Florida Government and Politics Weekly Update

Economy: Florida Unemployment Continues to Rise, Reaching 10.6 Percent in June 2009
On July 17, 2009, the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation announced that the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for June 2009 was 10.6 percent, up 0.3 of a percentage point from the revised May 2009 Florida unemployment rate of 10.3 percent.

Out of a total workforce of 9.2 million, 970,000 Floridians were without jobs in June. The June 2009 figure represented a 4.6-percentage-point increase over the Florida unemployment rate for June 2008. The last time Florida’s unemployment rate was higher was in October 1975, when unemployment in the state reached 11.0 percent.

The gap between the Florida unemployment rate and the national unemployment rate may be growing. From 2002 through 2007, the unemployment rate in Florida was consistently lower than the national average, but the Florida unemployment rate has exceeded the national rate each month since the beginning of 2008. In June, when the national unemployment rate rose to 9.5 percent, the gap between the Florida rate and the national rate increased to 1.1 percentage points. Florida’s May unemployment rate was .08 of a percentage point higher than the national rate.

The counties with the lowest unemployment levels were Liberty County (5.5 percent), Franklin and Monroe County (6.6 percent each), Walton (6.7 percent), Okaloosa County (7.1 percent), and Leon and Wakulla counties (7.2 percent each). The Agency for Workforce Innovation noted that most of the low-unemployment counties have a high percentage of government employees or a strong summer tourism season. The agency also noted that continued weakness in construction and manufacturing explain unemployment rates in the high-unemployment counties, including Flagler County (15.5 percent), Indian River and St. Lucie counties (14.1 percent each), Hendry County (13.9 percent), Hernando County (13.1 percent), and Lee County (13.0 percent).

Forty of the state’s 67 counties had unemployment rates of 10 percent or more in June 2009, up from 33 counties in the previous month.

Politics: Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp Enters Republican Race for Attorney General
Republican Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp announced on July 19, 2009, that he will officially enter the contest for the Republican nomination for state attorney general.

Lt. Gov. Kottkamp represented the Fort Myers area in the state House of Representatives from 2000 through 2006. While in the Legislature, Mr. Kottkamp also was a partner in the Morgan & Morgan personal injury law firm.

The only other announced Republican candidate for attorney general is Jim Lewis, a Fort Lauderdale attorney. Press reports have indicated that Orlando attorney Will McBride, a primary candidate for U.S. Senate in 2006, also might enter the race. Former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio (R-West Miami), who is currently running against Governor Charlie Crist in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, was reportedly in discussions with some fundraisers about a possible switch from the U.S. Senate race to the state attorney general’s race. Mr. Rubio denied those reports, stating “Those things have been going around since the very beginning of the campaign. I’m a U.S. Senate candidate, that’s what I am.”

Announced Democratic candidates for attorney general include state Sen. Dave Aronberg (D-Greenacres) and state Sen. Dan Gelber (D-Miami Beach). Former state Sen. Rod Smith (D-Alachua) also is reportedly considering a run for attorney general.

Education: Board of Governors Selects Frank Brogan as Chancellor
On July 17, 2009, the Florida Board of Governors unanimously selected Frank Brogan to serve as chancellor of Florida’s state university system. For the past six years, Mr. Brogan has served as president of Florida Atlantic University.

Mr. Brogan was elected as lieutenant governor in 1988 and again in 2002, serving with Gov. Jeb Bush. Mr. Brogan also was one of Florida’s last elected education commissioners, serving from 1995 to 1999. His career in public office began as Martin County superintendent of schools.

Other candidates for the post of chancellor included former Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Roderick Chu, Florida State University Associate Professor Steve McNamara, and Ivy Tech (Indiana) Community College President Thomas Snyder. Mr. McNamara and Mr. Snyder withdrew shortly after Mr. Brogan applied for the chancellor’s position.

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