(Tallahassee, Florida) Newly released financial data by the Tallahassee group Integrity Florida shows that holding public office is profitable work in Florida.

After analysis of state lawmakers’ sources of income, assets and liabilities, the Bradenton Herald/Tampa Bay Times reported that state senators in Florida grow their wealth by an average of about $800,000 after assuming office. By contrast, members of the Florida House had their net worths decrease by about $100,000 on average and saw their investments decline, according to the report.

The report also added that lawmakers are required to file financial disclosure forms after a vote that has potential to give them personal financial gain. Despite the requirement, only 12 lawmakers filed forms during the past legislative session out of a 160-member legislature.

(Orlando, Florida) – President Barack Obama has rescheduled his visit to Orlando for Thursday afternoon.

Obama was originally scheduled to visit Rollins College on July 20, but canceled his visit due to the shootings at a move theater in Aurora, Colo.

The president will travel to visit the Harold and Ted Alfond Sports Center at Rollins College on Aug. 2.

Doors to the event will open at noon, and those with tickets to the July 20 canceled campaign event can retrieve their tickets at 5 p.m. on July 31 at four different locations.

(Orlando, Florida) – Veteran Affairs officials told U.S. Rep. John Mica on Monday that construction costs of the new Orlando VA Medical Center are on track, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

Congress set aside $665 million for the 1.2 million-square-foot medical center, which is expected to be the largest VA hospital in the U.S. But in March, representatives of the project’s main contractor, Brasfield & Gorrie, said the project was running at least $120 million over budget.

The medical center was originally planned to open in October, but has been delayed, with officials now targeting completion for summer 2013. However, Brasfield & Gorrie is targeting completion of the project by the end of 2014.

On Monday, VA officials overseeing the project made it clear that the agency won’t be asking Congress for additional funds and that the hospital and clinic are 67 percent complete.

FoxNews.com

The M1911 Colt .45

(Hartford, Connecticut) – The Colt .45 M1911 is making a big comeback, now that the U.S. Marines have placed a $22.5 million order for the Connecticut-made pistols.

It’s been called the greatest handgun ever made, and it has barely changed sine 1911, when the legendary John Browning designed it especially for the U.S. Military.

And now, the Colt .45 M1911 is making a big comeback, now that the U.S. Marines have placed a $22.5 million order for the Connecticut-made pistols.

The gun, which has been wielded on film by John Wayne and in real life by Sgt. Alvin York and Maj. Audie Murphy, was the standard-issue sidearm in the military for decades, until it was replaced by the Beretta M9 in 1985.

“It just became an iconic part of military and American history,” Gerry Dinkel, CEO and president of Colt Defense, told FoxNews.com.

The gun, one of the most successful pistols ever used at Camp Perry’s National Matches, a competition known to be the main world event in artillery sports, has barely changed since it’s creation. Dinkel says that shows the gun’s “elegant design” just can’t be improved on. And firearms experts agree.

“You can’t beat a .45 cartridge,” Jack Lewis, firearms director for Cowan’s Auctions, told FoxNews.com. “Some things are hard to replace,” he said.

Colt Defense, based in Hartford, Conn., will supply as many as 12,000 of the 200,000 U.S. Marines with semi-automatic, tan-colored M45 Close Quarter Battle Pistols, and they will include spare parts and logistical support. The gun has long been the weapon of choice for special operations agents, thanks to its reliability and the stopping power of its massive bullets.

“I’m really glad that they’re keeping it in the American economy,” Lewis, who used the gun while he was in the armed forces, said. “I was quite upset when they went to the Beretta,” Lewis said.

Some reports suggest Marines are not happy with their main Beretta M9s for their lack of accuracy and stopping power. With M1911′s now supplying Special Ops, growing interest may lead to a better solution.

“To have the 1911 selected again for U. S. Forces 101 years after its initial introduction is just an incredible testament to the timeless design and effectiveness of the Colt 1911,” Dinkel said. “This is truly a gratifying contract award.”

