Sunburn — The Morning Read Of What’s Hot In Florida Politics — 3.31.22

By Peter Schorsch

Good Thursday morning

The Florida Chamber Safety Council’s Southeastern Leadership Conference on Safety, Health + Sustainability begins in earnest Thursday.

After opening Wednesday with an extensive offering of professional development courses, the second edition of the annual conference is welcoming a slate of safety, health, and sustainability leaders from Florida and the Southeast scheduled to speak on how Florida can become a national leader in workplace safety.

The Thursday schedule begins with a keynote from someone who could be considered a professor emeritus of workplace safety: Mike Rowe of “Dirty Jobs” fame. He’s slotted for a 45-minute segment entitled “Safety Third.”

The day continues with remarks from Fisher Phillips partner and former OSHA head Edwin Foulke, who will speak on how business execs can lead by example and cultivate a culture of safety at the top of their organizations.

Other segments include a panel spotlighting how businesses can achieve “net zero” sustainability and how businesses can identify and navigate unseen dangers, such as psychosocial hazards.

Later, retired U.S. Navy Captain Robert Roncska, who carried the “nuclear football” for former President George W. Bush, will detail legacy culture’s “holy grail” — trust, standards, and purpose.

Near the end of Day Two, Economic Leadership Managing Partner Ted Abernathy will update attendees on where Florida stands on workplace safety, health and sustainability.

The full conference agenda is available on the Florida Chamber Safety Council’s website.

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The Economist released a new report today detailing Florida’s economic boom and the rise in stature that’s come along with it.

Though “The Sunshine State Also Rises” has a title that would probably make the late Florida resident Ernest Hemingway groan, it takes a comprehensive look at where Florida was, where it’s at and what could be in store for the future.

Author Alexandra Suich Bass opens with critical stats, such as the 15% increase in the state population during the 2010s — twice the national average — and how technology has transformed the state from “the country’s last frontier” to a peninsula rife with metropolises. But not one without significant hurdles in the near future.

“Most people looking at Florida see either sunshine or shadows: a tax- and regulation-light recipe for national success, or a cautionary tale of a ‘short-termist’ society that has ignored long-term vulnerabilities,” she writes.

The eight-part series features close looks at the boom-and-bust cycles of the state economy, Miami’s rise as a tech hub, Florida’s record as a policy thought leader, environmental issues and, of course, the state’s politics.

That topic gets double attention from Suich Bass, who writes on the state’s historic status as a purple state the two contests even non-Floridians will be watching closely come Election Day 2022 — Governor and U.S. Senate.

The series closes with a section titled “The way ahead: What Florida can teach America.” The short answer: a lot.

— SITUATIONAL AWARENESS —

—@MerriamWebster: People are talking about ‘key bumps,’ and so we have a duty to tell you some things about this.

—@JimmyPatronis: Had a great meeting with @FLOIR_comm Commissioner David Altmaier on what we can do to fight premium increases. Look forward to working with @GovRonDeSantis to rein in rates, continue to fight fraud and abuse, and protect consumers

—@SpencerRoachFL: Yesterday was the 2nd meeting in a week w/fellow legislators to discuss a repeal of the 1967 Reedy Creek Improvement Act, which allows Disney to act as its own government. If Disney wants to embrace woke ideology, it seems fitting that they should be regulated by Orange County.

—@Mike_Grieco: Just confirming: California Corporate Executives are bad … BUT Nevada Gambling Executives are …? (I’ll wait)

—@AnthonyClose: Perhaps if conservatives get mad enough at Disney, they’ll reconsider the program that gives corporations like them huge tax breaks that otherwise could fund public services Last year the program made Disney eligible for the largest tax break in FL history

—@LisPower1: Today on Fox News, the main narrative is that Disney/Disney World is an extremist woke organization that parents should be worried about because it’s dangerous for children, indoctrinating them, and sexualizing them. Absolutely insane shit.

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