvano said he had not decided whether he would hear the bill in his committee.
Latvala says the bill should get special consideration because it is a priority for House Speaker Will Weatherford.
“I have to believe this will get all the way to the floor,” Latvala said. “And I’ve got the votes on the floor.”
The bill still differs from the House version, which offers undocumented students “residency for tuition purposes." The two bills also different on language about college tuition for all students. The Senate version would prevent universities and college from raising tuition above the amount set by the Florida Legislature. The House version seeks to cap the "tuition differential" at 6 percent.
The bill will be heard on the House floor on Wednesday.

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2014/03/immigrant-tuit...