(Orlando, Florida) – Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer‘s son could be facing a misdemeanor citation after he told Orlando Police his brakes failed and he struck a College Park home, WFTV.com is reporting.

Drew Dyer, 17, was driving an Infiniti about 1 a.m., ran a stop sign and crashed into a home near New Hampshire Street and Gerda Terrace in College Park.

Dyer told the news station that his son left the scene after talking to the homeowner and was not under the influence of any controlled substances. Orlando Police are investigating.

(Celebration, Florida) The Tea Party of Florida, the state’s largest tea party and the only officially recognized political party bearing the tea party moniker, has issued its first round of endorsements for Florida’s upcoming August 14^th primary.

Dr. John Long, Chairman of the Tea Party has recommended the following candidates for Central Florida office:

US Congress, District 9 – Todd Long (Orange, Osceola & Polk)

Orange Osceola State Attorney – Jeff Ashton

Orange Osceola Circuit Judge – Daniel Perry

Orange County Tax Collector – Jim Duffy

Brevard County Clerk of Courts – Mitch Needelman

Osceola County Commissioner – Tony Ferentinos

Marion County School Superintendent – Jackie Porter

A NO vote on Marion County school tax increase

Visit their website at www.TeaPartyofFlorida.us for a complete list.

Special to Central Florida Politics by Bill Thompson Staff writer

(Washington, DC) – Proponents of making the nation’s central bank open its books have won a major victory.

On Wednesday, the House overwhelmingly passed a bill that calls for a full audit of the Federal Reserve’s governors and individual banks.

The measure, proposed by Rep. Ron Paul, a Texas Republican and GOP presidential candidate, seeks to pull back the curtain on the policies the Federal Reserve employed to cover big commercial banks that were facing mounting losses from foreclosures at the height of the recession.

A Senate version, proposed by Paul’s son, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, has yet to come to a vote.

If the audit proposal is eventually enacted, it would mandate the most expansive review of the Federal Reserve’s ledgers in the agency’s 99-year history.

The current measure, which passed the House by a 327-89 margin, builds on legislation Paul introduced in 2009.

That bill eventually garnered 320 co-sponsors, including more than 100 Democrats, who were encouraged to support the audit by then-Congressman Alan Grayson of Orlando.

Grayson, who represented part of eastern Marion County during his time in the House, took special pleasure in Wednesday’s outcome.

He pointed out in an interview that Ron Paul first proposed an audit of the Federal Reserve almost 30 years ago but could not even get lawmakers to conduct a hearing on the idea.

Grayson added that he helped the plan gain traction, especially among Democrats, by advocating for it from his perch on the House Financial Services Committee.

That 2009 bill passed and was later rolled into the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

But it severely restricted the areas government auditors could investigate.

Despite the Dodd-Frank provision, according to a House report on the latest version of Paul’s bill, the Federal Reserve could still shield plenty of information about its dealings.

That included transactions with foreign central banks or governments, its deliberations or actions on monetary policy matters and communications between the Federal Reserve’s governors and their employees regarding any of those activities.

The new measure would strip away such protection.

Grayson noted that the Government Accountability Office, even with limited auditing power, still discovered the Federal Reserve had loaned $26 trillion in bailouts to banks around the world.

“The Fed departed from its traditional role in buying and selling securities,” Grayson observed. “And while the report didn’t get the attention it truly deserved, the first audit showed how much the Fed played favorites, putting Wall Street over Main Street and big banks over little banks.”

In some instances, Grayson said, the major banks whose executives sat on the regional Federal Reserve boards got bailout money while small banks in those jurisdictions got nothing.

According to that House report, when Wall Street giant Lehman Brothers went belly up in September 2008, the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet showed $900 billion, an amount that was accumulated over more than 90 years.

Seven weeks after Lehman Brothers collapsed, the bank’s balance sheet had doubled to $1.8 trillion, the report notes.

Within another six weeks, it stood at $2.4 trillion.

Even as the nation began clawing its way out of the recession, the Federal Reserve has continued to dole out money.

As of last month, its balance sheet was reported at $3 trillion, according to the House report.

