Press Release:
The second week of Session has been a very productive week in the Florida Legislature. I have had several pieces of legislation successfully move through their respective committees on their way to the House Floor and I am presently working on several major issues of great importance to the panhandle region.
HM 679 – Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster/Federal Income Tax
On Wednesday, March 23rd, my House Memorial, HM679, passed with unanimous support from the House Subcommittee on Federal Affairs. HM679 addresses the tragic oil spill that has plagued the businesses and livelihoods of people in our community. This memorial would officially reflect that the Florida House of Representatives urges Congress to adopt measures currently proposed in the U.S. Senate to assist affected citizens by exempting their oil spill compensation payments from Federal Income Tax and to assist fishing and tourism businesses in recouping losses by extending the period of time they are able to write those losses off of their income taxes. I believe this good legislation will send a strong message to Congress that we are still suffering in the Panhandle of Florida and it will keep the focus on assisting our community.
HB 1121 – Financial Institutions
We are also focusing on the devastating effects of the financial collapse. My financial services bill, HB1121, passed out of the Banking and Insurance Subcommittee of the House with unanimous support on Wednesday. This legislation addresses critical failures in our current Finance Code and provides the Office of Financial Regulation in Florida with more flexibility to assist distressed financial institutions. This bill will make sure that when a handful of banks approach collapse the situation will not spiral out of control and cripple the financial sector of the region and possibly even the State as a whole.
HB 445 – Wellness or Health Improvement Programs
I have also addressed the topic of health-care with my proposed legislation, HB445, which passed through its second committee on Wednesday with unanimous support. This piece of legislation allows health insurance companies to provide discounts and incentives for individuals to voluntarily join wellness programs such as smoking cessation classes or gyms. This common sense legislation will give incentives for many people to get healthy, which reduces the costly burden of our over-grown health-care system on taxpayers in Escambia County as well as throughout the State.
HB 457 – Fertilizer
We have been working tirelessly on another piece of legislation, HB457 relating to the regulation of fertilizer. This legislation has attracted a lot of attention because of the sincere concern for the quality of our waterways. Because of this understandable concern, I have been working closely with advocates of our natural resources including the Florida Audubon Society and the Sierra Club, as well as advocates of the Cities, Counties, and Water Management Districts. I want to ensure that a fair compromise is reached that respects the views of all stakeholders involved. I am committed to working with both proponents and opponents of any legislation that I propose and I am confident that we will reach an amicable solution with this bill.
HB 1309 – Economic Recovery from the Deepwater Horizon Disaster
Finally, I have been working with State Representative Marti Coley in proposing HB1309. This is the critical piece of legislation that addresses oil spill recovery in the panhandle. Among other things this bill provides tax refund payments for certain businesses, provides appropriations for economic recovery efforts, and requires OTTED to contract with Florida’s Great Northwest, Inc., to develop and implement economic development program in specified counties.
That is the wrap-up of the progress I have made to-date in Tallahassee representing the great people of Escambia County. As the following week moves forward I anticipate that HB999 will be placed on the agenda in the Insurance and Banking Subcommittee. This aims to provide more options for the deposit of public funds and also to increase competition in that market. Furthermore, my office is looking into remedies to the current home-owners insurance situation in our area impacting home-owners with aluminum wired homes. As these issues move forward we will provide updates and we are open to any suggestions.
As always, I encourage any constituent to contact me with any questions or concerns about any legislative matters.
Sincerely,
Clay Ingram
State Representative, District 2