Crist meets with farm workers, promises help

Southwest Florida farm workers Wednesday urged Gov. Charlie Crist to act to eliminate slave-labor conditions in agriculture.

Crist said the injustice and arrogance of the situation has angered him, and that he would have a statement on the situation in a few days.

“That concerns me greatly,” Crist said after the meeting. “We want to be a continuing partner to help.”

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Crist: Stimulus plan a boon to Florida

By Jim Ash

Tallahassee – Gov. Charlie Crist, President Barack Obama’s favorite Republican cheerleader, said Monday the state can expect to rake in more than $12.2 billion over the next three years from the federal stimulus package just passed by Congress.

“It passed with great gratitude from Florida,” Crist said.

 It’s still not clear whether Florida will have to ask for special permission from the federal government to claim $3.6 billion in education dollars. A feature of the federal plan denies education money to states like Florida that have slashed their school budgets.
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Crist proposes cuts, sweeps to make up $2.3 billion gap

Gov. Charlie Crist has proposed spending cuts, sweeping trust funds for extra money, using Seminole gambling money and borrowing to build prisons to meet a projected $2.3 billion shortfall in the state’s spending plan.

The Legislature is set to meet in special session starting Jan. 5 to fix the budget. An economy in recession and a burst housing bubble has continued to drain tax revenue.

Crist’s proposal, released this afternoon, includes $561.5 million in spending cuts.

It pulls extra money from a variety of sources. The biggest is $600 million from the Lawton Chiles Endowment Trust Fund, set up with a portion of proceeds from the state’s settlement in tobacco litigation.

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Crist gives state workers two days off; Dec. 26 and Jan. 2

As a holiday thank-you to state employees, Gov. Charlie Crist today announced that Florida government will shut down on the Fridays after Christmas and New Year’s Day.

Since the holidays fall on Thursdays, the governor said, a lot of employees use a vacation day for a long weekend. But with the state budget tightening, excluding any pay raises or other improvements in benefits over the past few legislative sessions, Crist said he wanted to show appreciation for state workers.

He also paid tribue to state Rep. Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda, D-Tallahassee, who suggested the paid time off. She joined Crist at a news conference and said she’d tried for a week or two, but was glad to get employees the two days.

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