“This expansion occurred primarily through unconventional means of influencing the money supply,” including deals with Europe’s central bank, the report states. “These actions can profoundly affect the economic and fiscal health of the United States, and Congress should have greater access to information about them.”

Grayson suggested that if Paul’s measure becomes law and a full audit is conducted, the public would learn that the Federal Reserve has continued to play favorites with taxpayers’ money.

“People need to know how their money is being spent,” said Grayson, who was ousted in a 2010 re-election bid by Republican Daniel Webster. “Our wealth is being transferred to Wall Street on a very large scale,” added Grayson, who seeks to return to the House in a new Orlando-area district created during this year’s redistricting process.

The Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2012, as Paul’s bill is known, had 274 co-sponsors prior to Wednesday’s vote.

That roster included all three Republicans who represent Marion County: Webster and Reps. Cliff Stearns and Rich Nugent.

In a statement, Stearns said, “Creating this ‘money’ has to have an economic impact on the United States, and we need greater transparency into the operations of the Federal Reserve.”

“The American people should have insight into how the Federal Reserve exercises its authority, and Congress should demand greater accountability and transparency.”

One Republican joined 88 Democrats in voting against it.

Among the dissenters was Rep. Corrine Brown, a Jacksonville Democrat who also represents Marion County.

Contact Bill Thompson at 867-4117 or at bill.thompson@starbanner.com.

(Tallahassee, FL) – This back-to-school season, parents are likely to be looking for relief where ever they can find it. And what better place than at the store sales counter?

This year’s Sales Tax Holiday, which exempts the sales of some school supplies and clothing from sales taxes, will take place Aug. 3-5, according to the Florida Department of Revenue.

During this three-day ‘holiday’ weekend, no sales taxes will be collected on the sale of clothing, footwear and certain accessories that sell for $75 or less per item.

School supplies selling for $15 or less per item will also be exempt from sales tax, according to the department.

The exemption will apply no matter how many items are sold to the customer.

(Holland, Michigan) -  The Johnson family phone has been ringing nonstop this weekend after the story of Nathan Duszynski’s unsuccessful attempt to sell hot dogs from a mobile cart struck a nerve with readers.

Duszynski, 13, was told by city bureaucrats on Tuesday that his cart was in violation of a Holland zoning law that protects existing food businesses downtown against competition from mobile food vendors.

‘How hard is it to sell a hot dog?’ laments the 13-year-old entrepreneur.

The teenager put his cart up for sale, prompting a flood of offers, said his mother, Lynette Johnson. The family ended up selling the $2,500 cart — for which Duszynski paid half — to Bob Zucker of Shoreline Container on Thursday.

Zucker offered to cover the family’s cost and pledged to let Duszynski use the cart as much as he wants, save for a handful of days the company needs it for events, said Johnson.

“Nathan is feeling much better now,” Johnson said. “He’s very excited he can still use it.”

The family will finalize the agreement and deliver the cart to the company Friday. The company plans to let Duszynski use the cart free of charge.

“We got tons of phone calls,” she said. “The phone has been ringing off the hook with offers and people who wanted to say nothing else other than they wished more kids were like Nate.”

Duszynski’s initiative struck a chord with citizens, who overwhelmingly supported the teenager’s attempt to start a business at an age when most boys are more interested in video games.

Readers encouraged Duszynski to “keep up the fight” while simultaneously blasting the zoning ordinance that he ran afoul of. Mobile food vendors have to be located adjacent to, and be a part of an existing business that already has a food service license. Duszynski is too young for a “peddler’s” license that would have allowed the cart to operate as long as it stayed in place no longer than 10 minutes.

“If I had any advice for this kid I would find the zoning border to where I could set-up shop and I would plant my cart 1 inch from that border,” wrote reader fonzarelly.

Many simply blamed “overregulation” by local government, but reader Archer felt that it was more complicated.

“The problem is not so much over regulation. The problem is the system makes it difficult to know what all the regulations are. The family thought they had jumpedthrough all the proper hoops and were ready to go, but were tripped up by a separate zoning issue that didn’t come up until after they had all the other permits and paper work ready. It would’ve been better if the government made it easy to know all the regulations that are likely to cause problems ahead of time instead of forcing you to learn them as you go.”

