CURRENTS April 2018 | Page 3

Currents April 2018 3 Tally Actions 2018 Legislative Actions S tate legislators filed about 1,747 bills in the 2018 leg- islative  session. Only 11.2 per- cent, or 196 bills, were passed by both the House and Senate chambers, and fewer remained post Governor Scott’s Line Item Veto of $64 million. One local item fail to the Veto Pen: Blount Road Streetscape Improvements Project - Pompano Beach - $250,000. But on the plus side, Broward College received $20,622,026. The 2019 Session will begin in January - Starts the 2020 legisla- tive session in January. Sessions typically start in March, but the  Florida  Constitution allows lawmakers to approve a January start in even-numbered years, when elections take place and lawmakers want to return to the campaign trail sooner. Lawmak- ers can't raise campaign cash during the 60-day  session. The only positive ethics vote, as all other reforms failed by party line vote. For instance: CABINET - FAILED: Prohibits Cabinet mem- bers from accepting campaign contributions during regular or extended legislative sessions. Oddities: Florida joins the civilized States by passing the Child Mar- riage Act: Prohibits those younger than 18 from getting married in Florida but allows nar- row exceptions for 17-year-olds who can still marry those within two years of them if they take a premarital preparation course, sign a sworn affidavit confirming the union is not coerced and receive counseling if it involves a pregnancy. At the same time legislators felt compelled to allow predatory lenders to move their thievery up a notch: Payday Loans: Allows payday lenders to make install- ment loans of $1,000 with repay- ment over 60 to 90 days; previ- ous law limited loans to $500 with repayment of seven days to a month. They tried to sooth the issue with a small balm: Credit Report- ing Fees: Eliminates the $10 fee that credit reporting companies charge to place a freeze on your credit. Laughable, but needed. Fracking - Failed: Bans the oil- and natural-gas drilling known as fracking.  This issue must be raised each session to keep it in the news. Victims: Shields the home addresses of victims of mass vio- lence. Resign-To-Run: Requires elected officials to resign their continued on page 5 > S TOP Y OUR W INDOW L EAK P ROBLEMS Be Hu Prepa re rr Fi x you icane d for t r W Sea he NO indow son W! Lea ks Dried out gaskets and window stripping will cause window leaks. I have the proper window stripping to repair all types of windows. I also do Screening, Wrol-up Repair and Sliding Glass Doors. E FRE ATES M I EST C ALL P ATRICK Cell No. 954-829-4348 [email protected] FPL Independent Participating Contractor 3621 Washington Street • Hollywood, FL 33021