The city says they tried to reach the Johnson family when they realized there may have been an issue with the zoning after the family came in to get paperwork squared away, but a miscommunication caused the message to fall though.

Some readers noted that laws which zone mobile vendors to the fringes of downtown keep such vendors from the place where they could be most successful. Others, like reader Rikkitikkitembo, expressed sympathy for Duszynski but acknowledged the reason for such zoning laws.

“Man, this is a tough story because both sides have such valid points. I have to lean toward the establishments based on the taxes they pay. They have a larger capitol investment than this kid, but then again business is about low overhead and maximum profits. Maybe the kid is just a better businessman (kind of scary). Either way I support this kids drive and determination GREAT JOB KID! America needs more young people like you. I foresee someone stepping up to help this kids cause.”

Duszynski’s step-father, Douglas Johnson, said he is drafting a petition to present to the Holland City Council aimed at changing the zoning law in some way. The council met on Wednesday but the hot dog cart did not come up during discussions.

Johnson said he’s also planning to lobby in Lansing for amendments to the Youth Employment Standards Act of 1978 to allow greater latitude for teenagers under the age of 16 who want to work.

“We need to look at the old, version, the new version, see what works, what doesn’t and make some changes,” he said.

(Tallahassee, Florida) – Former House Speaker Ray Sansom is suing the state, saying he should be reimbursed for the costs of defending himself against corruption charges that were eventually dropped.

Sansom is asking for $817,518.73, plus interest, for his defense in the case that ultimately drove him from office. Sansom faced charges including grand theft and conspiracy in the case, which stemmed from a 2007 appropriation that was supposed to be for an emergency operations center in Sansom’s district.

Prosecutor Willie Meggs argued at trial that it was really a thinly-disguised effort to build a taxpayer-funded airplane hangar for Jay Odom, a political contributor to Sansom.

Meggs gave up on the case after Circuit Judge Terry Lewis said he didn’t believe prosecutors had made any progress in their attempt to prove a conspiracy by Sansom and Odom to steal taxpayer money, which Meggs said made it difficult to move forward with the case procedurally.

This followed the court dismissal of all charges from an original set of indictments that Meggs brushed aside and got new indictments from a different angle.

Now, the former speaker is asking taxpayers to foot the bill for Sansom’s hiring of Dobson, Davis & Smith, which billed Sansom anywhere from $275 to $400 an hour for the services of five lawyers as well as $75 an hour for work done by paralegals. Sansom also agreed to pay expenses for the legal team.

In the suit, filed Tuesday, attorneys with another law firm, Broad and Cassel, argue that Sansom has a right to the funds under a common law principle that any public official who successfully defends himself or herself from charges related to his public duties is entitled to have legal costs covered.

The charges against Sansom were “directly related to Plaintiff’s performance of his public duties and arose out of the context of passing an appropriation act that served a public purpose,” the attorneys argue.

“The public official’s entitlement to reimbursement is an obligation which arises independent of statute or contract and is not subject to discretion,” the suit says.

The bills aren’t broken down by Sansom beyond the $50,000 retainer and another $767,518.73 in costs the law firm rang up from April 29, 2009 until the case was dropped in late March 2011.

Meggs’ decision to drop the case ended what was then a four-year saga that toppled Sansom, R-Destin, who had only briefly served as speaker when he decided to take a leave of absence from the job. Amid a growing Republican clamor led by Former House Leader Adam Hasner to resolve the caucus’ leadership situation, Sansom resigned.  Many GOP observers now believe that Hasner put his own run for US Congress ahead of the reality of the prosecutorial misconduct in the Sansom case.

A spokesman for current House Speaker Dean Cannon, R-Winter Park, said the speaker was out of the state and couldn’t be reached for comment.

In addition to the expenses for the criminal case and interest, Sansom is asking that the state be forced to pay his legal fees for the new lawsuit itself.